AJUDADA Community-Based Economy EVENT in PORTALEGRE, PORTUGAL
AJUDADA
Community-based economy: We're all in it together
An International Gathering to be held in Portalegre, Portugal, 14th - 16th June, 2013
The challenge for this international event is to imagine a new economic model based on the core values of community-based life: giving and sharing, key ingredients of a prosperous society. The word economy is used here in its original meaning of managing our common home.
AJUDADA alludes to an ancient practice common in many rural areas, in which members of a community joined together to help one another in the different chores in the fields. Men, women, children and the elderly, all participated in an AJUDADA with a specific task, in a collective endeavour of sharing and co-responsibility. We wish to explore what this means in modern times and to replicate this approach in all envisioned activities.
AJUDADA is inspired by the key concept of gift economy, in which people give to and receive from each other in an ongoing relationship of mutual support. In a gift economy, people organise themselves to collectively share the resources and skills that already exist within the community. Everyone has an active role and is valued. This is in contrast to a market economy, in which goods and services are mainly exchanged for financial benefit.
In Portalegre, the concept of community is still alive and strong and giving and sharing are still common. This provides fertile ground for innovative projects, reversing the current isolation and despair that this region is facing. Even in its early planning and preparatory stages, AJUDADA is inspiring contributions from many local people including local government, businesses and business organisations. The main organising work is being done by the local community, backed up by a team of Portuguese and international supporters.
AJUDADA is a learning process for all and a catalyst for ongoing change. It will start in Portalegre, but its influence will extend through its international guests and the publicity it generates. It will be open to the wider community, not just those attending the main events. We want to inspire the world: if Portalegre can re-invent itself, then so can anywhere else.
AJUDADA has attracted well-known International promoters of the concept of gift economy, such as Charles Eisenstein, author of "Sacred Economics", and Mark Boyle, author of "The Moneyless Man. It will include representatives of national and international organisations promoting the transformation of their communities, including Schumacher College and the Transition Network, as well as a range of local and regional authorities, working together to make AJUDADA a platform capable of triggering positive action for the future.
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