Al- ‘Una Conference evokes a collective inquiry into the ways in which self-organization and solidarity economics inform decolonization. Looking specifically at the model of the cooperative, the conference seeks to study the effects of this mode of production, consumption and exchange on social relations and political realities. We investigate the extent to which present forms lay the basis for an anti-colonial, post-capitalist futurity, and look at their limitations and potentialities. We follow this line of reasoning to inquire into a wider infrastructure of solidarity economics and mutual aid, asking whether or not it is possible to truly challenge hegemonic and totalizing definitions of the economic space. Can we make a case for an autonomous economic terrain? Can we speak of socioeconomic relationships outside of neoliberal capture and homogenisation?
The interlocutors were specifically chosen due to the centrality of land to their imaginary and praxis. We explore with them their work in various cooperative models across Palestine and revisit the practices of the contributors as potential historical precedents of an insurgent economics that could self-sustain beyond decolonisation.
Participants: Juthoor Al-Shams Youth Cooperative (Shweikeh,Tulkarem), Ritaj Agricultural Women's Cooperative (Asirah AlShamaliya, Nablus), Al-Bahar Elna Cooperative (Gaza), Ard Alya’s Cooperative (Saffa, Ramallah), Multaqa Al-Sharaka Al-Shababi. Invited Co-facilitator: Batool ElHennawy.
The work was realized as part of the exhibition But These Forms Need to Be Created: On self-organisation in Khalil Sakakini Cultural Center (2021).