Author: Ricard Espelt Rodrigo
Programme: Doctoral Programme on the Information and Knowledge Society
Language: Catalan
Supervisor: Dr Ismael Peña López
Faculty / Institute: Universitat Oberta de Catalunya.
Key words: Cooperativism, agroecology, ICT, digital commons, platform cooperativism
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Abstract:
The present doctoral dissertation deals with the transformational impact that information and communication technologies are generating in the field of cooperativism in the network society era, and how these technologies, through an online platform, are restructuring how organizations operate. This new platform cooperativism takes advantage of digital commons as an instrument of technological infrastructure tied to the values that define it and, possibly, an essential instrument for its scalability. This research focuses on studying the fit of consumer cooperatives 1) in the promotion of local economic and social development, through so-called short circuits of commercialization, 2) under the umbrella of a fairer economic model based on the values of the social and solidarity economy, and 3) participating in social movements with the will to establish themselves as political subjects. This threefold intersection of areas allows for a holistic understanding of its social, economic and political dimensions tying it to the values and action of platform cooperativism.