The party identified with alter-globalization, with core principles emphasizing solidarity, ecology, feminism, and self-management (autogestion).
The movement combined several political tendencies: Following its dissolution, a minority formed Alternatives et autogestion, later participating in founding Pour une écologie populaire et sociale.
For the 2007 French presidential election, they supported a unified candidacy from the left opposing the European Constitution and anti-liberalism.
Following internal debates in 2011, they chose to leave the Fédération pour une alternative sociale et écologique and supported Jean-Luc Mélenchon in the 2012 French presidential election.
The executive body handled technical matters and met in "enlarged" formats with thematic commissions and regional representatives.