Abstract
This article presents qualitative and quantitative findings on provisioning
activism in Italy, focusing on Solidarity Purchase Groups
(Gruppi di Acquisto Solidale, GAS). By using quantitative data about
GAS growth, numerical consistence and economic impact and
through ethnographic insights based on prolonged fieldwork, it identifies
the GAS movement as an ecological, economic and political
counterculture. I discuss the implications for policy efforts at the
regional and state level, highlighting both potentials and shortcomings
of promoting GAS as means to sustainable development. In particular,
I identify the issues of trust, informality and direct democracy
as distinctive of GAS practice. However, this positions solidarity economy
vis-à-vis policymaking in a potentially oppositional rather than
interlocutory stance.
activism in Italy, focusing on Solidarity Purchase Groups
(Gruppi di Acquisto Solidale, GAS). By using quantitative data about
GAS growth, numerical consistence and economic impact and
through ethnographic insights based on prolonged fieldwork, it identifies
the GAS movement as an ecological, economic and political
counterculture. I discuss the implications for policy efforts at the
regional and state level, highlighting both potentials and shortcomings
of promoting GAS as means to sustainable development. In particular,
I identify the issues of trust, informality and direct democracy
as distinctive of GAS practice. However, this positions solidarity economy
vis-à-vis policymaking in a potentially oppositional rather than
interlocutory stance.
| Original language | English |
|---|---|
| Article number | 5 |
| Pages (from-to) | 77-98 |
| Number of pages | 21 |
| Journal | Anthropological Journal of European Cultures |
| Volume | 23 |
| Issue number | 1 |
| DOIs | |
| Publication status | Published - Apr 2014 |
Keywords
- alternative food networks
- ethical consumption
- Italy
- solidarity economy