In October 2019, Chile experienced one of the most significant uprisings from the last three decades. People took to the streets demanding the end of inequality and neoliberalism, and faced brutal police repression and human rights’ violations in their attempts to foster social change. Interestingly, in the midst of this weave of protests, hundreds of grassroots organizations and local assemblies emerged or strengthened, weaving community strategies to prefigure new social relations at the local level. During the last year, the Government's response to the pandemic has favoured the market over the people, denying them basic social protection and food security. In this context, grassroots organisations have remained active, trying to tackle poverty and hunger with popular solidarity and mutual aid. Communal kitchens, food coops and networks of solidarity economies are some examples of community alternatives built from below. In this webinar, we will explore some of these local experiences, their strategies, challenges and contributions to radical social transformation.

Katia Valenzuela-Fuentes is an assistant professor at the Department of Sociology, Universidad de Concepción, Chile, researcher at the Centre for Sustainable Urban Development – CEDEUS Chile and activist scholar. Her main research interests include political sociology, social movements, autonomous politics, urban sociology, participatory action research and critical epistemologies. For 20 years she has been involved in several autonomous groups in Chile and has contributed to a number of campaigns in solidarity with Latin American social movements.