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November 7, 2011

Connecting from the heart

Sociocracy: A ‘light in our path towards a co-operative society’

When it comes to collective leadership, simply having the willingness to work in this way is not always enough, and trying to ensure everyone is heard without systems and structures to support this aim can become messy and unworkable.

A growing number of co-ops are exploring how the governance system of sociocracy can help them to ensure those involved have a say while still getting things done.

March 20, 2025

Building and Sustaining Projects with Stephanie Rearick and Julian Rose

In this session, Stephanie Rearick of Humans United in Mutual Aid Networks discusses getting started on projects and Julian Rose of Endstate ATL and New Economy Coalition discusses key considerations for sustainability, including governance, power, conflict, and more. 

Based in Kampala, Uganda, Soita is openDemocracy’s East Africa reporter, working on our Tracking the Backlash feminist investigative journalism project. Contact her at: khatondi.soita[at]opendemocracy.net

March 24, 2025

What the World can Learn from Radical Queer Aid Collectives in East Africa

Since their inception, The Trans and Queer Fund and UmaUma Buy Nothing group, both based in Kenya, and an untitled queer collective in Uganda have organised themselves to be independent from foreign donors, which they say do not understand the realities of the communities they serve.

The Future of International Development Is Mutual Aid, Not Donor Aid

The sudden, illegal, drastic dismantling of USAID — and other recent aid cuts from countries including France, the Netherlands and the U.K. — is a clear demonstration of some of the problems with that model. Depending on governments, it turns out, is risky — particularly when they feel able to break existing commitments with impunity.

India's First Cooperative University Named After Tribhuvan Das Patel

In a landmark development for India’s cooperative movement, the Lok Sabha passed the Tribhuvan Sahkari University Bill 2025, establishing the country’s first university dedicated solely to cooperative education, innovation, and research. Union Home Minister and Minister of Cooperation Shri Amit Shah addressed the House during the discussion, emphasizing the revolutionary impact this institution will have on rural development, self-employment, and the cooperative ecosystem at large.

March 31, 2025

Worker-Owned News Outlets Are Changing the Media Industry

For growing numbers of media companies, employee ownership offers journalistic freedom and job stability.

Technical Working Groups on Cooperative and Social and Solidarity Economy (SSE) Statistics launched

GENEVA (ILO News) - On March 12, the ILO launched two Technical Working Groups (TWG) on statistics: the COPAC TWG on Measuring the Economic Contribution of Cooperatives (TWG MECC) and the UNTFSSE TWG on Social and Solidarity Economy Statistics (TWG SSES). The two technical working groups are tasked with an ambitious mission: refining and advancing cooperative statistics and laying the methodological groundwork for SSE statistics.

April 3, 2025

Surveillance, Cybersecurity, and Financial Tech for Mutual Aid

Elijah Baucom of Everyday Security & UC Berkeley Cybersecurity Clinic discusses security for mutual aid groups before Sarah Philips of Fight for the Future shares the current state of mutual aid financial surveillance and privacy tech. The third speaker from Session 3, Erika Sato from Sustainable Economies Law Center, opened with a 30 minute overview of legal basics and the benefits and limitations of formal structures for mutual aid groups.

Alex Lopez is a board member of Ekhilur Coop, a non-profit consumer co-operative working towards a legally regulated payment system that’s controlled by co-operative members and contributes to local and social development in the Basque Country.

April 7, 2025

Beyond Community Currencies

Ekhilur, a nonprofit citizen cooperative, is pioneering an innovative approach to strengthening the local economy. Instead of creating a new currency, it operates its own payment system — regulated by the Bank of Spain — to maximize the circulation of the existing euro within the community for as long as possible.

The Practice and Promise of Social Cooperatives

After a year of hard work, we're excited to release our new research report, "The Practice and Promise of Social Cooperatives", the first such comparative study of social co-ops for a U.S. audience.

Friends of the RMEOC are already somewhat familiar with this topic because of our launch of the Driver's Co-op--CO, which is in fact a social co-op, as we describe in this report.