Abstract
The chapter gives an overview of the EU policy for social cohesion and regional development, in order to "look at some initiatives in two European countries and briefly countries and very briefly refer to the context of how these initiatives came about and these initiatives came about and developed. The initiatives presented here initiatives presented here did not originate at the European level but at the local level. They are historical constructions from the bottom up. Over time, these initiatives have grown and become significant players in the development of their municipal and regional economies."
The book is the product of the International Summer School "Solidarity Economy in Europe: Farms and Regional Development", planned jointly by the university, the trade unions and churches in Northern Hesse, came about after a joint trip to Italy. Representatives from cooperatives, counties and universities were then invited to our joint summer school to learn from them and show them examples in our region.