Abstract
The central assumption of our work was that any strategy developed to enhance socio-ecological transition is unlikely to yield strong results unless the resources of regional and local actors are mobilised and the complex interactions between central policy initiatives and their regional and local implementation are taken into account. The leading questions are: Who are the new local and regional actors; what is the innovative potential of civil-society for eco-social transformation; how can a new interplay between interconnected areas, levels and actors be enabled; and what are the obstacles. New institutional arrangements within community based eco-social economies as models for self-organised civil society based alternative spaces will be described and analysed.