France Hosts Key Events Advancing Regenerative and Social Solidarity Economies
Two parallel events in Lyon and Nancy emphasize France's commitment to advancing regenerative and social solidarity economies, highlighting local initiatives and broad participation.
- • Lyon's Rencontres de l’économie régénérative gathers 1,000 participants focused on aligning economy with living systems.
- • The event includes expert roundtables on mental health and human regeneration in economic transition.
- • Nancy's Village des solutions de demain showcases the social and solidarity economy employing over 30,000 locally.
- • The ESS sector accounts for nearly 12% of employment in Meurthe-et-Moselle, surpassing the national average.
Key details
On November 7 and 8, two significant events in France spotlighted the growing focus on regenerative and social solidarity economies. In Lyon, the association Mush organized the Rencontres de l’économie régénérative at the Cité internationale de la gastronomie, aiming to gather around 1,000 participants including entrepreneurs, researchers, and students committed to transforming the current economic system to better serve life and combat climate change. Co-founder Fabien Lopez emphasized the event’s mission to realign economic activity with the needs of living ecosystems, acknowledging the damage inflicted on natural and human capital. The program featured participatory roundtables on themes such as transitioning from vision to action in regenerative economic practices and the role of mental health in human regeneration, with experts like Fabrice Bonnifet and Isabelle Delannoy contributing.
Simultaneously, the fourth Village des solutions de demain took place in Nancy at the Conseil Départemental, showcasing the social and solidarity economy (ESS) sector in Meurthe-et-Moselle. This sector employs over 30,000 people locally—nearly 12% of the departmental workforce, exceeding the national average—and comprises more than 2,000 employer establishments with a combined payroll of 780 million euros. The event featured 86 exhibitors, about half being newcomers, presenting solutions rooted deeply in local community needs across themes such as environment, solidarity, inclusion, and education. Anthony Caps, vice-president in charge of ESS, highlighted the sector's vital role in addressing local demands and fostering community-based economic models. The program also included round tables and awarded two prizes: the Encouragement Prize and the Village of Tomorrow Solutions Prize.
Both events reflect a burgeoning movement in France to rethink and reshape economic paradigms toward sustainability, social equity, and the regeneration of living systems, underlining a shared urgency among participants to address environmental and societal challenges through innovative economic frameworks.