The European social economy and the EU2020

Abstract

The social dimension of the EU2020 strategy poses some major issues regarding the role played by the citizens in the policy-making process. The analysis of the link between the EU2020 and the social economy is crucial in the current context of the economic and political crisis of the EU. The article's main goal is to demonstrate the implications of the social economy policies in constructing the European agenda. A theoretical approach on social economy and an overview on the EU2020 can reveal how political and non-political actors at the EU level operate with elements that mark common social policy goals. The instruments used by institutions are validated through specific values that are meant to target an active European citizenship. The neoliberal perspective behind the social economy system leads to a particular European construct.