ABSTRACT
This chapter draws upon the Modernity/Coloniality Group (MCG) perspective and examines the construction of social and solidarity economy (SSE) in the Andean region using a decolonial approach to explore how these alternative/subaltern traditions have intersected with 'colonial' traditions to create a distinctive hybrid model. It illustrates the key features of the recent changes of SSE in the Andean region, with the illustrative case studies of Colombia and Ecuador, looking at their particular political projects and critically assessing its main potentialities and constraints. The chapter considers that SSE in the Andean region must be understood as the result of a critical combination of existing organisational indigenous collective principles and structural conditions, creating a hybrid mix SSE model. The chapter concludes by comparing the Colombian and Ecuadorian SSE landscapes and reflecting with a detailed discussion of the research's contributions to knowledge and theory inside and outside the Andean context and the potential areas for future research.
