In this collection that wants to be representative of what is the Catalan cooperation, could not be missing a presence of a book dedicated to how the model of municipal cooperation has been constructed in Catalunya. And the fact is that, from its beginnings, the local cooperation has been an innovative joint model in complicities network. A first actor are the entities and civil platforms that have been leading the campaigns and camped of “0,7 and +”, that in very much places there have been those who have promoted the impulse of politics of cooperation compromised with the development and the peace and that were undertaking commitments to denounce the causes of the unjust situation of North-South imbalance.

These Campaigns for “0,7 and +” have a subtitle saying “with transparency and quality”. We can say that from the beginning we wanted to arrive much further from asking only for resources for cooperation initiatives, and that is why, the campaign was faced to promote that the municipal cooperation was turning to a transparent and participative public politics. This is the key characteristic and explains that it should go accompanied by mechanisms of participation and planning how it had to be the cooperation in every municipality, configuring the identity.

A fact that illustrates the dimension of the Catalan municipal cooperation in which, even with negative impact of the economic crisis, almost 400 towns hall, delegations, councils, regional and unions impel annual initiatives of cooperation and solidarity. Among the most active, a whole of 69 municipalities have Local Councils of Cooperation and they are those who destine more resources. Moreover, 19 of these municipalities have been also provided with a Director Local Plan of Cooperation.

We have chosen the municipality of Sant Cugat del Vallés because is, in many senses, a good example of the wealth that has supposed the local cooperation in Catalunya for the last 25 years. It has an active and awkward local network of entities, a councillor of cooperation and solidarity and maintains a budget of the 0,7 of the proper income of the municipality destined for cooperation in agreement of all the municipal political groups that seal previously the commitments before the elections. It has also a council of participation between the town hall and the entities where, in the last two decades, they formulate every 4 years and in a participative way, the making of the Director Local Plan of Cooperation. Also, the entities and the Town hall will do an effort, together, to announce what is done in the local mass media, with entire transparency. On the other hand, historically Sant Cugat del Vallés has distinguished for the strong to sensibility the work for the peace, and across the International university for the Peace it has managed to be a reference that assembles exchanges with peace organizations peace of all the continents.

Furthermore, this local dynamic takes part actively with the work in network with other municipalities, through Fons Català of Cooperació al Desenvolupament and other networks and instances of support to the cooperating municipalities, like the Delegation of Barcelona, the CGLU, Mayors for Peace, etc.

This local united dynamic is, undoubtedly, a good loudspeaker to get to know the global problems and to announce them to the municipality, to encourage that each one, from the local ambience, could be implied to promote a more just world compromised with the peace and the solidarity.

Núria Camps i Vidal
Director of AVALUEM

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