Before I went to the 2014 NASCO Institute, I assumed that my relationship with cooperatives was, realistically, coming to a close. I graduated from UC Davis over a year ago and am therefore not eligible to live in student cooperative housing. My most recent experience living in a non-student cooperative housing made me wonder if I have enough energy to live cooperatively and be a member of the workforce. And, I was not interested in working for cooperative businesses because I perceived them to be draining, unstructured and disorganized. Although all signs were pointing to the end of cooperatives in my life, I could not forget how much I loved my experiences with housing cooperatives, especially their ability to create spaces where people feel free to explore and express themselves. I, therefore, chose to attend NASCO Institute with the hopes that my journey with co-ops would not end just yet. And, with great elatedness I can report that, as the theme “Co-ops for Life: Owning Our Future” implies, I learned that cooperatives could be a queerly viable part of my future!
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