2007: INAISE is a founding member of IRIS, the Inter-network of responsible economy Initiatives.
Founded in January 2007, it is the connection between European and international networks representing different families of responsible economy initiatives: responsible finance (FEBEA, INAISE), Fair Trade (IFAT), responsible consumption (ASECO, URGENCI) and Social Integration Enterprises (ENSIE), with the participation and support of institutional partners (Council of Europe and the Trento Autonomous Province, Italie).
 

IRIS activities aim to:
• Connect, exchange and dialogue within the responsible economy networks ;
• promote mutual training and support ;
• Dialogue with public institutions ;
• Develop further links and initiatives between governmental concepts and methods initiated by the Inter-network members.
Website: http://www.iris-network.eu

Institute for Social Banking

Summer School from July 27 to August 1, 2008 - Next Masters Programme in March 2009

INAISE members, together with other banks and foundations have created and support the Institute for Social Banking which is developing University Courses in the field of ethical, ecological and social oriented banking. The partners of this project are: Alternative Bank in Switzerland, Cultura Sparebank in Norway, Ekobanken in Sweden, Evidenz Stiftung and Freie Gemeinschaftsbank, Switzerland, GLS Gemeinschaftsbank and GLS Treuhand, Germany, La Nef, France,  Merkur, Denmark and Triodos Bank, the Netherlands.

The Institute for Social Banking (ISB) is organising the 2nd International Summer School 2008 - under the title “Social Banking: Profit for People and Planet”, from July 27 to August 1, 2008, in Rønde (near Århus), Denmark.

With the help of numerous experts from academia and practice, this event will provide a thorough overview of the socially and ecologically oriented banking and finance sector.

“Social“ and “Banking“? Do these go together? (How) can we use funds in a way so that they benefit both people and planet? What specifically can the individual contribute in this context?

Conducted in English, this event is aimed particularly at co-workers from the areas of Banking and Finance, as well as at students of social science and business studies. Experienced practitioners and academics will provide them with a thorough overview of the socially and ecologically oriented banking and finance sector. The main topics will be:

• “Global challenges & social banking“: Social, ecological, and developmental concerns of the 21st century and how social banking can help to alleviate them.

• “Clients´ initiatives that benefit from social banking”: Innovative projects that offer answers to the challenges, but depend on socially oriented financing sources, for this purpose.

• “Established social banking products & services“: Proven services, such as microfinance in developing countries, ethical and ecological investments, or the support of integrated housing projects.

• “New social banking products & services”: Novel services, such as microfinance in developed countries and “green“ credit cards, but also more disputed topics such as emission trading.

• “Organisational and individual competences relevant for social banking”: Requirements towards the competences of socially oriented financial service provider and “social bankers”.

• “Developments & prospects in social banking”: Future trends and scenarios in the socially oriented banking and financial sector.

In addition, there will be an opportunity to participate in an optional event entitled  “Social Banks and Qualifications for/in Social Banking”: Presentation by various European, socially oriented banks, as well as by the Institute for Social Banking on offers for education and training in Social Banking.

Participants can also suggest further topics to be dealt with during the event, in open space sessions, with the present colleagues and experts.

The event will not only provide a thorough insight into the topic of Social Banking but also a possible entry route into further training offers by the Institute for Social Banking, such as the part-time Masters “Social Banking and Social Finance“. This programme will commence, next, in March 2009 and requires participation in the Summer School.

For any further information please contact: Institute for Social Banking, Sven Remer, tel.: ++49-234 5797-185, e-mail: sven.remer@gls.de
or visit their website www.social-banking.org

Toward a world-wide social finance system

Since 2002 Inaise has been participating in the European Social Fora and World Social Fora

During the WSF  in Porto Alegre in January 2003, the idea launched during the former WSF in 2002, of creating a world-wide social finance system (or circuit) was presented during a major seminar (see below). Since then this project was also discussed during INAISE Annual General Meeting in May 2003 and the members approved this new development of INAISE.

In order to  further  the development of this world-wide social finance system, INAISE organised a seminar in Paris (ESF), 12-15 November 2003, and one workshop, one seminar in Mumbai (WSF), 16-21 January 2003 and one seminar in Porto Alegre (WSF 26-31 January 2005)

World Social Forum 2005 : Porto Alegre 26-31 January 2005

Click here to access the report on INAISE seminar. Other reports on social and solidarity economy events are available on the website of the Workgroup on Solidarity Socio-Economy, co-organiser of our seminar.
The pictures of the World Social Forum are available (Click on the camera)

World Social Forum 2004 took place in Mumbai, India, from the 16th to the 21st of January 2004. INAISE organised one workshop and one seminar on solidarity finance and the world wide social finance circuit.
A report on all events related to social and solidarity-based economy is available in French (32 pages, pdf file). Access the content. Access the report (pdf file)
You will also find a lot of information and documents related to social economy events (including social finance) on the website of the workgroup solidarity and social economy of Alliance 21 (France). Information is available in French, English and Spanish.
Click here to view the pictures of the WSF in Mumbai

European Social Forum  Paris - November, 2003
The ESF took place in Paris and Saint Denis from November 12 to November 15, 2003. "Solidarity" economy was one of the topics discussed during one conference, several seminars and workshops. A "solidarity" village was organised and gave the opportunity to all social economy and social finance organisations to be present in one place. A synthesis of the seminar on solidarity finance, organised by Inaise is available. Click here.

World Social Forum Porto Alegre - January, 2003
Inaise was present in Porto Alegre and contributed to different workshops and seminar on ethical and solidarity finance.
The summary of the workshops is now available. Click here for English version or Spanish version

Photo-reportage on the World Social Forum. Click here

European Social Forum 2002
INAISE has been actively participating in the social forum in November 2002 in Florence (Italy).
A summary of the seminar on ethical finance and micro credit lead by Frans de Clerck, president of Inaise, is available in English - French and Spanish.

INAISE research, projects....

   January - September 2001

Getting the framework right - Public support frameworks and strategies for local and micro-finance.

INAISE has contribute to a project launched by New Economics Foundation. This project was co-financed by the European Commission Directorate General Employment and Social Affairs

The project addressed the issue of "support from regional and national authorities" specifically for the new sector of local and micro-finance that has emerged to serve people, sectors and regions that mainstream banks are no more willing or able to finance. The project identified good practice of government support measures for local and micro-finance to create local employment – many national and EU programmes, though well intended, are poorly designed to support the sector, mainly due to fundamentally different "money cultures". Case studies and a handbook, illustrate good practices and provide tools for officials and practitioners to assess the potential of different measures.
In September 2001, a conference has concluded the project.
The conference was especially tailored for public officials and policy-makers that wanted to discover new and efficient ways to support local development in their communities.

The Handbook is in English and Italian. The case studies and country reports are available in English, ask Inaise secretariat if you want to get them.
The website dedicated to the project doesn' t exist anymore....

More information on the project : Case studies, Issue, challenge and partners

   1998-2000

Social Banking Challenge 2000, supporting the growth and development of social investment across Europe. With the support of DGV 3rd System and Employment Pilot Action.
The core objective of this project was to accomplish a significant step in the development of social investment in Europe : to go over from a first pioneering period which has lasted 10 to 20 years to a phase of "mainstreaming" by building scale into the movement. New financial instruments and services that had shown their technical usefulness and significance at a small level were to be grown and multiplied to increase their impact throughout Europe. From a pioneering phase, the time was felt ripe to see and test how to mainstream the movement.
The project did succeed in the overall goal of identifying practice across the EU, of identifying barriers to growth and to tackling them at least by creating a process of change. There is greater awareness of social investment and its role in job creation as a result of this project. However, the project did not succeed in developing concrete links with mainstream banks.
Outputs of the projects:
Conferences / roundtable / meetings in several countries including the first European Forum on Social Investment in Roubaix (report available in French and English see "publication" section)
Publications :
- 4 newsletters in En and Fr,
- 50 case studies written by experts in the different aspects of social finance in En and Fr,
- Book on Banking 2000, alternative ways to globalisation "Banking and Social Cohesion".  42 experts, consultants and bankers contributed to the writing of this book. It has been published by Editions Charles Leopold Mayer for the French edition and by Jon Carpenter Publishing for the English edition.

To order these publications go to the "publication" section.

The EC has  updated the web site on the "Third System and Employment"pilot action with the final results of the pilot action. INAISE Social Banking 2000 project was one of the 81 projects supported by this pilot action. The web site contains: a directory of the projects supported by the Pilot Action and their main outcomes, documents relating to joint seminars organised by the European Parliament ant the European Commission in 1998 and 2000, capitalisation reports and external evaluation reports. Access the EC web site, click here.

   2000

INAISE was a partner in the Banking on Culture project:
Banking on Culture is an innovative action research project set up to investigate and stimulate new sources of financial investment for the cultural sector in Europe. The project has worked with partners in Italy, the Netherlands, Ireland, Greece, Belgium, Portugal and the UK, testing a range of new financial mechanisms with the aim of embedding these within local and regional economic policies and in future investment strategies. North West Art Board was the leader of this project. Banking on Culture was part financed by the European Commission's Third System and Employment Pilot Action Programme.
The final report is available in English,  Greek; Italian and Portuguese. The banking on culture website doesn't exist anymore.  Copies of the English version of the report can still be asked to Inaise secretariat.
The following reports are available in a pdf file format.:

• English
• Greek
• Italian
• Portuguese
• French - the final report is not available in French but you can access two reports who are the basis reports from which the final report has been made: BOC1 and BOC2

As the documents date from 2000, contact details etc   are likely to be out of date. The data contained in these documents has been provided by the individuals and organisations listed for the purposes of reference, referral and information. It should not be used for any purposes other than those specified  

     1997-1998

Financial Instruments of the Social Economy in Europe and their impact on job creation
This research, co-financed by the DGV of the EC, has shown the employment creation capacity of the new Financial Instruments in the Social Economy (FISE) in Europe. The study was based on 50 case studies representing the large spectrum of new financial instruments that have come up these last 10-20 years throughout Europe. Its main findings were (1) that these FISE created jobs with very little money, (2) that the created jobs would not have existed otherwise (i.e. very low displacement effect), and (3) that the created jobs were to a large extent in those sectors recognised as "unmet needs" (e.g. neighbourhood services, environment, etc).

Download Word 97 report and case studies in the "publication" section, this report is also available in French