Co-Ops ‘Do It Better’ And Now There’s A Blueprint

Co-ops ‘do it better’. 2012 was the Year of the Co-op, now Melina Morrison of Social Business Australia is talking about a ‘Co-op Blueprint’ for the next decade.

The Coming Decade

The International Co-operative Alliance represents the world’s 1 billion co-operative members. It has developed a Blueprint for a Co-operative Decade which it believes, if we work together as a global movement, will lead us to a bright future for co-operatives.

Summary of The Blueprint

The starting point for blueprint is the claim which that co-operatives have a way of doing business that is better than the one that’s currently failing.

WHY ARE THEY BETTER?
– Co-operatives are better because they give individuals participation through ownership, which makes them inherently more engaging, more productive, and both more useful and more relevant in the contemporary world.

– Co-operatives are better because their business model creates greater economic, social and environmental sustainability.

The Blueprint sets out what are the defining characteristics of co-ops.

1. They elevate participation within membership and governance to a new level.

2. They position co-operatives as builders of sustainability.

3. They build the co-operative message and secure the co-operative identity.

4. They ensure supportive legal frameworks for co-operative growth.

5. They secure reliable co-operative capital while guaranteeing member control.

The Co-op Year In Numbers

1 billion members (3 times the number of individual shareholders)
3 billion livelihoods (made secure by co-ops)
8 million new credit union members (in 2011)
100 million jobs (20% more than all multinationals)
1 board game
2 phone apps (CooperateUSA and Co-operate UK) and
2 toolkits (US Public Policy Toolkit; Australia’s Co-ops Fortnight Toolkit)
100 stories of co-operation (IYC commemorative year book)
160 co-op leaders in the White House (on 4 May 4 2012)
365 co-op case studies (one for every day of 2012!)
6,300 miles (travelled by bike on the youth-led Co-Cycle and Cabot Creamery Cooperative Community Tour)
10,000 delegates to Cooperatives United (official closing event of 2012)
29,029 feet (the distance climbed to reach the summit of Mt Everest to plant the IYC flag)
1 coin, stampsheet and pre-paid envelope
2 Australian co-op research projects (UWA and The Australia Institute)
50 stories of Australian co-operation (Australian commemorative year book)
100 top Australian co-ops, mutuals and credit unions
200 delegates (over 3 days at the National Co-operatives Conference)
1,600 Australian co-operatives
1 co-op art competition
2 co-op film competitions (UN short film competition and My Coop Rocks)
4 UN co-op statements (Rio+20; International Cooperative Youth Statement; ILO and FAO)

For more info click here.