Subnode 2 of the Atlantic SES Research Network is focused on community mobilization around issues of inclusion and empowerment. Social Economy organizations that work on these issues are very active and essential to the social fabric of the Atlantic region. Community partners in Subnode 2 , for example, work on the inclusion of immigrants into PEI society and the economy, gender equity, aboriginal rights, access to information for local governance, educational opportunities for people with learning disabilities, poverty alleviation, empowerment of small-scale organic farmers through partnerships, co-ops as a vehicle for rural women’s economic development, inclusion of women in fisheries management, services for victims of family violence, and services for youth at risk. Our objectives as a network are:
- To model collaboration between academe and the community that is respectful, transparent, inclusive and empowering;
- To train and support students to perform participatory research on the social economy;
- To increase awareness and engagement among academics with respect to the research needs of social economy organizations, and foster collaborations with community-based researchers so that community experiences can become part of taught curricula in the university;
- To enable and assist community partner organizations to perform research in ways that increase both their in-house research capacity and their ability to provide effective services to marginalized people;
- To perform research that aims to understand the motivations of SE organizations, how they work to mobilize communities, and what institutional development strategies are effective;
- To map out, describe and raise the profile of these community-based organizations and their work;
- To assess how government policies and programs influence, assist and hinder the work of social economy organizations;
- To facilitate the exchange of information and collaboration among network members across Atlantic Canada;
- To generate research products and disseminate findings to SE organizations, decision-makers, the wider public and academic communities;
- To increase public understanding of the social economy;
- To continually evaluate our own process, values and activities against the above objectives, and track the impacts of our work on community and academic partners and students.
- In the long term, to help policy-makers understand the breadth, depth and importance of the social economy sector and recognize its needs.
Institute of Island Studies