Transitions on the path of trust: The evolution of philanthropy and social capital in a Hungarian community
The central proposition of this study is that community spaces represent local arenas of social discourse and solidarity. Their significance lies not only in their existence as physical “places” available to the community, but also in the social relations cultivated within them, which may contribute to strengthening social capital in a given community. One of the most important features of community is its organization at the local level, and this significance has not diminished in the digital age (Csurgó, 2024). People act where they live, fulfilling their social functions in their locality, while their actions beyond the local sphere also feed back into the local society (Warren, 1963).
The paper focuses on a community in Eastern Hungary that has coalesced around a grassroots community space. The space has been analyzed as a node of solidarity networks: a locus that enables the emergence of genuine communities organized around shared interests. The research is contextualized by theories of solidarity, trust and social capital, within which the space is examined.
Author: Éva Fekete, 2024 / 2025 #ShiftThePower Fellow
Published by: GFCF
Published: September 2026
