NextBillion - An Initiative of the William Davidson Institute at the University of Michigan

In the fall of 2025, the World Forum on the Social and Solidarity Economy will be held for the first time in France, following the editions in Seoul, Montreal, Bilbao, Mexico City and Dakar.

A major international biennial event, it brings together all stakeholders in the Social and Solidarity Economy ecosystem.

Presentation of the Forum
The objective
Pooling visions and practices that can make the SSE the “standard that will regulate the economy of tomorrow,” imposing the primacy of humans and collective projects over capital and structuring an economy of proximity and the long term.

Like every edition of the World SSE Forum, Bordeaux GSEF 2025 aims to:

to reunite Elected officials and leaders from around the world, international experts, representatives of development agencies, networks, and field actors who are committed to promoting human-centered economic models that respect the environment. A final declaration will formalize the political commitments, translating into a roadmap for the next two years; promote the exchange of experiences and expertise implemented on all continents. The dense program, co-constructed with the Scientific Committee and the contributions received, will echo initiatives led by actors involved in the SSE, according to formats conducive to perspectives and cross-examinations.

A highlight on the international agenda
The 2025 World SSE Forum constitutes a highlight on the path to achieving the Sustainable Development Goals. Five years before the 2030 Agenda,It will bring together civil society and regions to create action, challenge decision-makers and accelerate the just transition. This meeting is also part of a dense and decisive global sequence, a few days before the World Social Forum in Doha (4–6 November 2025), which will bring together heads of state and government to accelerate the establishment of a new global social contract around poverty reduction.

In this context, Bordeaux GSEF 2025 will forcefully recall the key role of local governments and civil society in building sustainable, inclusive, and locally anchored development. This will be a strategic opportunity to share concrete solutions, strengthen cooperation, and make the voices of grassroots actors heard on a global scale. This is all the more crucial given that the world is currently facing numerous threats: wars, authoritarian regimes, economic unrest, the hardening of social relations, ecological disasters, disinformation, and more. The SSE is a testament to a new narrative that it is up to everyone to write.

In the colors of the ESS
Beyond the central site of the event, the Forum will radiate in time and space, with the day before the opening a proposed tour route to meet the ESS in the territory, but also a promotion of the ESS aimed at the general public and the mobilization of hundreds of young people who came to make their voices heard and give echo to their initiatives.

Open to the city, Bordeaux GSEF 2025 will be an opportunity to highlight the SSE for what it is and could be even more, present in the daily lives of all, serving the common good. Fruitful bridges will also be offered to conventional economic actors to promote responsible, locally rooted cooperation.