The social economy as produced space: the ‘here and now’ of education in constructing alternatives

Abstract

This article approaches adult learning within the social economy through a critical and spatial lens. First, I approach the critical pedagogy of Freire, outlining the dialectical relationship between subjectivity and objectivity enacted in the development of critical consciousness. Carrying this dialogical argumentative forward, I go on to show how the critical geography of Lefebvre ‘unpacks’ this dialectic onto space and place, grounding pedagogical apprehension in a critical geography which is more directly set up to confront and engage with capitalism as a spatial force. Drawing from some of the social enterprise literature, I then utilise Lefebvre’s ‘spatial triad’ to demonstrate how the perceived, conceived and lived facets of space can shed light on integrative areas of adult learning that together constitute a platform for a potential ‘trial by space’ for alternatives.