Jou nal o Cleane P oduc ion 418 (2023) 138050
A ailable online 10 July 2023
0959-6526/© 2023 The Au ho s. Published by Else ie L d. This is an open access a icle unde he CC BY-NC license (h p://c ea i ecommons.o g/licenses/by-
nc/4.0/).
Social and solida i y economy insigh s o he ci cula economy:
Limi ed-p o i and su iciency
Unai Villalba-Eguiluz
a
,
b
,
*
, Ma lyne Sahakian
c
, Ca alina Gonz´
alez-Jame
c
,
Enekoi z E xeza e a
d
,
e
a
Uni e si y o he Basque Coun y, UPV/EHU. Applied Economics Depa men , C/Comandan e Iza duy 23, 01006, Vi o ia-Gas eiz, Basque Coun y, Spain
b
HEGOA, Ins i u e o De elopmen S udies and In e na ional Coope a ion, C/ Lehendaka i Agi e 83, 48015, Bilbao, Basque Coun y, Spain
c
Uni e si y o Gene a, Ins i u e o Sociological Resea ch, 40 Boule a d du Pon d’A e, 1204, Gene a, Swi ze land
d
Uni e si y o he Basque Coun y, UPV/EHU. Applied Economics Depa men , Plaza O˜
na i 1, 20018, Donos ia-San Sebas ian, Basque Coun y, Spain
e
GEZKI, Ins i u e o Coope a i e Law and Social Economy, Plaza Elhuya , 2. Despacho A-4, 20018, Donos ia-San Sebas ian, Basque Coun y, Spain
ARTICLE INFO
Handling Edi o : Gio anni Baiocchi
ABSTRACT
Gi en he call o socie al ans o ma ions o os e sus ainabili y ansi ions, we conside in wha way he Social
and Solida i y Economy (SSE) con ibu es o a mo e ci cula socie y. We build on ecen c i iques o mains eam
Ci cula Economy (CE) and engage wi h he no ion o su iciency, wi h espec o de ining limi s o and by
socie y, in conside ing social and ecological impe a i es o e p o i mo i es. The main aim o ou a icle is o
analyse he implica ions o he no ma i e p inciples and alues o he SSE o ensu ing an in eg al ci cula i y
app oach. Fo ha pu pose, we conduc ed quali a i e esea ch in ol ing 26 in-dep h in e iews wi h 31 key
in o man s om 20 ini ia i es in wo case s udies: SSE ne wo ks in he Basque Coun y and Wes e n Swi ze land.
We e eal how one o he guiding p inciples o he SSE – limi ed-p o i – is a clea basis o a dis inc i e
ci cula i y app oach owa ds su iciency. Ou main con ibu ion is o demons a e how SSE p inciples os e
speci ic cha ac e is ics o he Su iciency-d i en Business Model (SBM) and shape an in eg al social ci cula i y
app oach. This pe spec i e on ci cula i y esul s in en i ies ha emb ace he ollowing measu es: seeking o
ans o m he economic sys em as a whole; p io i izing he implemen a ion o he mo e ans o ma i e Rs
(Re use, Re hink, Reduce); ecognizing limi ed p o i as a co e dis inc i e p inciple; minimizing o e all con-
sump ion; aising conscious consume engagemen (sa is ying needs o e wan s); os e ing s akeholde s’ coop-
e a ion and collabo a ion; and maximizing social and ecological aims o e economic p o i abili y.
Funding
The au ho s ha e no ele an inancial o non- inancial in e es s o
disclose.
1. In oduc ion
Following he p omise o ul illing sus ainabili y objec i es, in e es
in he Ci cula Economy (CE) has g own exponen ially in he las
decade, bu so ha e academia’s c i icisms o mains eam CE o ien a ions
(Ghisellini e al., 2016; Geissdoe e e al., 2017). Gaps pe sis ega ding
he CE’s con ibu ion o b oade sus ainabili y dimensions, sus ainable
de elopmen and sus ainable de elopmen goals (SDGs) (Ki chhe
e al., 2017; Milla e al., 2019; Sch ¨
ode e al., 2019a). Many au ho s
ha e poin ed ou a missing social dimension in he CE (Mu ay e al.,
2017; Ko honen e al., 2018), and ha e ecen ly explo ed elemen s o
add ess his lacuna (Padilla-Ri e a e al., 2020, Mies and Gold, 2021;
Walke e al., 2021). O he au ho s ha e a gued ha links o human
needs and social ans o ma ion conce ns we e p esen in ea lie de-
pic ions o he CE bu we e neglec ed in la e de elopmen s (Clube and
Tennan , 2020, 2023). Fu he mo e, many o hese ‘CE limi s’ connec
wi h longs anding deba es in ecological economics, such as he easi-
bili y o inde ini e economic g ow h and he need o conside economic
ac i i ies as subo dina e o biophysical dynamics. Some CE discou ses
* Co esponding au ho . Uni e si y o he Basque Coun y, UPV/EHU. Applied Economics Depa men , C/Comandan e Iza duy 23, 01006, Vi o ia-Gas eiz, Basque
Coun y, Spain.
E-mail add esses: [email p o ec ed] (U. Villalba-Eguiluz), [email p o ec ed] (M. Sahakian), [email p o ec ed] (C. Gonz´
alez-Jame ), enekoi z.
[email p o ec ed] (E. E xeza e a).
Con en s lis s a ailable a ScienceDi ec
Jou nal o Cleane P oduc ion
jou nal homepage: www.else ie .com/loca e/jclep o
h ps://doi.o g/10.1016/j.jclep o.2023.138050
Recei ed 15 Ma ch 2023; Recei ed in e ised o m 1 July 2023; Accep ed 8 July 2023
Jou nal o Cleane P oduc ion 418 (2023) 138050
2
a e well aligned wi h economic g ow h, while o he s a e close o s eady
s a e, pos -g ow h o deg ow h pos ula es (Bauwens, 2021; Ki chhe ,
2022).
In pa allel, he Social and Solida i y Economy (SSE) has eme ged as
an economic model encompassing esea ch and p ac ices ha ecognize
he ‘social embeddedness’ o economic ac i i y: all ac i i ies a e sub-
o dina e o ins i u ional a angemen s and social impe a i es (La ille
and Ga cía-Jan´
e, 2009; Co aggio, 2011). The SSE, as an amalgam e m,
can include bo h adi ional social economy and newe solida i y
economy ini ia i es. Social economy is p ima ily abou expanding he
economic space whe e people-cen ed o ganiza ions and en e p ises can
ope a e. A solida i y economy p omo es social and sys emic ans-
o ma ions and emphasizes issues o edis ibu i e jus ice, ‘deep’ sus-
ainabili y, al e na i es o capi alism, as well as pa icipa o y
democ acy and emancipa o y poli ics (U ing, 2015). The e m SSE is
inc easingly used o speak o o ganiza ions and en e p ises engaged in
he p oduc ion and exchange o goods and se ices, which a e au ono-
mous om he s a e and a e guided by objec i es and no ms ha p i-
o i ize social well-being, coope a ion and solida i y. They include, o
example, coope a i es and o he social en e p ises, mu ual associa ions,
unions o in o mal economy wo ke s, ai ade ne wo ks, and solida i y
inance schemes. The SSE seeks o ans o m he economic sys em o
achie e g ea e equi y and social cohesion, and o pu he economy a
he se ice o human needs, ins ead o pu ing people a he se ice o
economic g ow h. The SSE is also gaining ac ion wo ldwide, bo h
among p ac i ione s in ol ed in local ini ia i es and among in e na-
ional ins i u ions (EU, 2021; OECD, 2022; UNRISD, 2021); and i has
also been linked o he achie emen o sus ainable de elopmen (UN
Gene al Assembly, 2023).
The li e a u e linking bo h CE and SSE app oaches is s ill nascen .
Acco ding o Mo eau e al. (2017), applying SSE p inciples o he CE
may allow o he inclusion o social and ins i u ional dynamics neces-
sa y o social and ecological ans o ma ions. O he au ho s men ion
he SSE as one o he main heo ies o de eloping he social dimension
wi hin he CE (Padilla-Ri e a e al., 2020); and s ill o he s call o mo e
alue-based and no ma i e app oaches o he CE (Mies and Gold, 2021),
which esona es wi h SSE expe iences. Thus, b inging CE and SSE e-
lec ions oge he is highly pe inen . The SSE is al eady conside ed o be
well-posi ioned o os e wha Bauwens e al. (2020a) call he ‘bo -
om-up su iciency scena io’ o he CE, o wha Calis o-F ian e al.
(2020) call a ‘ ans o ma ional ci cula socie y’. Ye esea ch ha con-
nec s heo e ical and empi ical knowledge is s ill lacking. Many con-
ibu ions come om a Eu opean con ex : Gobe e al. (2021) ocuses on
g ass oo s ini ia i es o he SSE ha p omo e euse, eemploymen and
epai as ci izen-based con ibu ions o sus ainabili y ansi ions in
F ance. Leipold e al. (2021) de ail compe ing na a i es wi hin he ood
sec o in F ance as well. Campagna o and D’U zo (2021) conside s so-
cial coope a ion ini ia i es in I aly in ela ion o he CE. The social
economy’s con ibu ion o he CE is also s udied in an OECD epo
(2022) ocused on he ole o social inclusion, local collabo a ions and
s eng hening s akeholde s’ engagemen . F om a Global Sou h
pe spec i e, Gu bele and colleagues (2017, 2021) s udy how was e
picke s om he in o mal economy c ea e new g ass oo s coope a i es
in A gen ina and B azil and con ibu e no only o be e was e man-
agemen , bu also o implemen ing solida i y measu es in ol ing li e-
lihood imp o emen s, and hus p opose an ‘amended ci cula economy’
b inging oge he p inciples om bo h ecological economics and SSE.
O he au ho s also analyse he ole o he was e picke o ganiza ions in
b inging oge he ci cula economy and SSE aims in B azil (Ribei o
e al., 2020; Sakamo o e al., 2021). Howe e , a commonly accep ed
amewo k o me ging SSE and CE analysis is s ill missing.
The aim o ou con ibu ion is o conside he links be ween he SSE
and he CE by asking: in wha way does he SSE con ibu e o ci cula i y?
Mo e speci ically, ou main esea ch ques ion is: wha a e he implica-
ions o he no ma i e p inciples and alues o he SSE ne wo ks – such
as he limi ed-p o i mo i e – o insu ing a mo e in eg al ci cula i y
app oach? We con ibu e o bo h he CE and SSE li e a u e by consid-
e ing how SSE p inciples migh se e o add ess some o he ‘CE limi s’.
Fo ha pu pose, we conduc quali a i e esea ch based on 26 in-dep h
in e iews wi h 31 key in o man s ep esen ing 20 SSE ini ia i es in wo
SSE ne wo ks – REAS-Euskadi in he Basque Coun y and APRES-GE in
Wes e n Swi ze land. We analyse bo h he discou ses ela ed o how
ci cula i y s a egies a e unde s ood by key ac o s wi hin hese ne -
wo ks, and he p ac ices de i ed om hei guiding p inciples. Linked o
he limi ed p o i mo i e, we e lec on su iciency as a no ma i e aim
ha d aws a en ion o ‘enough’ as bo h a maxima and minima limi
(Spengle , 2016), and how such limi s migh come o be de ined h ough
a poli ical p ocess (Sahakian e al., 2021).
The a icle is s uc u ed in o six sec ions. Sec ion wo in oduces ou
concep ual ocus on he CE and he SSE. Sec ion h ee desc ibes he
esea ch me hodology and he cha ac e is ics o ou wo case s udies.
Sec ion ou p esen s he esul s o ou ieldwo k and o e s insigh s on
how an in eg al ci cula i y app oach is applied wi hin he SSE, and
which SBM cha ac e is ics a e os e ed. Sec ion i e discusses he im-
plica ions o hese esul s o b oade deba es linked o limi s o g ow h
and su iciency. Sec ion six summa izes he main conclusions.
2. Concep ual app oach o CE and SSE
2.1. The ci cula economy
De ini ions o wha cons i u es a CE a y (Ki chhe e al., 2017).
Some au ho s a gue ha he CE is a con es ed concep , which a oids any
single, uni e sal de ini ion so as no o exclude any in e es s (Ko honen
e al., 2018). While some de ini ions o he CE would lead o economic
g ow h dynamics, wi h ci cula i y p omo ing he p oduc ion o goods in
u he cycles, o he s a e close o pos -g ow h o deg ow h p oposals
and he aim o lowe ing p oduc ion and consump ion in absolu e e ms.
The CE seeks o educe esou ce ex ac ion and was e disposal
h ough a se ies o s a egies o main ain a social me abolism wi hin
‘plane a y bounda ies’ o ‘ea h sys em bounda ies’ (S e en e al., 2015;
Rocks ¨
om e al., 2023). These CE s a egies a e in e ela ed and
include: (1) he slowing, closing, na owing, in ensi ying o dema e i-
alizing o economic ma e ial cycles (Lüdeke-F eund e al., 2019; Geiss-
doe e e al., 2020); (2) he 3Rs app oach, which co e s educe, euse
and ecycle; o i s ex ended 9Rs e sion, e e ing o e use, e hink,
educe, euse, epai , e u bish, emanu ac u e, ecycle and eco e
(Ki chhe e al., 2017; Po ing e al., 2017); and (3) Sus ainable o
Ci cula Business Models (CBMs), which p opose undamen al shi s in
he pu pose o business and almos e e y aspec o how i is conduc ed
(Bocken e al., 2014, Lewandowski, 2016).
Rega ding he CBMs, he e is a a ie y o app oaches in he li e a u e
bu wi h di e ing in e p e a ions ela ed o hei cha ac e is ics (Bocken
e al., 2014; Rosa e al., 2019; Geissdoe e e al., 2020; Sal ado e al.,
2020). Wi hin his di e si y he Su iciency-d i en Business Models
(SBM) eme ge as a speci ic ca ego y, which is pa icula ly ele an o
ou s udy, al hough i ep esen s a mino i y s eam in cu en p ac ice
and is s ill unde - esea ched. As Bocken and Sho (2016:46) pu i , hey
consis on: “cu bing consump ion as pa o he business model by
mode a ing demand h ough educa ion and consume engagemen ;
making p oduc s ha las and a oiding buil -in obsolescence; ex ending
p oduc li es o slow disposal and eplacemen ; ocusing on sa is ying
‘needs’ a he han p omo ing ‘wan s’ and as - ashion; and educing
o e all esou ce consump ion h ough conscious changes in sales and
ma ke ing …”. Mo e ecen ly, Niessen and Bocken (2021) pu he ocus
o he Business o Su iciency amewo k on he ollowing i ems:
e hink; educe; e use; less clu e ; less speed; less dis ance, and less
ma ke . These cha ac e is ics a e close o hose iden i ied in
deg ow h-o ien ed businesses, which seek an al e na i e unde s anding
o businesses as o ien ed o sol ing en i onmen al and social p oblems,
a he han simply making p o i s, h ough collabo a i e alue c ea ion
and democ a ic go e nance (Khma a and K onenbe g, 2018), and pu
U. Villalba-Eguiluz e al.
Jou nal o Cleane P oduc ion 418 (2023) 138050
3
o wa d en i onmen al conce ns ega ding downscaling, p omo ing
socie al wellbeing embedded wi hin communi ies, and a adical shi in
alues owa ds su iciency (Nes e o a, 2020). How companies can adop
and ul il hese many cha ac e is ics needs o be s udied in g ea e
dep h, and no uni e sal amewo k exis s.
As he CE con inues o gain in popula i y, so do i s c i icisms. Limi s
o exis ing s a egies include a lack o conside a ion o ebound e ec s
and pa h-dependencies (Ko honen e al., 2018; Figge and S e enson,
2019), and also o he o al scale and composi ion (ca bon in ensi y) o
ce ain lows (Haas e al., 2020). O he c i iques include he p ac ical
challenges o designing 3Rs p ocesses (Ghisellini e al., 2016), o he
con adic o y use o a ge s wi h ega d o eco e y and ecycling
(Mo sele o, 2020). Calis o-F ian e al. (2020) ha e eg ouped many o
hese gaps and c i iques in o i e blocks, and we conside how he SSE
may be use ul o engaging wi h h ee o hem: sys emic hinking on
en opy and limi s o g ow h; go e nance, social jus ice and cul u al
change; and al e na i e isions o ci cula i y, su iciency and
con i iali y.
We also ake up he sugges ion o Mo eau e al. (2017), which poin s
ou ha cu en mains eam CE applica ions end o mainly conside
cos -e ec i e oppo uni ies in he ealm o economic compe i i eness
and hus all sho o g appling wi h he social and ins i u ional p e-
disposi ions necessa y o socie al ansi ions. These au ho s no e ha
ins i u ional condi ions a e key o se ing he ules o wha is p o i able
(o no ), and so migh os e g ea e ci cula i y and solida i y oppo u-
ni ies in p oduc ion and consump ion. They also conside i essen ial o
a oid cos shi ing in ime and place, and o implemen collabo a i e
and democ a ic go e nance sys ems ha do wi hou p o i mo i es. To
handle hese ins i u ional condi ions, Hin on and Maclu can (2017)
poin ou ha a no - o -p o i wo ld could ep esen an ‘economics o
enough’ and a uly ci cula economy, since i would no equi e endless
g ow h because he economic su plus could be ein es ed o p omo e
social and en i onmen al goals.
Sch ¨
ode (2020) also wa ns ha jus ansi ions in ol ing social
equi y a e needed, as any ansi ion ha in ol es he CE will no only be
echnological, bu also in ensely poli ical. Simila ly, o Geno ese and
Panse a (2021), he main sho coming o he CE is p ecisely i s apoli ical
and echnoc a ic aming; hey call o a e-poli iciza ion o he concep .
Calis o-F ian e al. (2021) ha e iden i ied a majo gap be ween wo ds
and ac ions in ecen EU policies, which leads o a de-poli iciza ion o CE
app oaches. The absence o a social and poli ical dimension in ce ain
CE conside a ions is also linked o he alignmen be ween mains eam
CE discou ses and p ac ices, and economic g ow h dynamics, which may
explain why he concep has gained ac ion so easily among policy
make s and p i a e businesses.
2.2. The SSE: cen ali y o he limi ed-p o i mo i e and democ a iza ion
o he economy
The SSE, as an amalgam e m including bo h adi ional social
economy and newe solida i y economy ini ia i es, e e s o a he e o-
geneous se o heo e ical app oaches and p ac ices ha ha e been used
o designa e a di e en way o unde s anding he economy (P´
e ez e al.,
2015). The SSE builds on he social economy, which can be aced back
o he 18 h cen u y in Eu ope and he eme gence o he coope a i e
mo emen , as well as on mo e ecen de elopmen s cen e ing on he
p imacy o labou o e capi al (Monz´
on and Cha es, 2008). The soli-
da i y economy is a mo e ecen concep ha eme ged in he 1990s, and
in ol es an a emp o e hink economic ela ions om pa ame e s
based on jus ice, coope a ion, ecip oci y and mu ual aid (La ille and
Ga cía-Jan´
e, 2009). The SSE is no de ined me ely as a se o business
models wi h a social pu pose, bu is based on an al e na i e concep o
he economy and he poli ical sphe e.
The SSE seeks an economy ha places an emphasis on: se ice o i s
membe s o o he communi y ahead o p o i ; au onomous manage-
men ; a democ a ic decision-making p ocess; and he p imacy o people
and wo k o e capi al in he dis ibu ion o e enues (De ou ny and
Nyssens, 2012). The SSE includes en ep eneu ial ini ia i es ha end o
sha e wo common ea u es: i s , hey a e cha ac e ized by no being
based – o a leas no exclusi ely – on an economic a ionale o ien ed a
mone a y accumula ion in he ma ke sphe e; secondly, a mo al and
no ma i e dimension is usually p esen in hei logic o ac ion (Sanz,
2019).
Conside ing ha SSE expe iences a e deeply embedded in social and
ins i u ional a angemen s and in ol e much mo e han me can ile
logics ( o ins ance edis ibu ion, ecip oci y and sel -su iciency), he
SSE in p ac ice di e ges om he expe iences o capi alis en e p ises in
a leas wo undamen al ways: SSE ini ia i es ake a di e en app oach
wi h espec o bo h p o i -seeking mo i a ion and in ela ion o
compe i i e ma ke p ac ices. This discussion o he limi ed-p o i and
coope a i e mo i es o SSE en i ies is a cen al heme in his a icle, and
builds on p e ious wo k ha conside s how SSE en i ies in e ac wi h he
ma ke on he basis o hese dis inc i e logics (Sahakian, 2016; Villal-
ba-Eguiluz and P´
e ez de Mendigu en, 2019).
The limi ed-p o i mo i e in he SSE di e s om ha o Non-p o i
O ganiza ions. Non-p o i s a e cha ac e ized by hei legal inabili y o
sha e p o i s among hei s akeholde s, while SSE en i ies adop a policy
o egula ing o limi ing (no o bidding) his e en ual p o i dis ibu-
ion, by means o equi able p o i -sha ing o mulas (De ou ny and
Nyssens, 2012, Monz´
on and Cha es, 2008). In some con ex s, such as
Swi ze land, o -p o i companies can also be a pa o he SSE, so long as
hey adhe e o SSE p inciples. The p o i mo i e is no a black o whi e
issue, bu is be e unde s ood as a con inuum wi hin which many
di e en si ua ions coexis , while sha ing he limi ed p o i mo i e.
SSE also seeks o easse social con ol o ‘social powe ’ o e he
economy (W igh , 2010), by gi ing p imacy o social and o en en i-
onmen al objec i es o e p o i s, emphasizing he place o e hics in
economic ac i i y and e hinking economic p ac ice in e ms o demo-
c a ic sel -managemen and ac i e ci izenship (U ing, 2015). One key
p inciple o his democ a ic sel -managemen is he collec i e owne -
ship o con ol o mulas o e he means o p oduc ion ins ead o
sha eholde con ol. The SSE ini ia i es, in hei mos ans o ma i e
e sions, seek o ans o m he whole global capi alis sys em, o ganized
as a coun e -hegemonic p ojec mo i a ed by a belie ha an al e na i e
o capi alism is bo h e hically and exis en ially equi ed (Newey, 2017).
I s po en ial ela es o he ac ha he o ms o p oduc ion, exchange
and consump ion in ol ed end o in eg a e some combina ion o eco-
nomic, social, en i onmen al and cul u al objec i es, as well as he
poli ical dimensions o pa icipa o y go e nance and empowe men
(Hillenkamp and La ille, 2013). Thus, he SSE can also be seen as a
social mo emen ha p omo es he democ a iza ion o he economy,
s a ing wi h i s own go e nance sys ems (Co aggio, 2011; Askunze,
2013).
2.3. The limi ed-p o i p inciple and su iciency
The idea o he limi ed-p o i mo i e, cen al o he SSE in bo h
heo y and p ac ice, can be ied mo e gene ally o deba es on limi s in
sus ainabili y s udies. The limi s o un ammeled economic g ow h a e
con es ed, in ha g ow h is seen as incompa ible wi h he Ea h’s ini e
esou ces (Meadows e al., 1972). The compelling ‘plane a y bound-
a ies’ concep is one ep esen a ion o limi s, delinea ing an o bi wi h
se e al h esholds ied o biogeochemical cycles: o a oid passing hese
h esholds is o main ain he Ea h sys em wi hin a ‘sa e ope a ing space’
(Rocks ¨
om e al., 2009; S e en e al., 2015). These ‘bounda ies’ open up
ques ions o p ocedu al jus ice: o whom and by whom a e hese
bounda ies es ablished? The no ion o plane a y bounda ies can be
challenged by in oducing ha o ‘socie al bounda ies’, sugges ing ha
limi s mus be collec i ely de ined (B and e al., 2021). The no ion o
‘socie al bounda ies’ builds on Go z’s (1989) wo k on sel -limi a ion and
au onomy.
In his eading, limi s a e no jus ‘ou he e’ in Ea h sys em
U. Villalba-Eguiluz e al.
Jou nal o Cleane P oduc ion 418 (2023) 138050
4
dynamics, no a e hey imposed upon socie ies by scien i ic eli es who
know bes ; a he , limi s a e pa o a p ocess o au onomy ha mus ake
place wi hin socie ies and i s ins i u ions. I would ollow ha limi ed
p o i abili y is a ecogni ion ha some le el o p o i s may be necessa y,
bu ha su iciency p inciples equi e a conside a ion o ‘how much is
enough’. Hudon e al. (2020) p opose o es ablish a ‘ ai p o i ame-
wo k’ h ough a collec i e exe cise ha de e mines wha should be a
su icien p o i based on measu able and compa able c i e ia. In his
same ein, Kallis (2019) u he ein o ces his impo ance o limi s
c ea ed by and o socie y, which could lead owa ds a ‘su iciency
economy’ ha gua an ees ‘enough, o e e yone, o e e ’ (Alexande ,
2012). This ela es o how needs a e ag eed upon, which opens up po-
li ical ques ions a ound who de ines limi s o whom, as discussed in he
eme ging li e a u e on limi s and wellbeing (Sahakian e al., 2021).
The ques ion o limi s is cen al o analysing bo h SSE and CE, and
becomes a poin o di e en ia ion. In he CE, he economy should be
seen as subo dina e o he biophysical limi s o he Ea h sys em
(Geo gescu-Roegen, 1971). Ye in mains eam CE p ac ices, he limi s
ha hinde he de elopmen o he CE a e o en associa ed wi h he le el
o p o i abili y o any speci ic CE solu ion (Mo eau e al., 2017). The
e iciency a ionale is key o he CE, as ci cula sys ems can be seen as
ende ing esou ce usage mo e e icien – hus main aining p o i abili y
and compe i i eness. Ac o s in he SSE may be close o an e hic o
suppo ing he common good, o engaging in p ocesses ha seek o mee
he needs o indi iduals and collec i i ies (Salus i, 2021). Bo h he CE
and he SSE acknowledge ecological limi s, bu unlimi ed p o i is no
pu in o ques ion in he CE, while in he SSE he limi ed-p o i mo i e is a
cen al heme – as we will explo e in ou case s udy below. Fu he mo e,
coope a ion and ecip oci y a e cen al hemes in how SSE en i ies a e
go e ned (ibid), pa icula ly o coope a i es whe e collabo a ion is he
basis o any o m o ac i i y, which is no necessa ily he case wi h he
CE.
3. Me hodology and case s udy o e iew
3.1. Resea ch me hodology
We used a quali a i e case s udy app oach ha allows o an in-dep h
s udy wi hin speci ic se ings (Yin, 2018) and o e s a de ailed
comp ehension o con ex -dependen dynamics and p ac ical knowledge
(Fly bje g, 2006), while shedding ligh on a ques ion wi h a b oade
scope (Ge ing, 2004). Table 1 summa izes he six me hodological s eps
o ou s udy. Fi s , we e iewed li e a u e explici ly in ol ing bo h he
SSE and he CE, using he ollowing key e ms in SCOPUS and WoS:
“social and solida i y economy”, “solida i y economy”, “social econ-
omy”, combined wi h “and” “ci cula economy”. Secondly, since hese
esul s we e sca ce, and no e e y a icle’s con en was ele an o ou
in es iga ion, we hen sea ched o o he CE li e a u e s ands ha
included ele an concep s o he SSE. He e we iden i ied a se o
concep s and opics ha ela e bo h o SSE and CE, which could se e as
a use ul and ini ial guide o ou analysis. These ‘common SSE-CE opics’
come om al e na i e ci cula i y deba es and Su iciency D i en Busi-
ness Model (SBM) li e a u e, which will appea again in ou esul s and
discussion.
The hi d and ou h s eps in ol ed ieldwo k. Quali a i e esea ch
was ca ied ou in wo egional e i o ial ne wo ks ha play a majo
ole in he p omo ion o he SSE: REAS-Euskadi (Basque Coun y) and
APRES-GE (Swi ze land). We selec ed hese wo cases and sec o s o a
numbe o easons: (i) because o con enience and ou p io ex ensi e
and aluable knowledge in wo king wi h hem. (ii) Because bo h ne -
wo ks a e ep esen a i e o a new u n in he SSE mo emen , since
a ilia ion is no dependen on any speci ic legal o m, bu on signing a
cha e o sha ed p inciples and alues. (iii) Because bo h cases p esen
sligh di e ences ega ding hese p inciples, as we explain in he nex
subsec ion, and p ecisely wi hin one p inciple, key o ou s udy: ha o
limi ed p o i abili y. (i ) Because in bo h cases he ood and en i on-
men sec o s on which we ocused we e ele an ; hese in u n a e also
ele an o ci cula i y, since hey use compa a i ely mo e esou ces
han some o he sec o s in SSE ne wo ks. We ollowed an ‘in o ma ion-
o ien ed selec ion’ o cases (Fly bje g, 2006), inso a as hese wo cases
can be seen as ‘pa adigma ic’ ega ding solida i y p inciples and he
chosen sec o s as ‘gene al cha ac e is ics’, bu a he same ime ep e-
sen ‘ a ia ion cases’ ega ding he speci ic limi ed-p o i mo i e and
o he con ex dependen ac o s. The aim was no o gene a e a s ic
compa ison, bu a he o use he case s udies as a way o shedding ligh
on gene alizable and common issues in bo h con ex s.
We conduc ed 26 in e iews in o al, in ol ing 31 people om 20
SSE en i ies belonging o wo sec o s in he SSE ne wo ks: ood and
ag icul u e, and en i onmen al se ices (see Table 2). The esea ch
eams in Wes e n Swi ze land and he Basque egion wo ked collabo-
a i ely on esea ch design and analysis. Building on he li e a u e e-
iew and ou p e ious knowledge o he SSE ne wo ks, a se o common
SSE-CE opics bo h in o med he in e iew design, and se ed as ools in
he analysis o p elimina y esul s. The selec ion o esponden s was
based mainly on h ee c i e ia: a ie y and co e age wi hin sec o s;
ele an posi ion wi hin he o ganiza ion and knowledge o e ime; and
p e e ences o he ne wo ks hemsel es. In e iews we e conduc ed and
ansc ibed in hei own languages (Basque, Spanish, F ench), and hen
ansla ed in o English o he ele an analysis and use o quo a ions
(deno ed as I.BC o he Basque Coun y, and I.WS o Wes e n
Swi ze land). The main in e iew ques ions we e aimed a unco e ing
bo h he discou ses and p ac ices o SSE ac o s ela ed o he CE, and
Table 1
O e iew o me hodological s eps.
DESK WORK: FIELDWORK: DATA ANALYSIS:
1s s ep Li e a u e e iew linking SSE & CE. - Ve y ew i ems (up o
2021) depending on sea ch e ms, espec i ely: “social and
solida i y economy”, “solida i y economy”, “social
economy” combined wi h “and” “ci cula economy”.
3 d
s ep
- In e iew design based on: esea ch ques ions;
ou p e ious knowledge o SSE ne wo ks;
li e a u e e iew; discussion wi h SSE ne wo k
leade s.
- P elimina y es ing o common SSE-CE opics
(al e na i e ci cula i ies, SBM, e c.).
5 h
s ep
- T ansc ip s and ansla ion
- Ini ial hema ic analysis- T iangula ion o
eme ging concep s among esea ch eams
No. in WoS: 7/12/13
No. in SCOPUS: 8/13/14
2nd s ep Iden i ica ion o CE li e a u e s ands o he SSE, and
common SSE-CE opics:- ‘Missing social dimension o he
CE’; ‘Human cen ed CE’’- ‘Al e na i e/Social
Ci cula i ies’- ‘Ci cula /Su iciency Business Models
(SBM)’
4 h
s ep
- Fi s - ound o in-dep h in e iews:
20 in e iews/en i ies
In ol ing 26 people
Du a ion 40–80min each
- Second- ound in-dep h in e iews:
6 ex a in e iews wi h selec ed p e ious
en i ies
In ol ing 7 people
Du a ion 40–65min each
6 h
s ep
- Coding da a by he Gioia me hod,
iden i ica ion o eme ging 1s o de
concep s, 2nd o de hemes, and 3 d o de
dimensions
- Discussion and w i ing
Sou ce: Elabo a ed by he au ho s.
U. Villalba-Eguiluz e al.
Jou nal o Cleane P oduc ion 418 (2023) 138050
5
in ol e he ollowing key discussion ques ions: How do hey de ine and
apply he CE; Wha speci ic CE s a egies and ools do hey pu in place
in hei ope a ions; How do hey apply he main ci cula Rs; Which
Ci cula -Su iciency Business Model cha ac e is ics do hey pu in o
p ac ice; How do hey unde s and he ela ion be ween SSE and CE, and
speci ically wha a e he implica ions o SSE p inciples o he ci cula i y
implemen a ions; How is su iciency aken in o accoun , and how do
hey di e om o he en e p ises wi hin he same sec o ; Wha a e he
limi s and ensions acing all hese challenges; How do hey ela e o
b oade sus ainabili y aims and policies. Fo hese main opics, o he
sub-ques ions we e de eloped which we e mo e con ex speci ic. A e
he i s ound o in e iews, which o some ini ia i es had a mo e open
and explo a o y ocus, a second ound o in e iews we e conduc ed
wi h a subse o he ini ial sample o alida e some o he ini ial indings
and o u he discuss key ideas ha had eme ged. In his second ound,
we also sough o be e unde s and how each ac o can be di e en ia ed
om non-SSE ac o s in he same sec o .
Ou i h esea ch s ep in ol ed da a analysis combining bo h
induc i e and deduc i e app oaches, using echniques om he Gioia
me hod o cap u e eme gen concep s, hemes and dimensions (Gioia
e al., 2013). Finally, ou six h esea ch s ep e e s o coding, discussion
and alida ion among esea ch eams, and collabo a i e w i ing. One
limi o he s udy is ha we did no obse e in mo e de ail how he SSE is
playing ou , as his would ha e necessi a ed igo ous pa icipan
obse a ion o e he long e m. Bu we did aim o mo e beyond dis-
cou ses o cap u e p ac ices wi hin hese o ganiza ions when i comes o
he SSE and how i ela es o SSE, which equi ed desc ip i e exchanges
on how and in wha way hings a e done. We also e iewed he g ey
li e a u e ela ed o bo h ne wo ks o subs an ia e ou indings, based on
in e nal and ex e nal epo s ha documen ac i i ies.
3.2. Case s udy o e iew: REAS-Euskadi (Basque Coun y) and APRES-
GE (Wes e n Swi ze land)
In Table 3, we p esen gene al ea u es o he wo ne wo ks o un-
de s and hei size and ele ance, hei ypes o membe s, and he sec-
o s in which hey a e in ol ed.
A common cha ac e is ic is ha hese SSE ne wo ks a e guided by a
se o alues and no ma i e p inciples o ac ion implemen ed ia se e al
indica o s ha a e usually summa ized in a manda o y cha e ha
in e es ed o ganiza ions mus sign, adhe e o, and p og essi ely imple-
men . Despi e using di e en e ms, hey sha e much common g ound
ega ding p inciples and alues (see Table 4). We we e able o no e ha
he e a e di e en kinds o models o app oaches ha also y o
somehow p omo e bo h ecological and social p inciples, such as B-Co ps
Table 2
Lis o in e iewed SSE en i ies.
Re . En i ies Sec o : Ac i i y In e iewees’ posi ion Loca ion
I.BC1 EHNE Bizkaia Food, ag icul u e: Ag icul u al union Boa d o Di ec o s Biscay
I.BC2 Labo e Food, ag icul u e: Coope a i e Supe ma ke Co- ounding pa ne Biscay
I.BC3 Goilu a Food, ag icul u e: Wo k In eg a ion Social En e p ise (WISE), ag oecological
p oduc ion
Head o social in eg a ion Biscay
I.BC4 O u ik Aho a Food, ag icul u e: Ag oecological aining. Boa d Biscay
I.BC5 Emaús FS En i onmen : WISE, Reuse. Educa ional Se ices Coo dina o Gipuzkoa
I.BC6 Ga bingu u En i onmen : WISE, Managemen o en i onmen al and o es y p ojec s. Manage A aba
I.BC7 Goiene En i onmen : Renewable ene gy Head o communica ion Gipuzkoa
Educa ion boa d
I.BC8 Koope a En i onmen : WISE, social-en i onmen al Inno a ion. Responsible o new ac i i ies. Co-
ounde .
Biscay
I.BC9 Sus aiak Habi a
Design
En i onmen : Ag oecosys em egene a ion. Co-Founding Pa ne A aba
I.BC10 REAS-Euskadi REAS ne wo k Coo dina ion Team Di ec o s Biscay
I.WS1 Ecose ices En i onmen : sa e y enginee ing Gene al managemen Gene a
I.WS2 So ies En i onmen : sus ainabili y consul ing Co- ounde ; chai man Gene a
I.WS3 R´
ealise En i onmen : WISE, IT epai , logis ics Manage ; ad iso Gene a
I.WS4 FabLab En i onmen al design: design, epai Co- ounde , manage Gene a
I.WS5 Ma e iuum En i onmen : cons uc ion ecycling, ci cula design, aining Co- ounde , manage Gene a
I.WS6 SPP Ve ge s Food, Ag icul u e: Coope a i e supe ma ke . Co- ounde , employee Gene a
I.WS7 Le Nid Food, Ag icul u e. Coope a i e supe ma ke . Co- ounde , Communica ion Di ec o Gene a
I.WS8 Te Espoi Food: ai ade Coo dina o , Manage Vaud
I.WS9 La B oue e Food, Ag icul u e: Coope a i e supe ma ke . Co- ounde and employee Vaud
I.WS10 APRES APRES ne wo k coo dina ion eam Coo dina o s Gene a
Sou ce: Elabo a ed by he au ho s.
Table 3
Desc ip ion o he ne wo ks.
Ne wo k’s
Name
REAS-Euskadi (Basque
Coun y)
APRES-GE (Wes e n Swi ze land)
Da e o
C ea ion
1997 2004
Te i o ial
Scope
Basque Coun y F ench-speaking Swi ze land, and
neighbou ing egions in F ance.
No. o
membe s
80 en i ies 327 en i ies, 331 indi iduals
Types o
membe s
No indi iduals. Indi iduals.
All o he o ms: All o he o ms:
23 Limi ed Companies 25 Limi ed Companies
26 Associa ions 190 Associa ions
26 Coope a i es 23 Coope a i es
5 Founda ions 33 Founda ions
17 Public limi ed companies
38 Indi idual companies
No. o
pa icipan s
3255 wo ke s 5000 wo ke s
3783 olun ee s 12000 olun ee s
15383 membe s 85000 membe s
Income To al e enue: 144
mill.
€
To al e enue: 430 mill. CHF
Ac i i y
Sec o s
Heal h & Ca e: 16 Educa ion: 53
Educa ion & Resea ch:
12
Ci ic ac i i ies: 53
En i onmen : 10 En i onmen -Was e Managemen : 50
Food, ca e ing: 10 Se ices: 43
Cul u e & Leisu e: 6 A &leisu e: 39
Counselling Se ices:
5
Social ac ion & heal h: 36
Spaces & Ne wo ks:4 Food: 33
Manu ac u es sales: 4 Comme ce: 15
O he s: 13
Sou ce: Elabo a ed by he au ho s, based on REAS (2020) and espec i e web-
si es (www.ap es-ge.ch; www. eas ed.o g/ eas-euskadi).
U. Villalba-Eguiluz e al.
Jou nal o Cleane P oduc ion 418 (2023) 138050
6
ce i ica ion. While good go e nance and anspa ency in ope a ions a e
also c i e ia o such o ms o ce i ica ion, hey s op e y sho o
challenging he p o i mo i e (which was a cen al ques ion o his
s udy), hey do no clea ly add ess he ques o limi s and su iciency,
and hey do no deal wi h he need o ans o ma ion o he whole
economic sys em. Besides, hey ha e a g owing p esence in Wes e n
Swi ze land and could be compe ing wi h he SSE’s social image, bu
hey a e e y ma ginal in he Basque Coun y, which cons i u es a di -
e ence be ween he wo con ex s.
Among hese alues and p inciples, wo a e wo h highligh ing o
he pu pose o ou a icle. Fi s , he ‘ecological limi s’ p inciple, wi hin
which, o concep ual simpli ica ion, we ha e included wha REAS-
Euskadi calls he ‘Na u e’ alue and he ‘Sus ainabili y’ p inciple and
wha APRES-GE calls he ‘Ecology’ alue and he ‘Respec o he en i-
onmen ’ p inciple. Thus, APRES-GE and REAS-Euskadi a e commi ed
o building an economic sys em ha espec s he in e dependence o
ecological limi s and socio-economic p ocesses. Bo h pu o wa d en i-
onmen ally iendly p ac ices in a consis en e o o apply an e hic o
su iciency, and sus ainable p oduc ion and consump ion owa ds
ci cula i y.
Second, he ‘limi ed-p o i ’ p inciple: SSE ac o s call o a shi o-
wa ds an economy ha a i ms he p edominance o people o e capi al.
To achie e his goal, REAS-Euskadi upholds he non-p o i p inciple,
which means ha all he p o i s mus be ein es ed and no dis ibu ed,
while APRES-GE ad oca es he p inciple o limi ed-p o i ins ead, so ha
some p o i s could be dis ibu ed. This is an in e es ing di e ence. As
no ed abo e, he p o i mo i e is no a black o whi e issue bu is be e
unde s ood as a con inuum along which many di e en si ua ions can
coexis . The main ques ion is no o d ama ically o bid p o i s, bu o se
a limi o p o i abili y, and conside how much is enough. Bo h ap-
p oaches a e indica i e o a s ong alue o he SSE in e ms o con-
on ing dominan economic hinking: he pu sui o p o i and capi al
accumula ion should no be he ul ima e goal o economic ac i i y.
O he alues and p inciples o he SSE (such as solida i y, equi y,
coope a ion/collabo a ion, au onomy, wo k e c.), a e also echoed in CE
li e a u e as in eg al pa s o he CE’s social dimension (Padilla-Ri e a
e al., 2020, Walke e al., 2021). These p inciples co ela e di ec ly wi h
di e en hemes ha ha e eme ged in he li e a u e, bu which a e
beyond he scope o his s udy, such as: he ques ion o he ‘local’ (local
communi ies, local economy); employee engagemen ; e hical business
p ac ices, e hical consume beha iou ; ai income dis ibu ion; social
inclusion and equi y; pa icipa ion and local democ acy, among o he s.
4. Resul s: app oaching CE s a egies om SSE p inciples and
p ac ices
Table 5 below summa izes ou indings and illus a es some o he
concep s, hemes and dimensions ha a e ele an o bo h he Swiss and
Basque cases. The ollowing subsec ions a e s uc u ed acco ding o
hese dimensions and explain some o he main con en s.
4.1. The CE wi hin he SSE: an in eg al social ci cula i y app oach
Ac oss he wo cases o Wes e n Swi ze land and he Basque egion,
ou in e iewees do no ag ee on a single de ini ion o he CE, bu hey
do sha e a common unde s anding on s ong sus ainabili y a ound
closing, slowing and na owing ma e ial cycles locally. They claim ha
hey we e al eady engaged in co e ac i i ies o he CE ( educe- euse-
ecycle) be o e he mains eaming o he CE du ing he las decade.
Rega ding how ci cula i y is unde s ood and pu in o p ac ice, we un-
de sco e h ee in e ela ed indings:
Fi s , ac o s in he SSE see he Rs as a way o ans o ming he
Table 5
Da a analysis s uc u e: om 1s o de concep s o hemes and agg ega e dimensions.
1s o de concep s 2nd o de hemes Agg ega e Dimensions
Al e na i e economic unde s anding; challenge p oduc ion & consump ion sys ems;
democ a iza ion o he economy; ood & ene gy so e eign y p oposals.
T ans o ming he economic sys em as a
whole
In eg al social ci cula i y app oach
Re hink economic ac i i y; Re use non-e hical ac i i ies; Reduce consump ion and use o
ma e ials.
P io i ize mo e ans o ma i e Rs:
Re use, Re hink, Reduce
P o i is no a p io i y; seek iabili y bu no maximum p o i abili y. Limi ed p o i as co e dis inc i e d i e
A oid consume ism; ecognize limi s and plane a y bounda ies Minimize o e all consump ion Su iciency-d i en Business Model:
People & Plane o e p o i Mee human needs no endless wan s; consume engagemen ; ac i e ci izenship;
consciousness- aising and awa eness.
Needs o e wan s: conscious consume
engagemen
Collabo a e among equals; Ne wo king; Coope a e owa ds simila alues and aims. Fos e ing coope a ion & collabo a ion
C ea e jobs and local sus ainabili y o e p o i ; ai economic dis ibu ion; in insic social
mission; commi men wi h and se ice o local communi ies
Maximize social and ecological aims
Ecological imp o emen s cos s a e oo high; ecological aims do no pay o economic
iabili y
Limi s o p io i ize ecological o e
economic aims
Implemen a ion ensions & limi s
En i onmen al conce ns a e no eadily a ailable o e e yone; ci cula es uc u ing may
a ec jobs
Tensions in balancing social and
ecological aims
We os e coope a ion and collabo a ion bu …; coope a ion is no easy; coope a ion and
compe i i e beha iou s coexis .
Limi s o collabo a i e dynamics wi hin
compe i i e con ex s
Sou ce: Elabo a ed by he au ho s.
Table 4
SSE Ne wo k’s alues and p inciples.
Ne wo k REAS-Euskadi APRES-GE
P inciples Sus ainabili y Respec o he en i onmen
No o p o i Respec o social wellbeing
Coope a ion Respec o democ acy and
esponsibili y
Wo k Respec o labou
Equi y Respec o cohe ence
Commi men o local
communi ies/en i onmen
Manda o y c i e ia:
T anspa ency
Collec i e in e es
Au onomy
Limi ed p o i abili y
Values Solida i yo Solida i y; 1 +1 >2
Au onomy Au onomy; au onomous bu no
indi idualis ic
Na u e Ecology
People Social wellbeing; o be, no o
ha e
Sel -managemen Pa icipa o y ci izenship and
democ acy
Libe a ing cul u e Di e si y
Cohe ence; say wha we do and
do wha we say
Sou ce: Elabo a ed by he au ho s, based on REAS’ Solida i y Economy Cha e
and APRES-GE’s Cha e o a Social and Solida i y-O ien ed Economy o he
Gene a Region.
U. Villalba-Eguiluz e al.
Jou nal o Cleane P oduc ion 418 (2023) 138050
7
economic sys em as a whole, a he han wo king on single p oduc s o
se ices. SSE ac o s Re use o do business in any sec o ha is no o i-
en ed owa ds socie al needs, such as mili a y- ela ed o luxu y goods.
Mo eo e , in he sec o s o ac i i y hey en e in o, such as ood and
ene gy, hey Re hink he whole supply chain sys em by deli e ing so-
lu ions ha seek o eo ien economic ela ions owa ds ood and ene gy
so e eign y s a egies. Fo example, in he Swiss case, di e en ac o s in
ood p o isioning will come oge he o ensu e ha sys ems o p oduc-
ion and consump ion a e being ans o med owa ds suppo ing local
employmen , os e ing ecological p oduc ion, and educing packaging
was e ac oss supply chains. A local cu ency, he Leman, is also a way o
b ing oge he di e se ac o s in he egion who sha e simila alues.
Simila ly, in he Basque case, his a emp o ans o m he economic
sys em owa ds ene gy and ood so e eign y p oposals wi h an in eg al
local cha ac e is e lec ed in Re hink and Reduce s a egies applied by
SSE en e p ises, whe eby hey collabo a e wi h o he ins i u ional and
social ac o s embedded in he e i o y a small scales.
Acco dingly, he main challenge will be he implemen a ion o a ‘ ull
SSE sys em’ desc ibed as ollows: ‘We mus p omo e exchanges be ween
ou o ganiza ions o s eng hen hem, bu he eal challenge is o
ans o m o he mains eam companies ha ha e e y insu icien
ecological and social commi men s, h ough he good p ac ice examples
o he SSE’ (I.WS3). This sugges s a link o he poli ical dimension o he
SSE, as ac o s and ini ia i es seek o b oaden hei scope o ac ion o-
wa ds he democ a iza ion o he whole economy, and in his way y o
es ablish he ins i u ional condi ions ha would a oid cos -shi ing om
he economic dimension o social and ecological dimensions (Mo eau
e al., 2017). These ini ia i es aspi e o coun e balance he hegemonic
ma ke economy: ‘The mos impo an hing is o ge ou o he ma ke
economy, o p opose ano he economy, e e y hing else will ollow’ (I.
WS6).
Second, he e is a s ong ocus on he mo e ans o ma i e aspec s o
Table 6
Ci cula Rs p ac ices in SSE en i ies.
ENTITY
Ac i i y
Loca ion
Wha hey do:
Applica ions o ci cula Rs
How hey di e :
Dis inc i e poin s o compa ison o o he , same-sec o en e p ises no in he SSE
SUSTRAIAK HABITAT DESIGN, Ag icul u e/
Food design se ices, Basque Coun y, Vi o ia-
Gas eiz.
Regene a e soil quali y and u al
ecosys ems.
Regene a e u al communi ies as well (socio- e i o ial embeddedness).
Re use haza dous componen s ( e ilize s,
pes icides, e c.)
Re hink ag i ood sys ems: seek ood so e eign y.
Reduce anspo ; local supply and
comme cial chains.
Recognize limi s o each e i o y ( eloca e wi hin bio egion, km0, esize and
adequa e p ac ices o hese limi s, in e connec ed sel -su iciency among local
e i o ies).
Reduce dependence on o eign inpu s
(ene gy, machine y, g ass, eed, e c.)
Redis ibu ion: ein oduce ba e and ecip oci y; collec i e pu chases;
coope a i es.
Recycle: ze o was e p ac ices wi hin he
plo ( e ilize s, seeds, e c.)
Di e si y and combine ecologically and socially syne gis ic ac i i ies.
GOIENER, Renewable Ene gy Basque Coun y. Reduce ex ac ion o i gin ma e ials
( ossil uels, componen s o enewable
ene gy).
Re hink ene gy sys ems: ene gy so e eign y. Reloca e and decen alize sys ems,
linking p oduc ion and consump ion in sho ci cui s, educing ene gy losses and
educing o eign ex ac ion. Redis ibu ion and dema ke iza ion: local communi ies
p oduce and consume hei own local ene gy.
Reduce impac s o ( enewable) ene gy
p oduc ion and dis ibu ion.
Re use: do no use new u al lands o ene gy gene a ion; p io i ize small acili ies
o e mac o-p ojec s (non-sus ainable o non-equi able enewable ene gy p ojec s).
Reduce ene gy dependence: sel -
p oduc ion and consump ion.
Reduce ene gy consump ion: s ong ad iso y se ices and campaigns o educe
o e all consump ion, no only cos s. Analyse needs and esize ( educe) p ojec s.
Re use some kinds o ene gy eco e y o incine a o s.
Reco e and ehabili a e small hyd aulic powe plan s.
Reduce CO2 oo p in and compensa e wi h local p ojec s.
LABORE, Coope a i e supe ma ke , Basque
Coun y, Bilbao.
Reduce plas ic packaging Reduce consume ism and ma ke ing.
Reduce haza dous elemen s ( e ilize s,
pes icides, e c.)
Re use p ice compe i ion among local p oduce s. Pay ai p ices o supplie s.
Es ablish coo dina ion mechanisms along he whole chain o sol e hese p oblems
(caps o billings, assemblies, coo dina ed plans ega ding quo as and u ns, e c.).
Reduce anspo (local p oduce s and
consume s)
Re i alize local communi ies.
Reduce ood was e Reloca e consump ion-p oduc ion ela ionships. Fos e consciousness in consume s
ega ding hei local supplie s.
Re hink ag i ood sys ems: seek ood so e eign y.
Collabo a ion wi h o he simila s o es.
REALISE, IT epai sec o , Swi ze land, Gene a. Reuse and Repai o compu e s and hei
componen s.
Focus is on job c ea ion and aining (wo k in eg a ion p og ams); labou in ensi e
ac i i ies.
Collec ing, selec ing and p epa ing o
Recycling o compu e s.
Redis ibu ion, h ough job c ea ion o people in a si ua ion o ulne abili y.
Reduce he need o ex ac new aw
ma e ials.
Abili y o euse, epai and ecycle ma e ials and p oduc s e en when his is no
p o i able in he ma ke o o he companies, hanks o ex e nal public suppo o
job c ea ion and in e nal non-p o i logics.
MATERIUUM, Cons uc ion, Swi ze land,
Gene a.
Reuse cons uc ion si e ma e ials, gi ing
hem new alue.
Focus is on job c ea ion; he cos o Reuse and Recycling mus co e labou , he e is
no o limi ed p o i on he ma e ial i sel .
Reduce he need o ex ac new aw
ma e ials.
Ul ima e aim is o educe inal was e.
Reduce ma e ial in ensi y o cons uc ion.
Collec ing and s o ing ma e ials o Reuse.
So ing ce ain ma e ials o Recycling by
o he en e p ises.
Sou ce: Elabo a ed by he au ho s.
U. Villalba-Eguiluz e al.
Jou nal o Cleane P oduc ion 418 (2023) 138050
8
ci cula i y, such as Re use, Re hink and Reduce, a he han he less
ecologically e icien ac o Recycling. He e again, he ocus is no solely
on single p oduc s, bu sys ems o p oduc ion and consump ion. ‘As SSE
ac o s, we Re use some sec o s o ac i i y; we also Re hink he whole
model and he economy om ou own p inciples; and we also y o
Reduce consump ion in gene al and ou own use o esou ces’ (I.BC10).
In he Swiss case, he example o e-useable con aine s o di e en ood
and be e ages is a way o Reduce he dependence on single-use p od-
uc s, despi e he up- on cos s o in es ing ( ime and money) in con-
aine s, as well as he ongoing cos s o s o ing, cleaning and acking
con aine s. ‘The in es men in ime is no p o i able o hese small
en i ies, bu hey do in es because hey sha e he same alues. Once he
e-useable con aine sys em is in place, no doub o he la ge ac o s will
also join his e o ’ (I.WS.10).
In he Basque case, ollowing ood and ene gy so e eign y p oposals,
SSE ac o s Re hink how o connec he local p oduc ion and consump-
ion o ene gy, wi hou a ec ing local a ailabili y o land o ag icul u e,
and hey hus Re use o occupy ag icul u al land o he ins alla ion o
pho o ol aic acili ies, as is occu ing elsewhe e wi h o -p o i enew-
able ene gy companies. Besides, SSE ne wo ks connec local, adi ional
and small-scale ag oecological p oduce s wi h o he local s o es, and
collabo a e wi h local ins i u ions beyond he SSE such as hospi als and
school can eens, so as o Reduce he nega i e impac s o anspo . The
aim is o Re i alize local communi ies h ough socially embedded
collabo a ion, whe e o he p inciples beyond o -p o i ood sales a e
alued. SSE ac o s do no y o g ow a any cos , bu seek o Reduce
o e all p oduc ion and consump ion in socie y. They ac i ely engage in
consciousness- aising campaigns wi h his aim, and also apply his
ambi ion o hei own ac i i ies, e en i ha means a Reduc ion in sales.
Thi d, bo h p e ious indings ela e o he limi ed p o i p inciple as
a co e dis inc i e d i e , which is a he hea o he SSE. In he Swiss
case, e-using ma e ials ound on cons uc ion si es migh be unp o i -
able o clien s, who migh e en pay mo e o hese se ices; i is he
in es men in local employmen and he educ ion o inal was e ha is
emphasized, abo e he p o i mo i e. Mo eo e , en i ies migh p o i
om expo ing cons uc ion ma e ials o China o e u bishing and
esale, bu will no do so – as hei aim is o suppo a local economy. In
his case, Recycling ha is p o i able is no p i ileged. Thus, Re-use,
Reduce and local employmen a e gi en mo e impo ance han p o i -
abili y. As a Swiss ac o explained ‘Limi ing he use o esou ces also
means limi ing p o i abili y’ (I.WS5).
Ac o s in bo h ne wo ks c i icize he p imacy o he p o i mo i e in
he cu en mains eam sp ead o he CE, which is seen as a main poin o
di e en ia ion wi h he SSE, which pu s o wa d social and ecological
alues: ‘We [WISEs] ha e al eady been p ac icing hese ac i i ies, and
he euse o was e, bu wha is now he objec i e? [We] do i o empowe
people and now o he s do i o he business’ (I.BC8). This conce n
echoes wha o he esea che s ha e signaled as compe ing na a i es
be ween he SSE and he CE in F ance due o ecen legisla i e changes
(Leipold e al., 2021). Fo ins ance, a ension migh be ecognized be-
ween he SSE ne wo k’s iew o he CE and he o icial ins i u ional
app oach o he Basque go e nmen , wi h he la e ’s ocus on economic
pe o mance and compe i i eness (Bassi e al., 2021). The e is also a
c i ique abou a depoli icized iew o he CE ansi ions, and abou he
dis ance be ween discou ses and ac ions al eady iden i ied in he case o
he EU policies (Calis o-F ian e al., 2021), which inds an echo amongs
some SSE ac o s in Gene a as well.
Finally, in Table 6 we summa ize some o hese indings based on
bo h he i s and he second ounds o in-dep h in e iews, in he second
o which we aimed o u he explo e key indings: i s , we check how
each SSE en i y simul aneously implemen s many Rs in hei ac i i ies,
including some o he mo e challenging Rs in ela ion o mains eam
economic dynamics, ha is, Re use, Re hink and Reduce. Second, we
look a how hese Rs a e applied and could illus a e possible di e ences
be ween SSE ini ia i es and o he ac o s in hei same sec o s, as no ed
in he hi d column.
4.2. Su iciency-d i en business model cha ac e is ics
SSE p ac ices mee many o he cha ac e is ics o CBMs and he mo e
speci ic app oach o he SBMs. He e we will add ess jus ou o hese
cha ac e is ics:
(I) SSE ini ia i es a e commi ed o minimizing o e all esou ce
consump ion, which is in line wi h hei ‘ecological limi s’ p in-
ciple: ‘ o Reduce is he mos impo an hing, Reduce he con-
sump ion o ene gy e en i he e is con lic wi h ou own g ow h
possibili ies’ (I.BC7); ‘Less is mo e, do no g ow unnecessa ily’ (I.
BC1). By aligning hemsel es wi h he p io i y o Reduc ion, hey
os e a s ong sus ainabili y iew o he CE, in which limi s on
he use o ma e ials and ene gy a e acknowledged. Thus, some
kind o su iciency le els a e implici , seeking o mee human
needs wi hin plane a y bounda ies by cu bing excessi e con-
sump ion le els.
(II) SSE ne wo ks seek conscious consume ’s engagemen , which is
guided by he aim o sa is ying human needs h ough conscious
sales and esponsible consump ion a he le el o g ass oo s ini-
ia i es and sel - elian communi ies (Clube and Tennan , 2023),
a he han p omo ing endless wan s h ough agg essi e ma -
ke ing. This in u n helps o mode a e/minimize o e all esou ce
consump ion, and i is de ini i ely acili a ed by he limi ed-p o i
p inciple: ‘We a e ying o aise awa eness o be able o e hink
he way we consume’ (I.WS5); ‘I is a coope a i e s o e, all
membe s […] a e sensi ized di ec ly, hey know he a me , he
bake s, he le el o awa eness is e y impo an ’ (I.WS7); ‘Ou
clien s a e consomm’ac eu s [consume -ac o s], hey commi o,
ein o ce and manage he dis ibu ion ne wo k’ (I.WS8).
(III) SSE ini ia i es seek o maximize social and ecological dimensions
o e he economic one, o a leas , wo k o a balance be ween
economic, ecological and social dimensions. This o ien a ion is
de i ed om hei o iginal social mission, and i is de ini i ely
acili a ed by hei limi ed-p o i p inciple: ‘We [WISEs] always
p io i ize c ea ing ano he inse ion job, o e o he issues, e en i
we do no need all he hou s o ha posi ion’ (I.BC6); ‘The social
objec i e is pa amoun , also by law we a e non-p o i ’; (I.BC3);
‘Al hough we a e less p o i able, we educe ma gins and pay
[mo e o] ou a me s and hus we alue hei p ac ices’ (I.WS6).
In his sense, APRES-GE b oadens he ision o co po a e e-
sponsibili y by conside ing business ac i i y as a o m o mu ualiza ion
whe e objec i es o common good and equi y a e sha ed: ‘When we s a
o make p o i s, we inc ease sala ies by 15%, and we y o p o ide
be e pension unds’ (I.WS2). Following his ision, he ai dis ibu ion
o p o i s mus accoun o he social and en i onmen al sus ainabili y o
human ac i i ies in a con ex o commi men and accoun abili y:
‘Reasonable p o i abili y is he co ne s one o he abili y o ha e a deep
ecological and social commi men . A ue commi men means in es ing
a signi ican po ion o p o i s in imp o ing socie al impac and educing
ecological impac ’ (I.WS3). This de ia ion om he p o i maximiza ion
impe a i e helps os e su iciency and non-g ow h models, since
ins ead o s i ing o g ow h, i ms can s i e o uphold hei social o
ecological aims (Nes e o a, 2020).
(IV) SSE ini ia i es end o engage wi h all he s akeholde s h ough
collabo a ion and coope a ion. We analysed SSE ne wo ks ha
in ol e a a ie y o sec o al ac i i ies and end o collabo a e in a
common social and en i onmen al pu pose ha goes beyond
p o i seeking, which a e cha ac e is ics o i s social embedded-
ness. ‘We always p io i ize collabo a ion wi hin REAS o be ween
ela ed social en e p ises, o example, i we do no manage o
ag ee on a con ac in ou company, we make a p oposal o
ano he ela ed o ganiza ion’ (I.BC6). ‘When he e may be
compe i ion be ween local adi ional a me s in selling hei
U. Villalba-Eguiluz e al.
Jou nal o Cleane P oduc ion 418 (2023) 138050
9
ag o-ecological p oduc s, we seek media ion mechanisms based
on coope a ion’ (I.BC2). ‘We a e pa o he SSE because we a e
no in compe i ion; coope a ion and exchanges a e an in eg al
pa o who we a e’ (I.WS3). Ac o s in he SSE end o coope a e
wi h o he ac o s who sha e simila alues, hus ad ancing e o s
o achie e ci cula i y h ough ne wo king.
4.3. Implemen a ion limi s and ensions be ween and wi hin he SSE and
CE
SSE p ac ices a e hemsel es no wi hou ensions and con adic ions
(U ing, 2018; Villalba-Eguiluz e al., 2020a, 2020b). SSE ac o s a e
commi ed o de eloping iable al e na i es o he cu en hegemonic
economic model: ‘The economy mus be e hough o be a he se ice o
he communi y and no an economy ha is a goal in i sel in o de o
make money’ (I.WS6); ‘We do no hink abou p ices bu abou he
impac o he p oduc s’ (I.WS9). Bu , a he same ime, he e a e ensions
and limi s in he implemen a ion o no ma i e SSE p inciples o achie e
a ‘di e en economy’. These ensions migh eme ge be ween any o he
h ee dimensions: social, economic o ecological. The social impe a i e
and no ma i e alues do no au oma ically b ing g ea e en i onmen al
sus ainabili y, and con adic ions be ween he di e en aims can be
ound.
The ollowing a e some o he ensions ha eme ge among SSE ac o s
when i comes o: p io i izing he ecological dimension o e he eco-
nomic one; balancing he social and ecological dimensions; and main-
aining coope a ion and collabo a i e go e nance dynamics. Fi s ,
ega ding p io i izing he ecological dimension, imp o emen in en i-
onmen al pe o mance can be hinde ed by high cos s o implemen a-
ion: ‘We ha e a policy o educing CO2, a leas up o he elemen s ha
we canno change a he momen because his is beyond ou inancial
means’ (I.WS3).
Second, ega ding he social dimension, he econcilia ion o SSE and
CE c i e ia includes no only he unc ioning o companies, bu also he
challenge o job c ea ion and issues conce ning a o dable and mo e
sus ainable li ing s anda ds: ‘The in oduc ion o CE p inciples like
educ ion, and he elimina ion o unnecessa y ac i i ies [ …] will lead o
he loss o nume ous jobs. We mus hink abou he ield o job c ea ion,
o he wise we will cause a ci il wa ’ (I.WS3). S udies on he appa el
alue chain show ha job educ ion is likely o happen in p oduc ion
ac i i ies ou side Eu ope, while job g ow h could happen in euse and
ecycling ac i i ies wi hin Eu ope (Repp e al., 2021). Simila ly, he
ques ion o high p ices in ecological ood p oduc ion can ha e di e en
e ec s: paying highe p ices bene i s p oduce s in social and economic
e ms, and could os e en i onmen al sus ainabili y by p omo ing
biodi e si y and o ganic p oduc ion, o example. Howe e , highe ood
p ices migh also a ec social equi y nega i ely, by making such ood
less a o dable o all consume s.
Thi d, ensions also eme ge ega ding he collabo a i e dynamics
wi hin a compe i i e con ex . Fo ins ance, he e can be compe i ion
among SSE o ganiza ions when ying o access sca ce esou ces, such as
public unding: ‘I ha e seen p ac ices a emo ed om SSE p inciples
when pa icipa ing in public p ocu emen p ocesses’ (I.BC5). This im-
plies ha in a con ex in which some SSE ini ia i es build upon sca ce
public unding o expand hei s a egies, hey could become dependen
on his esou ce, and some imes compe e wi h o he SSE ini ia i es o
hese public ende s, ins ead o coope a ing o p esen a sha ed p oposal.
E en i coope a ion ends o p e ail, i coexis s wi h compe i ion o some
ex en – as SSE ac o s o en ope a e wi hin b oade ma ke dynamics and
economic p essu es. Changing public p ocu emen policies is seen as
undamen al o u he suppo ing he SSE in he Basque and Swiss
con ex s, and o an e ec i e ci cula i y policy design (Wi jes and Loz-
ano, 2016).
5. Discussion: policy implica ions o he SSE o a mo e ci cula
socie y
We now u n o wo a eas whe e ele an policy implica ions o
business insigh s can be de i ed om ou indings ega ding limi s and
su iciency: a) su iciency policies and eco-social wel a e measu es, and
b) he ques ion o scalabili y and b oade ma ke in e ac ions.
5.1. Towa ds su iciency policies o eco-social wel a e measu es
Cu en mains eam CE p ac ices end o enhance en i onmen al e -
iciency bu do no necessa ily in oduce caps o limi s o o e all esou ce
use and consump ion, and may he e o e be insu icien o o ien ing
human ac i i ies wi hin a ‘sa e ope a ing space’ o plane a y bounda ies.
Con inuous economic g ow h may no be a easible op ion
(Capell´
an-P´
e ez e al., 2015; Hickel and Kallis, 2019), and eco-e iciency
may no be su icien o achie ing a sus ainabili y ansi ion (Bimpi-
zas-Pinis e al., 2021). Su iciency measu es a e needed, a bo h a mic o
and mac o le el, unde s ood in he IPCC 6 h assessmen epo as
‘a oiding demand while mee ing needs’ (Saheb, 2021). These could be
de ined as eco-social wel a e measu es o he 21s cen u y (Koch, 2022).
The no ion o ‘mee ing needs’ o achie ing wellbeing wi hin sa e
ope a ing spaces is essen ial, as su iciency policies en ail subs an ial
changes in p oduc ion and consump ion pa e ns (Toulouse e al., 2019;
Sandbe g, 2021), which would ce ainly mee esis ance i associa ed
wi h loss o quali y o li e. The no ion o ‘consump ion co ido s’, o
uppe and lowe limi s o consump ion, is a p omising pa adigm o
policy-making, as i sugges s ha human needs can be me wi hin limi s
(Fuchs e al., 2021). Simila ly, he no ion o a ‘sa e and jus ope a ing
space’ ha includes mee ing social ounda ions wi hou bypassing
plane a y limi s, o he doughnu model (Rawo h, 2017), is also a
pa adigm shi ha is being explo ed a he local le el, by ci ies om
Ams e dam o Gene a.
SSE p inciples, wi h hei no ma i e ocus on wellbeing a he indi-
idual and collec i e le el – h ough, o example, p io i izing local
consump ion-p oduc ion loops, along wi h coope a ion and collabo a-
ion measu es – a e well sui ed o b inging abou a mo e salu ogenic
and posi i e app oach o su iciency measu es. A limi ed-p o i mo i e
which acknowledges su iciency can be a majo le e o main aining
economic ac i i y wi hin plane a y bounda ies and achie ing wellbeing,
some hing ha is suppo ed by ou esponden s in bo h Wes e n
Swi ze land and he Basque Coun y: ‘You ha e o limi p o i and
dedica e all e o s o posi i e en i onmen al and social impac s’ (I.
WS1). In ou case s udies we ha e seen many o he su iciency s a egies
indica ed by Niessen and Bocken (2021) o achie ing
Reduce-Re hink-Re use op ions wi hin ‘less dis ance’ be ween p oduc-
ion and consump ion, such as: awa eness- aising; demand educ ion
se ices; mode a ing sales; ques ioning consump ion; sho -dis ance
p omo ion; and suppo o sel -su iciency.
This app oach is in s a k con as o he p o i maximizing s a egies
o indi idual o -p o i companies, and i would necessi a e ins i u ional
condi ions o allow i s sp ead, such as collabo a i e go e nance o social
equi emen s in public ende s, as we discuss below. He e again, he e-
poli iciza ion o bo h CE and SSE p ac ices is necessa y, in he di ec ion
o ecognizing he ‘social embeddedness’ o he economy. A g owing
body o ecen li e a u e on he CE has p oposed his shi away om
p o i -seeking and owa ds a mo e no ma i e app oach o he CE (Mies
and Gold, 2021; Jaege -E ben e al., 2021) h ough a new cul u e o
consump ion and bene i edis ibu ion and su iciency (D’Ama o and
Ko honen, 2021). In sho , he SSE ne wo ks s udied align wi h he main
ideas o he bo om-up su iciency ci cula scena io depic ed by Bau-
wens e al. (2020a): p io i iza ion o high ans o ma i e Rs, and
os e ing local communi ies and sho supply chains. The SSE may help
o pu CE e o s a he se ice o human needs, educe inequali ies and
enhance social cohesion (Clube and Tennan , 2023; Sch ¨
ode e al.,
2019b, 2020).
U. Villalba-Eguiluz e al.
