In the former building of the pastry company Arruabarrena in Lazkao, not far from the large train factory, a group of goierritarras wants to create a smaller factory to boost the values of the transformative economy and make a more “habitable” Goierri: on 12 March the project of the Biziola factory was presented to dozens of people.

Two years ago a group of citizens started to reflect on such an initiative around the transformative social economy in the Goierri, and last year they took their first step at the Igartza Palace in Beasain. Based on the questions and needs that have arisen, the Lazkao project has begun. It is a project created “listening to citizenship and involving citizenship”, explained Mikel Álvarez Biziola in the presentation, and one of his tasks is “working the organization based on self-organization”.

Food Logistics Centre, and more

Among other things, there will be a space for “growing and educating” around agroecology, as well as a platform for distributing indigenous food. For example, the Bizigaia food cooperative promoted by Biziola will work from there: it will have a physical store in Lazkao, but they will organize a system of village distribution: “We want to do all this with one goal, create a petition for more people to be encouraged to produce,” they explained in the presentation.

Offices for social economy projects will also be set up in the old building, as well as a conference room and other events. In addition, they plan to set up a bakery worker: “We intend to sell at the fairs in the region and we will offer workshops to both adults and children,” said the members of the Astigoxo project.

After all, Bizola wants to be more than an empty space or a logistical space; he explained this to the Basque Country Irratia Andoni, of the Mikelarena cooperative: “We see that the current economic model has its limits and that we have to make a transition to a more livable model. It seems to us that in this transition we have to be the protagonists of the citizens and that is why we have created a comprehensive network or cooperative that brings together the citizens, the agents, and the projects of a transformative social economy”

Constituent Assembly on 14 May

But how are you going to do all that? Bizola will create a non-profit “comprehensive” social initiative cooperative. Thus, in the words of Naroa Elorza de Biziola, this means that “more than an individual benefit, you will have to seek a collective benefit.”

The cooperative will have three types of partners: users, collaborators and work partners who will be responsible for the daily monitoring of the project. The aim is for 500 members to be set up on 14 May with the aim of raising contributions, starting the cooperative and raising the EUR 100,000 they need.

“What citizens are going to do is a contribution of EUR 50 that will then become a quota, which would allow them to participate in all the services generated from Biziola,” said Álvarez in the presentation, responding to Goierri Telebista’s questions. The idea is that Biziola be autonomous, that it does not depend on subsidies, we need the muscle of citizenship.”

Village to village presentations

In order to achieve the aforementioned "muscle", Álvarez will now present in Goierri the project "people to people", with the objective of forming partners. So this weekend, on Friday you will be in Gabiria at 18:00 in the House of Culture; in Itsason you won at 18:30; and in Zaldibia the quote will be next Tuesday at 19:00.