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The Emergence of Makerspaces

Critical approaches to the smart city concept are used to begin highlighting the promises of makerspaces, that is to say, those emerging urban sites that promote sharing practices; exercise community-based forms of governance; and utilize local manufacturing technologies. A bird’s-eye-view of the history of makerspaces is provided tracing their roots back to the hacker movement. Drawing from secondary sources, their community-building, learning and innovation potential is briefly discussed.

Manchester Mayor Calls for Co-op Solutions

“The co-operative movement is at its best when it sees a crisis and comes forward with new thinking to raise standards,” he said. “We could work together on a policy that is around taking some of those properties out of the private rented sector and developing new co-operative models.

Lakewinds Food Co-op is carving out a niche in the competitive suburban grocery scene

As a member-owned institution, Lakewinds is under pressure to make patronage refunds while continuing to grow at a rate faster than inflation. “Our growth strategy includes increasing membership and adding new stores,” Woodbeck says. “There are opportunities in the southwestern metro because land is still available; though, as in the residential market, it’s overpriced.”