Reshaping the future: how local communities are catalysing social, economic and ecological transformation in Europe
The Status Report on Community-led Action on Sustainability and Climate Change in Europe takes a step towards making visible the state of the art of knowledge and understanding about community-led action on sustainability and climate change across Europe.
Methodologically, it pioneers inclusive and open source methods, by facilitating collaborative effort in the compilation and synthesis of relevant information on the part of a transdisciplinary community of creators, users and communicators of knowledge.
This first (2019) edition is the outcome of a first trial of these methods, which future versions will aim to deepen and extend. It is coordinated by ECOLISE*. A call for involvement in this ongoing process is presented at the end of this report.
Background
ECOLISE is a European wide network of community-led sustainability initiatives, legally founded in 2014. At the time of writing, it has 43 member organisations in 21 European countries.
Most members are national and international representative organisations of community-led sustainability initiatives, predominantly but not exclusively connected to the ecovillage, permaculture and Transition movements.
Members also include the ICLEI network of local authority sustainability initiatives, along with several supporting organisations contributing specialised skills in areas such as research, education, communication and process facilitation.
Sustainability as a Policy Driver
Sustainability has been a significant influence on governmental and intergovernmental policy and action since the 1970s, and the focus of major global agreements for the past several decades. The most recent outcomes of this process include the Paris Agreement on Climate Change and the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals. Both these initiatives, and the growing influence of sustainability as an outlook, shape in important ways the actions of key actors such as governments, businesses and civil society, including community-led initiatives
An Overview of Community-led Action on Sustainability and Climate Change in Europe
The chapter 3 describes some of the major networks and movements of community-led initiatives active in Europe. These movements are not discrete, but have a great deal of overlap in ideas, activities, people and organisations involved.
They are increasingly collaborating at all levels from local up to international, and reaching out across sectors to create partnerships with local government, businesses and other stakeholders committed to a more sustainable, inclusive, democratic and fair society.
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