Teaching staff:
Papageorgiou Konstantinos
Professor, Department of Agricultural Economics & Rural Development, Agricultural University of Athens

Social Economy (or Third Sector) occupies the space between the public and the conventional private sector. It includes legal persons involved in economic and/or social activities whose interest is not to produce profits for the capital invested. Social Economy refers to Co-operatives, Mutual Societies, Associations and Foundations, as well as other legal persons that differ per country but have similar characteristics (e.g. Development Agencies in Greece). These legal persons are examined their profile, legal base (in a comparative and critical manner), the size of the sector its European dimension and interrelationships, the policy applied in Greece and the European Union, their role and contribution to employment and in improving