Themes: Co-operatives

These 12 case studies explore the practical promises and pitfalls of converting existing businesses to worker cooperative ownership—a key strategy for building more democratic workplaces.  In her report for the…

The Trentino co-operative model has gained wide acclaim for its positive economic and social impact upon the territory. Developing a strong understanding of why the model has been so effective…

How can we scale up the cooperative movement without losing our cooperative values? That is the question contributors seek to answer in this collection of essays. In the years since…

A Report on a Commons Strategies Group Workshop Berlin, Germany August 27-28, 2014 For people who participate in commons, peer production, or co-operatives, the emerging economy presents a frustrating paradox…

The Social Economy in Quebec presents lessons and challenges for internationalizing co-operation. This paper provides an overview of the contemporary social economy in Quebec, its many achievements and results in…

Becoming Employee-Owned is a guide for business owners interested in employee ownership. It provides an overview of the three primary transition approaches for employee ownership: worker cooperatives, ESOPs, and management…

REScoops rely on groups of citizens who join together and cooperate at a local level in the field of renewable energy. Relying on bottom-up and collective dynamics, REScoops face the…

Offering a loan to help a non-profit day care in a low-income community expand its services; helping members make socially responsible investments; providing preferential rates for the purchase of fuel efficient cars;…

This information sheet is part of the Tailor-Made series, which aims to share evidence about the difference the community sector makes to our lives. Specifically, this information sheet looks at the role…

Across the world, attitudes are changing. Old certainties about tightly defined roles for government, civil society and business are dissolving. Charities and non-profits are becoming more business-like, and business is looking…

This case study focuses on and analyses the formation of four co-operatives in the Evangeline region, a small Acadian community in the southwest part of Prince Edward Island. Defined by…

Solar and wind projects can mean big bucks for communities – but only if they keep them local! Why does ownership of renewable energy matter? Because the number of jobs…