News & Events

The “Solidarity Economy Seminar – How to Achieve Community Solidarity?” organised by the China and Global Development Network of the Department of Applied Social Sciences (APSS) at The Hong Kong Polytechnic University (PolyU) was successfully held from 23rd to 24th September, 2024, in Xinglongwa Town, Aohan Banner, Chifeng City, Inner Mongolia; where renowned as the “Home of Millet in the World,” with an 8,000-year history of millet cultivation. Its dryland farming system was recognised as a Globally Important Agricultural Heritage System by the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations in 2012. 

The seminar opened with a keynote speech by Professor Ku Hok Bun from APSS, PolyU, titled “Solidarity Economy and Community Solidarity,” which analysed the concepts and practices of solidarity economy. The two-day seminar also included dialogues on three themes: “Solidarity Cooperation in Community Livelihood Projects,” “Ecological and Cultural Ethics Behind Livelihood Development,” and “Imagining Economy Beyond Economics.” Guest speakers, local project teams and villagers together with over 40 faculty members and postgraduate students from various provinces exchanged insights on the development paths and experiences of sustainable livelihood projects in Jiangbutasi Village in Xinjiang, Xinglongwa Town in Inner Mongolia, and Zhoushan Village in Henan. The organiser also presented solidarity economy products, such as eco-friendly small bags crafted from recycled materials by Zhoushan Village and black soap from Xinjiang, as souvenirs for the participants. The seminar ended with the visits to local partner’s millet cooperative, participation in autumn harvest activities and a bonfire party.