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Record registration at co-op home care conference

More than 170 people registered for the 5th Annual National Home Care Cooperative Conference. The online event, held February 22-26. focused on skills needed to run and govern a successful cooperative and home care business.

The International Cooperative Alliance unites, represents and serves cooperatives worldwide.

Founded in 1895, it is one of the oldest non-governmental organisations and one of the largest ones measured by the number of people represented: 1 billion cooperative members on the planet.

It is the apex body representing cooperatives, which are estimated to be around 3 million worldwide, providing a global voice and forum for knowledge, expertise and co-ordinated action for and about cooperatives.

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March 15, 2021

Young People and Cooperatives: A Perfect Match?

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This report presents the results of a collaborative research project on the theme of cooperatives and youth, developed by the ICA and its four regional offices under the ICA-EU Partnership for international cooperative development (#coops4dev).

Would you buy your local pub?

Community groups will be given up to £250,000 to help their struggling pubs in the area and in exceptional cases up to £1million matched funding will be available to help establish community owned sports clubs or sports grounds that are at risk of loss from the community.

[...]

John Harrison, chairman of Guilden Morden Community Pub Ltd owners of the pub says: 'We would've loved it if we could've had that deal but we're already beyond that stage.'

Co-ops: The Next Generation

Greg: I’m Greg Brodsky, I’m the founder and co-director of Start.coop. I found out about coops, because in my family, it’s the family business. So when I was growing up in Manchester, New Hampshire, my dad ran a carpet store. And when I was about seven years old, my father got together with about 10 other guys who ran carpet stores around the US. And they said, hey, you know, we’re all buying from the same manufacturers, we all have the same marketing challenges, operational expenses, there must be some economy of scale of working together.

The Internet of Ownership Archive

An archive of content from the Internet of Ownership website.

Investor Owned vs. User Owned Platforms

Traditional startup roadmap vs. co-op platform startup roadmap.

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March 18, 2021

Tips on Starting a Housing Co-op

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Summary

How to start a housing co-op.

The Joust vs. The Potlatch

This paper examines two opposing organizational cultures: The Joust (competition) and The Potlatch (based on gifts and cooperation). The economic cases for The Joust and The Pot­latch are made, then the perceptions of each by the other are sketched with ensuing rebuttals by both.

The Joust, founded on substitution and economic conflict of interest, stresses material gain. The Potlatch thrives on nonphysical values, seeking complementarities in learning and social designs.

Santa Clara To Help Local Businesses Create Worker Cooperatives

Last year, the City held a study session on worker cooperatives. The idea started with Kirk Vartan, the founding owner of A Slice of New York (ASONY), who approached Mayor Lisa Gillmor. ASONY became a worker cooperative recently.

Now the City will help other small businesses do the same if the owners and employees have an interest.

DisCO Failz at Capitalism

In one way or another, most of us have experienced the feeling of selling our soul or sacrificing our principles for a paycheck. We expect so little of our workplaces while they demand so much of us, and very rarely does anyone have the luxury of questioning this dynamic. Many people are driven to alternative working practices because of how much disillusionment capitalism creates in the very workers whose labor upholds the system.

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March 22, 2021

The Immigrant Caregiver Experience

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A presentation from the 2021 National Home Care Cooperative Conference.

Worcester Youth Co-ops Selected for Mondragon City Challenge

[From the Mondragon City Challenge website: "The Mondragón City Challenge is the first International Cooperative Entrepreneurship Competition. This initiative is aimed at developing business management skills in secondary school, vocational training and university students from all over the world, and the ability to validate a cooperative business model within a maximum period of nine months." ]

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March 25, 2021

Enjoying the Fruit of Collective Labor

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An interview with Pelham Auto co-founder Louis Hasbrouk

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March 25, 2021

Two First Things in Building Collective Action

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Collective Action groups, no matter how cooperative, are full of conflict. That's the nature of human life. The keys for working with conflicts are for members to personally pursue 1) wanting to hear and understand the other, and 2) be willing to disclose what is happening for you and what you want, especially when it is challenging to do so.