Why does an organisation working for nonviolence promote local currencies, agroecology and community economies?

At NOVACT, we understand that building fairer, more resilient and democratic societies also means strengthening communities so they can make decisions about their own future. That is why we promote projects that support local economies, food sovereignty and cooperation as tools to build alternatives for the common good.

When people think of NOVACT, they often think of human rights defence, conflict transformation or peacebuilding. This remains our reason for being. But part of our work also consists of promoting initiatives that respond to some of today’s major social, economic and environmental challenges.

The climate crisis, the rising cost of living and the fragility of food systems have a direct impact on communities and their ability to sustain dignified ways of life. In response to this reality, one of NOVACT’s strategic lines is the construction of alternatives for the common good, promoting projects that strengthen local economies, cooperation and the ecosocial transition.

Building alternatives from the territories

Over the past year, this line of work has taken shape through eight ecosocial transition projects developed in Catalonia, Madrid and Extremadura.

These initiatives include ResilientESS, which promotes sustainable local food systems by facilitating access for small producers to local markets, and NOVACT’s participation in the creation of UnaUn, a collective brand designed to support the distribution and commercialisation of extensive livestock products in Catalonia.

This line of work also includes the participatory evaluation of new infrastructures for the revitalisation of rural areas promoted by ARCA; the AgroCistellesBCN and Alimentació que cuida el territori projects, which promote short food supply chains in Barcelona; the dynamisation of the Nou Barris Communality; and the management of the local currency LaRosa in Sant Feliu de Llobregat.

Although they respond to very different needs, all these projects share the same approach: strengthening local economies, encouraging cooperation between different actors in the territory and promoting alternatives to unsustainable economic and food models.

Beyond advocacy

At NOVACT, we work so that communities can play an active role in the decisions that affect their future. This also means facilitating new forms of cooperation between producers, distributors, shops, public administrations, organisations and citizens, creating networks that make more sustainable, locally rooted models possible.

This work is part of how we understand social transformation: not only as denouncing injustice, but also as building concrete alternatives, rooted in the territory and capable of strengthening community life.