Wind of Renewal and Sifnos participants of the GRAPE project– Social economy and green transition

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GRAPE – Local Social Green Resilience Action Plans for small and peripheral territories

“GRAPE – Local Social Green Resilience Action Plans for small and peripheral territories” is a european project co-financed by the EU Commission under the SMP-COSME-2021-RESILIENCE-SEM Call (Grant Agreement n. 101074093).

1. OBJECTIVE

The project aims at experimenting the co-construction of local plans for the green, social and digital transitions in four small and marginalised territories engaging social economy actors. Thanks to the lessons learnt, a tool will be designed, that could then be used also by other municipalities willing to follow the same path.

2. CONTEXT

Effective resilience to climate change, pandemic, economic and social crisis is inherently local.

In the EU there are some 121 000 small municipalities (EUROSTAT, LAU2) often located in deprived area, with low budget capacities and far away from mainstream public development policies.

Here, often Social and Solidarity-based economy (SSE) actors and local community initiatives have a primary role in creating and managing economic and social activities and services, as the for-profit economy has left these areas to localise in more profitable ones or abroad.

Social and Solidarity-based Economy and local communities may therefore contribute to the territorial resilience through the experimentation of innovative solidarity-based solutions encouraging local stakeholders to cooperate and use their resources to tackle local challenges. Local resilience and local stakeholders’ participation are the key concepts of this project, willing to drive and boost environmental, energy, digital, social, and economic transitions of local communities in an ambitious, systemic and solidarity-based way, developing local solutions to local needs.

3. PARTNERSHIP

Smaller territories are a perfect laboratory to showcase in a reasonable time frame the impacts of such experimentation, at the same time contamination of good practices is easier at such a scale. Consequently, the project consortium is composed of 4 small complementary territories in 3 countries: Mirabella Imbaccari (IT), Malegno (IT), Bonares (ES), Sifnos (GR), together with an experienced European public authorities’ and SSE actors’ network (REVES) and a regional cooperative network (FAECTA).

For each territory, in addition to the respective municipalities, an SSE organisation has been involved: Fondazione di Comunità di Messina (leader partner) in Mirabella Imbaccari, Sol.Co. Camunia in Malegno, COOPINTE in Bonares and Wind Of Renewal in Sifnos.

4. ACTIVITIES

The project will organise exchange missions and prepare 4 local action plans for a social green and digital transition.

The project is structured in three different phases: in the first phase, 3 Social Economy missions (SEM) will be organised in Mirabella Imbaccari, Sifnos and Bonares, hosting each time the representatives of all partners. The consortium will use peer learning methodology and case study methodology to lay the foundations for the cooperation between partners and territories.

The second phase, then, will involve all partners to build local social green resilience action plan in the 4 target territories, taking advantage of the inputs developed during the SEMs.

The third phase of the project is the co-construction of a European digital toolkit for small municipalities interested in the cooperation with social economy actors to develop together participatory local action plans for social, green and digital transition to boost territorial resilience.

Finally, a policy paper with recommendation will be issued to support small territories in drafting local resilience plans, learning from the experience of the GRAPE project.

                                                                                                                                     

Paula, volunteer: Welcommon Hostel is a really nice place where you can create a big and beautiful community

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I am Paula Galván

My experience as a volunteer with Anemos Ananeosis / Wind of Renewal in Welcommon Hostel was very rewarding. Just before coming to Athens, I finished my studies in the social field, and working on this project gave me a lot of new perspectives on a collective which I didn’t work before.

I could learn a lot about cultures from different countries, and about the migrant situation in Greece; especially in Athens. Also, I could meet lots of new people from countries around the world who became friends, and with whom we could share acknowledgement about the current situation.

If I talk about the hostel,  I could say it is a really nice place where you can create a big and beautiful community with the families and the young people living there. I stayed there for five months (November to march), and we were a group of nine volunteers at the same time.

We created a nice atmosphere with every person in the place; organizing language and art classes and also extra activities during the weekends and for the festivity dates.

I enjoyed my time in the project, because It changed my mind completely, giving me new principles and consciousness. As well, I can say that this experience taught me new professional and personal skills that I’ll use in my future jobs in the social field, like communication, collaboration, adaptability, teamwork and creativity among others.

11 european and international awards and distinctions for Wind of Renewal and Welcommon Hostel

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ANEMOS ANANEOSIS / WIND OF RENEWAL has received 11 international and European-level distinctions for innovation and contribution to the social economy, social innovation, social and green impact.

– Anemos Ananeosis / Wind of Renewal has been awarded the European Citizen’s Prize 2018, by the European Parliament.  The European Citizen’s Prize recognizes initiatives that contribute to the promotion of EU values and fundamental rights, mutual understanding and closer integration between people in the EU, cross- border cooperation that builds a stronger European spirit.

– HOSTEL WORLD named in 2020 the WELCOMMON HOSTEL as one of the Hostel Heroes 2020, “a hostel that in the midst of the crisis is supporting the community coming together… building a better world!”.

– Welcommon Hostel was recognised as the most EXTRAORDINARY Hostel Hero 2021 by leading Online Travel Agent focused on the hostel market, Hostelworld. It was crowned most EXTRAORDINARY Hostel Hero by a panel of expert travel judges and more than 20,000 votes by hostel  travelers  all around the world.

– WELCOMMON HOSTEL was distinguished as the best social / intercultural action 2020-2021 in Greece during covid-19 – the competition was organized by the national network of “Anna Lindh Foundation“, the euro-med network for the intercultural dialogue.

– It was included in the short list of the finalists of the Central European Bank – CEB “social inclusion” award 2021,

– It was included in the short list (5 projects) of the HOSCARs “Extraordinary Sustainable Hostel” 2021

– It was selectd as one of the best 3 examples of projects for refugees contributing to the dialogue between the cultures in the Euro-med area (2017 Euro-Med Dialogue Award) by the Anna Lindh Foundation and the Fondazione Mediterraneo.

– We have also received A Special Mention” award of the REVES Excellence Award 2017 and a bronze prize 2019 in the competition @REVESNetwork #ExcellenceAwards2019 and.

– The French Federation of Social Inclusion Enterprises invited ANEMOS ANANEOSIS / WIND OF RENEWAL to participate in it’s national Congress organized 16-17/11/2018, in Marseille, and presented  the WELCOMMON center for housing and social inclusion of refugees as a “good example of social inclusion in Euro-Med area”.

– Welcommon Hostel was selected as one of the Best Of civil society initiatives of the Euro-Med Region and was presented during the “Long Night of Ideas” on 7/6/2021: how civil society in the Euro-Med was contributing to overcome challenges of our times