Self-introduction

I've created this thread so you can see who is here, looking for potential collaboration. So first of all I'll introduce myself.

My name is "Miguel" Yasuyuki Hirota, I'm originally from Japan but live in Valencia, Spain since 2011 where I finished my Ph.D. on social economy (I've been writing monthly posts at the online version of El País, Spain's leading newspaper, and here you can see the list of my posts in Spanish). I've been working on the topic of local currencies since 1999, and since 2015 I'm also a member of Dinero Positivo, the Spanish branch of International Movement for Monetary Reform which calls for reforms in the very official currency system (the most famous one is Positive Money UK).

hello miguel!

we've met each other in Japan way back in 2009 during the Asian Forum on Solidarity Economy in United Nations University & Aoyama Gakuin University, Tokyo from Nov. 7-10, 2009. This forum was sponsored by the NPO Association Pacific Asia Resource Center (PARC).

thank you for the opportunity to become a part of your initiative re: collaboration towards Social Solidarity Economy (SSE) ... -rodolfo "karudz" villanueva

I'm Guy Dauncey, living on Vancouver Island, in western Canada. I'm just completing my book on The Economics of Kindness: The Birth of a New Cooperative Economy. I've got a database of 148 social solidarity economy organizations, some of which have many members - so charting it all is a big task. My website is www.thepracticalutopian.ca

Would like to see this database.

i just love the title of the book! The Economics of Kindness (not GREED!): The Birth of a New Cooperative Economy...hope and pray that you'll be able to finish writing the book ASAP. cheers!

Thanks! The book is complete, now at the development editor stage - and I still have to find a publisher. Coming up five years work!

Greetings, I am Helen Hill, a former academic from Australia where I taught Sociology and introduced a course on International Community Development during 25 years at Victoria University (Melbourne), Having written my MA on Timor-Leste's struggle for independence and having taught many Timorese students; after I retired I was invited by the Vice-Minister for Education (one of my former students) to move to Timor-Leste. I met Miguel and some of his colleagues at the People's Forum on ASEAN in Dili in 2016 and began, with a group of Timorese, to set up a Social and Solidarity Economy group in Dili, the credit union sector is quite strong. Our Facebook Group is called 'Social Solidarity Economy Network - Rede Sosial Ekonomia Solidaria TL', I wrote a chapter in Timor-Leste's Human Development Report 2018 which included a bit on the potentialities of Solidarity Economy for Timor Leste https://www.academia.edu/36771165/In_Transit_to_the_Youth_Dividend_in_Timor_Leste In the past having done my PhD on Nonformal Education in Fiji, New Caledonia and Micronesia I do have some contacts with co-operatives in the Pacific, I also worked for the Commonwealth Youth Program in Fiji in the late 1980s where youth enterprise was one of our topics si I will try to invited some of my former colleagues to join the group.

Thank you Hellen Hill, for all your inspirations of your youth work with the Commonwealth Youth Programme. As a benefactor, I am still proactive in this field, and since 2014, have been asked by the Government to carryout leadership training for aspiring women leaders in Solomon Islands. So far we now have 4 women Members of Parliament, 4 Women Leaders in the Provincial Assemblies and 1 Councilor in the Honiara City Council. Thank you Hellen once again.

Greetings Caspar, I'm glad you have joined the group, I thought you would be the most knowledgeable in the Solomon Islands to let us know of any developments in the co-operative sector, fair trade, microfinance and other such activities in the Solomons. Are any of the women's groups engaged in setting up co-operatives or credit unions? Are Fair Trade Australia and New Zealand active there? Miguel is keen to get more people from Oceania in this group, I know there are some good activities going on in Vanuatu but unfortunately don't have the email addresses even of some of my former CYP students to invite them. If you know anyone who would be interested please invited them.. Best wishes from Dili Helen

Thank you Hellen for the introductory message on the Framavox.

Yes, we have the South Pacific Development Micro-Finance that supports women in small business, many savings clubs and Unions only for those in the employment sector.

Will get around to pick some of the datas and will send to you.

Kindest regards.

Casper J. Fa'asala