A key feature that distinguishes solidarity economy entities from private and public enterprises is the participatory and democratic nature of governance in decision-making processes as one of the main principles of the SSE sector.
[2] Ultimately, SSE represents a crucial tool in guaranteeing that social justice ideals are upheld and that the wellbeing of the most vulnerable populations is paid attention to during the planning processes.
[3] Some refer to solidarity economy as a method for naming and conceptualizing transformative monetary qualities, practices, and foundations that exist throughout the world.
[4] It is an economic formation which seeks to improve the quality of life of a region or community on the basis of solidarity, often through local business and not-for-profit endeavors.
[6] "Solidarity economy" was used as an economic organizing concept as early as 1937, when Felipe Alaiz advocated for the development of economic solidarity among worker collectives in urban and rural areas during the Spanish Civil War [7] It emerged more widely as a term in Latin America over the past twenty years in response to community and worker demands to expand forms of social inclusion and unity.
Its objective is the creation of enterprises that serve its members or the community, instead of simply striving for financial profit by prioritising people and work over capital in the distribution of revenue and surplus.
In just 31 hours, the campaign generated over 1 million USD (18,600,000 TL) and helped 57,423 people in Istanbul pay their water and gas bills.
Specialized literature[14] includes the following variables as contributing elements to the sustainability of entrepreneurship in the SSE: The RIPESS Charter[16] of the Intercontinental Network for the Promotion of Social Solidarity Economy sets out eleven core values to promote the ethical and value-based economic model: Also, sharing some of the above-mentioned points, six principles have been described in the REAS Charter for Solidarity Economy:[17] Market relation pressures – As Solidarity Economy enterprises expand, it often becomes more immersed in market relations and global value chains, making it confront new pressures that force large SSE organizations to adopt practices that are characteristic of for-profit enterprise and dilute core SSE principles.
This might be because of the types of producers that integrate organizations such as cooperatives and/or due to the fact that those with better education and skills end up dominating governance structures.
This could be made additionally difficult by the organization's membership homogeneity, misalignment of incentives between managers and members, increased reliance on external support etc.
The main difference with private sector organisations is that SEB are guided by social objectives that are reflected in their business mission and strategies and built into their structure.