The 3rd EMES-Polanyi International Seminar, co-organized by COST through the EMPOWER-SE Action, that took place in Roskilde last week was co-organized by organizations and initiatives leading research and practice inspired by the legacy of Karl Polanyi together with the EMES Network’s multi-dimensional approach to social and solidarity economy.

At a time where state and public institutions built in the last century seem to be less able to address the challenges facing societies across the globe, we like to think of these two days as a unique space to exchange original thinking and experiences. Three thought-provoking plenary sessions and 59 papers presented across 19 parallel sessions constituted the amazing program of these two days. In addition, we visited the unique Grennesminde Dome in the country side (in the picture).

Thinking critically about the transitions underway through the lenses of solidarity and reciprocity allows us to cast new light on emerging or existing dynamics and initiatives (new commons, social enterprise, etc.). Ensuring that a community of committed scholars and practitioners have the forum to share this thinking is what empowers us to continue.

We will be sharing some afterthoughts with you soon but for now, you can see some pictures on our Facebook album. Soon we will also update the event page with additional pictures and, eventually, with the Selected Conference Papers from the Seminar in the summer. You can check the ones from the previous two EMES-Polanyi Seminars here.

There was some interesting social media activity around the seminar that you can search in Twitter using the event hashtags #3EMESPolanyi and #empowerse_cost.  

 

The UK Society for Co-operative Studies will be holding its 51st Anniversary Conference next August 31-September 2, 2018 in Sheffield. Hosted by EMES institutional member Sheffield Hallam University, Sheffield Business School, the theme of the conference will be the identity of the cooperative movement, which has always wrestled with the diversity of people, places and organisational variations that have emerged under the banner of co-operation. Under the title “Diversity in Co-operation: People, Places and Organisation”, the call for presentations, papers, panels and practical activities has been launched and is available here.

A PhD Colloquium will take place on August 31, on the eve of the main conference. Fees for PhD students include both the colloquium and the main conference. As part of the EMPOWER-SE COST Action managed by EMES, a number of “ITC conference grants” are available to PhD students and Early Career Investigators from ‘Targeted Inclusiveness Countries’ (ITC) who wish to present their work on social and/or financial co-operatives at this conference. Bursaries provide up to €1,000 towards fees, travel and accommodation.

The call for ITC conference grants will be published in the end of May here.