How to Activate Collaborative Change within a Competitive, Oligarchy-Influenced System

European leaders are talking seriously about a “Green Social Deal”—a vision for a more sustainable, inclusive Europe. But underneath the rhetoric lies a paradox: the EU continues to operate largely as a top-down, competitive, oligarchy-driven system. Meanwhile, Marinaleda, a small town in Andalusia, offers a radically different model—one born of community-led solidarity and participatory democracy. Could Europe learn from these grassroots alternatives?

1. Scale & Origin

EU Social Contract

• A technocratic endeavor stretching across 27 member states.
• Shaped by political compromise, economic interests, and powerful lobby groups.

Marinaleda Model

• Emerged bottom-up through community action—land occupations, collective pressure, local solidarity.
• Rooted in lived experience and direct democracy, not policy decree.

2. Governance & Decision-Making 

EU Imperatives:

• Implement binding local assemblies for budget decisions.
• Create regional cooperative foundations insulated from lobbying.
• Introduce citizen veto power on major policies.

3. Economic Model & Finance

EU Model

• Competitive markets with green overlays (ETS, subsidies).
• Dominated by corporations and financial interests.

Marinaleda Model

• Non-capitalist cooperatives, collective municipal economy.
• Profits reinvested in the community—no exploitation, no shareholders.

EU Pilots:

1. Launch cooperative enterprise schemes in regions.
2. Create a European Cooperative Development Fund to rival oligarchic investment.
3. Enact anti-consolidation laws to protect local economies.

4. Housing & Public Goods

EU Model

• Market-driven housing, supplemented by subsidies—frequently speculative.

Marinaleda Model

• Self-built homes with stable €15 monthly rent, no speculation, community ownership.

EU Actions:

• Establish land trusts and community-build programs city-wide.
• Ban speculative investments in designated zones.
• Promote large-scale cohousing cooperatives.

5. Civic Empowerment vs. Lobby Power

EU Model

• Lobbyists and corporate coalitions have disproportionate influence.

Marinaleda Model

• Virtually no external lobbying—decisions reflect citizen consensus.

EU Reforms:

• Publicly fund civic movements and independent oversight.
• Enforce conflict-of-interest and transparency laws.
• Empower citizen assemblies with veto authority over lobby-influenced deals.

6. What It Would Take in a Competitive/Oligarchy-Influenced System

  To shift toward a Marinaleda-like model, the EU would need to:

1. Radical Transparency
   – Ban dark money, restrict lobbyist access to civil servants, and publish all draft policies.
2. Participatory Democracy
   – Channel a portion of public budgets directly to citizen assemblies and make their decisions binding.
3. Parallel Economic Ecosystems
   – Fund and support regionally-based cooperatives and collective enterprises independent of corporate
   finance.
4. Regenerative Public Commons
   – Legally protect housing, utilities, and green spaces as shared, co-owned assets.
5. Scaled Living Experiments
   – Pilot cooperative policies regionally, document outcomes, and build political awareness.
6. Rebuild Public Narrative
   – Showcase Marinaleda-style models not as fringe anomalies, but as practical visions of participatory
   democracy.

Final Thought

Marinaleda proves that it’s possible to build a cooperative system within—rather than outside of—a competitive societal framework. But scaling that model across the EU requires strategic shifts:

• Democratize budget and policy control at every level.
• Seed parallel economies through cooperatives and housing collectives.
• Fortify systems against oligarchic capture and lobby influence.

This isn’t mere idealism—it’s intentional system design. By planting the seeds of cooperative alternatives within existing structures, Europe can catalyze genuine, scalable transformation.

Govert van Ginkel

Dit artikel is geschreven door Govert van Ginkel. Govert is gespecialiseerd in Verbindend Communiceren en is binnen dit vakgebied actief als trainer, spreker, coach en mediator. Meer informatie over Govert vind je hier. Het actuele trainingsaanbod is hier te vinden.