Co-op News. May 2021

Co-ops and democracy: How well
does the process work?
CONNECTING, CHAMPIONING AND
CHALLENGING THE GLOBAL CO-OP
MOVEMENT SINCE 1871
Holyoake House, Hanover Street,
Manchester M60 OAS
(00) 44 161214 0870
www.thenews.coop
editorial@thenews.coop
EXECUTIVE EDITOR
Rebecca Harvey I rebecca@thenews.coop
INTERNATIONAL EDITOR
Anca Voinea I anca@thenews.coop
DIGITAL EDITOR
Miles Hadfield I miles@thenews.coop
DESIGN
Keir Mucklestone-Barnett
DIRECTORS
Barbara Rainford (chair); Elaine Dean
(vice-chair); Harry Cairney; Sofygil
Crew; Tim Hartley; Phil Hartwell;
Gillian Lonergan; Beverley Perkins;
Shaz Rahman; Lesley Reznicek
Secretary: Richard Bickle
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W @coopnews f cooperativenews
Member control is a central principle underlying the co-operative difference - and,
as the global movement positions itself as offering a solution to collapsing levels
of trust and accountability around the world - this democratic ideal is touted as a
crucial benefit.
But how does this work in practice - and how do you make member control work
effectively when organisations operate at a large scale? It's an issue that has
prompted comment among some Co-op Group members in light of recent business
decisions (p5, p36). It also has fans of co-operatively owned football clubs Real
Madrid and Barcelona protesting as the clubs stand by the controversial plan for a
Super League (p37); UK MPs demanding answers about the demutualisation of
LV= (p34-35); and members of US electric co-ops challenging boards when
accountability is called into question (p30-31).
It's not all bad news. The Super League fiasco has put fan control high up the agenda
and the US electric co-op members we spoke with say their campaign has given
them a bigger understanding of what being a member-owner of a co-op means -
and has also helped them resolve some of their differences with their board. And
moves are afoot to build democratic options. We hear from two of the co-founders
of Members for Cooperation (p38-39) which is campaigning to make the movement
work together more effectively, and we take a look at Meet.coop, a democratic
alternative to Zoom (p40-41).
With an eye on the UK's wider democracy, we look at what candidates in this month's
elections have for the co-op movement in their manifestos (p32-33). Elsewhere, we
look at the movement's ongoing work on food justice (p29), retail crime and store
worker abuse (p13) and youth empowerment (page 27).
On a sad note, the UK co-op movement lost one of its fondest friends last month,
Nigel Todd, who will be sadly missed. We remember him and pay tribute to his work
on pages 24-25, and offer our condolences to those closest to him.
MILES HADFIELD - DIGITAL EDITOR
Co-operative News is printed using vegetable oil-based
inks on 80% recycled paper (with 60% from post-consumer
waste) with the remaining 20% produced from FSC or PEFC
certified sources. It is made in a totally chlorine free process.
MAY 2021 I 3

THIS ISSUE
CLOCKWISE FROM TOP LEFT:
Interview with the Co-op Party's Joe Fortune
(p22-23); the Global Youth Forum looks to
the next generation of co-operators (p27);
Members for Cooperation looks for ways to
boost the co-op spirit (p38-39); the Co-op
Party limbers up for the May elections (p32-
33);and MPs have tough questions on the
demutualisation of LV= (p34-35)
COVER:
Co-operatives pride themselves on
democracy and member control. How
does this work in practice? (Credit:
International Cooperative Alliance)
Read more: p30-41
22-23 MEET ... JOE FORTUNE
We catch up with the general secretary of
the Co-op Party
27 NEXT GENERATION
Report from the latest Global Youth Forum
of the International Cooperative Alliance
28 TO MERGE OR NOT TO MERGE?
The CFCFE conference looks at the hows
and whys of credit union consolidation
29 FOOD JUSTICE
Co-operators in the East Midlands look at
ways to tackle food poverty
30-41 DEMOCRACY
30-31 ELECTRIC CO-OPS
Members of a US co-op on how they
challenged their board for control
32-33 UK ELECTIONS
What's in the manifestos as the UK
heads to the polls?
34-35 DEMUTUALISATION OF LV
MPs have tough questions over the sale
of the member-owned insurance icon
36 CO-OP GROUP
How well is its democracy working?
37 FOOTBALL FRACAS
The Super League has put issues of fan
control high on the sporting agenda
38-39 NEW MEMBER GROUP Members
for Cooperation share their plans to
increase collaboration across the
movement
40-41 MEET.COOP
All Zoomed out? Here's a co-op
alternative you can try
42-43 COLLEAGUE WELFARE
A new initiative at Iceland's retail
co-op Samkaup to improve the lives
of its workers
44-45 150 YEARS OF CO-OP NEWS
Gillian Lonergan looks at the role of the
News in co-operative democracy
47-48 ROBERT OWEN
A co-op icon at 250
REGULARS
5-13
14-21
24-25
26
50
UK updates
Global updates
Obituaries
Letters
Events
4 I MAY 2021

COMMUNITY SHARES
Manchester farm co-op
bids to buy land for
sustainable food
Kindling Farm co-op is nearing its
£650,000 fundraising target in its
campaign to buy a site near Manchester.
The co-operative says it will use the
pioneering practices of agroforestry,
growing wildlife-friendly and organic
fruit, veg, cereals and pulses.
Co-founder Helen Woodcock said:
"Kindling Farm is about coming together
to find practical solutions to the ecological
crisis we are in. It is about hope, it is about
social change and it is about creating a
farming blueprint for our future, right
here in the north west of England."
The offer has attracted more than 249
investors, committing more than £573,575
in less than a month, with the assistance
of Co-operatives UK, Power to Change and
their Booster Programme, which matched
the first £100,000.
Kindling Farm says it is "founded on
strong ethics and values which all co-
A The Kindling Farm team launch the share offer
operatives share, of social benefit and cooperation
by giving voice to communities,
and supporting people by providing a
localised, democratic and communityowned
food production system."
Kindling, a small organisation based
in Manchester "focusing on challenging
the industrialised food system", has been
working to make Kindling Farm a reality
for over a decade.
It adds: "The impacts of Covid on the
wellbeing of our society has shown us that
we need to support communities more
than ever and improve the food system.
"The uncertainty of Brexit has further
highlighted our lack of food sovereignty
in this country, and how much we need to
build resilience in our agriculture to face
these uncertainties as well as a changing
climate. Resilient methods of farming,
localised power for communities, and
greater access to healthy produce is what
the future of food looks like."
The share offer closes 3 July; minimum
investment of £200. It offers interest of
up to 3% - with the standard warnings of
capital risk and non-guaranteed returns.
s.coop/2kmds
RETAIL
Extension and refurb at Unicorn Grocery
Manchester's worker-owned grocery
Unicorn has embarked on a project to make
significant structural, environmental and
internal improvements to its premises.
The store in Chorlton closed for two
weeks as the build project got under way.
"Over 24 years we've made countless
shop improvements, extensions and
modifications while managing to continue
trading (involving some fairly hilarious
behind the scenes scrambles and allnighters),"
said the organisation. "But in
April 2021, for the first time ever, we are
closing for a fortnight ... It's not been an
easy process deciding to do this, but we've
been putting off some of the work for years
and there are jobs we just can't do while
staying open."
The co-op specialises in "wholesome
food, eco household goods and organic
veg", and is extending the building in
part to give its veg area extra space, and to
deal with the produce overheating caused
by its glass porch in the summer months.
They will also be making major repairs
to the sub-floor, replacing the traditional
linoleum flooring (which is made with
natural materials such as linseed oil and
is both recyclable and biodegradable at
the end of its life) and replacing shelving.
Unicorn is working with two local
organisations - architecture co-op Loop
Systems and interior architects Phaus
Design (both run by Unicorn customers),
- who have "come up with a plan that is
really practical but also visually exciting".
They will be increasing bike parking
- some of which will be covered - and
installing a permanent bike pump.
Covid has also played its part in
informing the design, with the extension
including a covered external area in case
of queues, and greater space for customers
on entrance and exit. Work will continue
into May, but the store reopened with a
temporary entrance from 19 April."
Heather Allen from Phaus Design said:
"As regular customers and local residents,
working with Unicorn is such a privilege
as it's pretty close to our hearts."
MAY 2021 I 9

GLOBAL
International Day of Cooperatives will
issue call to 'rebuild better together'
The International Cooperative Alliance
has announced "rebuild better together"
as the theme for this year's International
Day of Co-operatives (3 July).
Celebrated on the first Saturday of
July, the day will showcase the role of
co-operatives in driving a people-centred
and environmentally just recovery after
Covid-19.
"In the last year, we have witnessed
how the co-operative model has been
working towards the wellbeing of people
and respect for the planet, underscoring
what the co-operative movement stands
for," said Bruno Roelants, director general
of the International Cooperative Alliance
(ICA).
"We will indeed rebuild better together,
and I'm confident that we will see many
stories of how the co-operative movement
can help communities become stronger in
the post-pandemic world."
The theme was chosen by the Committee
for the Promotion and Advancement
of Cooperatives (COPAC), a multistakeholder
partnership of organisations,
made up of the Food and Agriculture
Organization of the United Nations (FAO),
the International Labour Organization
(ILO), the United Nations Department of
Economic and Social Affairs (UNDESA)
and the ICA. COPAC has been setting the
theme of the International Day of Cooperatives
since 1995.
The !CA calls on members and
co-operators from across the world to
join the #CoopsDay campaign on 3 July
to show how co-operatives are meeting
the Covid-19 crisis with solidarity
and resilience.
The ICA will release a media pack with
logos, key messages and digital resources
that co-ops can use to promote the day.
The day has been celebrated by the
International Cooperative Alliance since
1923. In 1992 the United Nations General
Assembly also proclaimed the first
Saturday of July 1995 to be International
Day of Cooperatives to mark the centenary
of the establishment of the International
Cooperative Alliance. Since 1995 the
United Nations' International Day of
Co-operatives has been observed jointly
alongside International Co-operative Day.
Thus this year's celebration will be both
the 27th United Nations International
Day of Co-operatives and the 98th
International Co-operative Day.
More information about the
International Day of Co-operatives is
available at www.coopsday.coop.
First speaker announced for the World Cooperative Congress
The 33rd World Cooperative Congress, to
be hosted by the International Cooperative
Alliance as a hybrid physical/virtual event
from 1-3 December, will be opened by
award-winning film producer and director
John Houston.
The event, run from Seoul, Republic of
Korea, will see Mr Houston speak about his
eighth and most recent film, Atautsikut/
Leaving None Behind. He was immersed
in the Inuit culture since a childhood
spent in the Canadian Arctic; the film
tells the story of Inuit communities of the
Hudson and Ungava coasts of Northern­
Quebec, who empowered themselves by
setting up co-operatives.
The film looks at the history of the
Federation des cooperatives du Nouveau­
Quebec (Ilagiisaq/FCNQ), founded in 1967
to support the rapidly growing local cooperative
movement in its vision of leaving
none behind. Today the Federation is
owned by 14 member co-ops, managed
exclusively by Inuit and Cree staff.
Mr Houston will be joined by Mary
Johannes (tbc), the president of the
board of Ilagiisaq/FCNQ. In addition to
introducing the film to Congress, they will
join the third plenary panel discussion on
'Examining our Cooperative Identity'.
In the lead up to Congress, ICA members,
ICA bodies, academic institutions and
other organisations linked to the coop
movement are being encouraged to
host activities or initiatives under the
banner 'Towards the World Cooperative
Congress', to help build momentum for
the event.
"It is important for members of the cooperative
movement to start debating
and discussing the Congress theme
'Deepening Our Cooperative Identity',"
said the ICA. "Collectively, by launching
a debate, discussion, or study around this
theme, you can enrich those conversations
in a meaningful way.
"Hosting an event will also be an
opportunity to increase the visibility of
your organisation and strengthen its role
as a thought leader in the co-operative
movement. ICA will help promote your
event on the ICA World Cooperative
Congress website (icaworldcoopcongress.
coop) and social media channels. This can
benefit us all."
For more on hosting an event, email
icaworldcoopcongress@ica.coop
MAY 2021 I 15

- SINGAPORE
Retail co-op
continues unmanned
store openings
Singapore's NTUC FairPrice Co-operative
has opened its third unmanned
convenience store, using an AI system
that tracks customers as they remove
items from shelves.
The new store is based at Our Tampines
Hub in Tampines and operated under
NTUC's Cheers franchise.
Customers need to download the Cheers
SG App, developed by the co-op with Visa,
before going into the store. To enter the
store, they can scan a QR code or use
facial recognition technology as ID. Once
inside they can take any item they need;
payment is automatically deducted when
they leave.
The 24-hour store currently employs
several people to guide customers through
the process, but will be completely
unmanned in the coming weeks.
"Today, consumers want shopping
experiences that are fast and seamless
but also safe and secure. Zero checkout
technology is an innovative way of
delivering that intuitive retail experience
to shoppers, offering convenience without
sacrificing security," Kunal Chatterjee,
Visa Country manager for Singapore and
Brunei, said at the launch of the store.
"This is the first time that Visa is partnering
with our retail merchant partner to create
this concept in Southeast Asia, and we
want to help our merchants power the
future of retail and create innovative retail
experiences," he added.
NTUC runs two other unmanned stores
at Nanyang Polytechnic and the National
University of Singapore (NUS). Other
Singaporean vendors have launched
similar initiatives in recent years. The
concept is aligned with Singapore's Smart
Nation Initiative, which aims to transform
and digitise the country's economy.
New training programme for youth in Nigeria
The Reliance Thrift and Credit Coop Society
(RTCCS) in Nigeria aims to help tackle
unemployment in the country by running
free training and education programmes
for young people looking to develop
practical skills such as barbering, tailoring,
hairdressing, agriculture or tie-dye. The
training will be paid in full by RTCCS. The
five most promising candidates will be set
up to trade, with costs covered by the co-op.
Covid brings $34.Sm loss for leisure retail icon REI
US outdoor retailer REI reported a net
loss of US$34.5m (£25.04m) for the year
ended 2 January 2020, down from a $21m
(£15.24m) profit the previous year. The coop
remains debt-free despite unforeseen
challenges due to Covid-19, but will not
be paying its regular annual dividend to
members. Net sales fell 11.9o/o to $2.75bn
(£2bn), and digital demand was up by 58o/o.
French worker co-op sector continues to grow
The pandemic did not discourage the
development of co-operative societies in
France. According to new stats published
by Les Scop, the country's federation of
worker co-ops, the movement witnessed a
6o/o increase in its workforce in 2020. Coops
currently provide 67,200 jobs, 1,400 of
which were created by the 203 new co-ops
registered in 2020.
Credit unions cry foul at USAID procurement policy
The Credit Union National Association
(Cuna) has criticised the procurement
process of the US Agency for International
Development (USAID) for favouring large
contracting firms to the detriment of the
World Council of Credit Unions (WOCCU).
Woccu grew out of Cuna International in
and they still work closely together.
Co-op Hot Shots 8 photo competition winners revealed
-·-
MAKE THE D[FFl;_RENCE
The Singapore National Co-operative
Federation (SNCF) announced the winners
of its Co-op Hot Shots photo competition
themed Make the Difference. In its eighth
edition, the contest aimed to showcase
photos that showed how people make
a difference in their local community.
The winners can be seen at: sncf.coop
MAY 2021 I 19

enough, we hope to compile examples of principle
six past and present.
Bringing co-operators around the world
together to share examples and develop new
ideas is one of the core activities for the organisation,
alongside organising to implement,
replicate and scale these practices.
Co-operation between co-ops is most
common among those in the same industry. A
great example is CO-OP Financial Services, a
US service organisation set up as a co-op and
co-owned by credit unions across 50 states,
operating one of the largest ATM networks in
the country.
But too often co-ops operate in silos rather
than co-operating across sectors, and we want
to challenge this - and there are some great
examples to follow. For example, many agricultural
cooperatives have a strong relationship
with the consumer-owned grocery co-operatives
that sell their goods and the co-operative
banks that finance them. A more specific
example is VME, a worker-owned co-operative
that provides point-of-sale software
for most independent retail co-operatives in
the UK.
We believe great potential lies in well-established
co-operatives, operating in sectors
where co-operatives are common, nurturing
new co-ops in fields where they are yet to gain
a foothold. This is especially the case when it
comes to emerging industries - for example,
co-ops could easily switch from Zoom to The
Online Meeting Cooperative (meet.coop - see
more on p40).
In the US, several well-established co-operatives
supported the creation of Start Coop, an
accelerator programme for unique and innovative
early-stage co-ops. The first cohort included
eight co-ops that were given mentoring and a
no-strings-attached grant of $10,000 each.
One of the ventures, Savvy Cooperative, an
online platform owned by its users who earn
money or gift cards by taking part in medical
research projects, went on to become the
first co-op in US history to receive venture
capital investment. Another, a conglomerate
of worker co-ops called Obran, also made
history by acquiring a conventional company
and converting it into a worker co-operative
- another US first. The programme is being
repeated and has recently accepted a new
cohort of co-operatives. Eventually, successful
co-operatives from the programme will help
fund future programmes.
WHAT IS THE AIM OF MEMBERS FOR
COOPERATION?
The inaugural campaign of Members For Cooperation
put forward a member resolution to
the AGMs of the Co-op Group and Nationwide
Building Society to replicate a similar accelerator
programme in the UK, which would require
a diminishingly small portion of their surplus.
While we did not achieve enough signatures to
put our resolution on the ballot at either AGM,
it was never our expectation or the main goal.
We had over 100 ordinary members join us,
which makes future campaigns easier. We want
a series of simultaneous campaigns to build a
shared list of ordinary members that share the
desire for co-operation between co-operatives.
Members For Cooperation will also generate
new ideas through discussions on how co-ops
can best work together for mutual benefit. For
example, we have established a fund to help
credit unions give out gift cards, coupons, and
vouchers that can be used with other co-operatives.
It's not uncommon for credit unions to
offer their members discounts and gift cards
on a range of businesses - what Members For
Cooperation wants is to see this work with
local co-operatives.
Hopefully, we will see this fund be used for
the first time soon to support a new early-stage
tool-sharing co-operative in Rhode Island, PVD
Things. Our goal is to approach local credit
unions that could receive support from the
fund to give out gift cards that could be used
to rent tools from PVD things to their members
who take out home improvement loans.
Eventually, we hope credit unions will
experiment with general "Cooperative Gift
Cards" that can be used in a range of co-operatives.
Compared to top-down grant funding,
this finance mechanism would see support
allocated by members based on the ability
of co-ops to offer the goods and services
they need.
We're certain there are better ideas out there
but the most important thing is to bring co-operators
together to systematically think about
proposals to put principle six into action.
The organisation will be democratically
governed, and we will be deciding on governance
structures in the next month with the
100+ people who have already joined.
If you want to be part of that conversation
or just follow our work as an observer, you
can find out more at
members4cooperation.org.
MAY 2021 I 39

DEMOCRACY # YOU.RE ON
MUTE: A DEMOCRATIC
ALTERNATIVE TO ZOOM
REBECCA HARVEY
When Covid-19 hit in early 2020 and life was
locked down, one company reaped untold benefits.
Zoom, the video conferencing app founded
in 2011 by Eric Yuan and launched in January
2013, saw its popularity soar as working from
home became a new normal for many. In June
2020 Zoom reported making US $328m in revenue
during its February-April quarter - nearly
triple that of the same quarter in 2019 ($122m).
Despite data, security and censorship issues
- not to mention 'Zoom fatigue' - its easy interface
and business orientation meant that Zoom
soon came to dominate the global online market
share, well ahead of Microsoft Teams, Skype
and Google Meet. It currently ranks No. 1 in 44
countries and has over 300 million daily meeting
participants. 'To Zoom' is a new verb.
But as the pandemic unfolded, a global coalition
of co-operators looked at developing an
ethical alternative. The result? The Online
Meet­ing Cooperative (Meet.coop).
Meet.coop began as a collaboration between
three tech co-ops in May 2020. It is set up using
open source software (BigBlueButton) and runs
on co-operatively owned hardware powered by
renewable energy. It currently has 105 members
across Europe, Asia and South America, including
brands such as Friends of the Earth International
and The Tor Project.
"Meet.coop is a platform co-op, with two
distinct classes of members: operational
members who contribute hours to run and grow
the platform, and user members that subscribe
to the services," says Melissa McNab, one of its
40 I MAY 2021

The 2021 Co-operative Press
Annual General Meeting
Due to the ongoing Covid-19 pandemic, we will be convening a virtual AGM in 2021.
7-9pm, 30 June
In accordance with Rule 20 of the Co-operative Press Rules, any member may submit a
proposal to the Annual Meeting of members in writing to the Secretary.
The timetable is as follows
5pm, Wednesday 19 May 2021
Closing Date for Receipt of Proposals
Wednesday 2 June 2021
Agenda and Proposals sent out to members
5pm, Wednesday 16 June 2021
Closing date for receipt of amendments to Proposals.
Annual Accounts sent out to members and made available online.
With regard to amendments to any proposals (as stated in Rule 21), any member may send to
the directors any amendment to any proposal appearing on the agenda or any amendment
to any matter forming part of the business of the meeting, and provided such amendment be
received by the secretary prior to the Annual Meeting, it shall be circulated to members as
soon as is practicable as an additional business paper for consideration at the meeting.
Please note that by submitting a proposal, members are committing themselves to attend the
Annual Meeting if their proposal is accepted onto the Agenda.
For further updates on the AGM and Director Election, please visit
www.thenews.coop/ AG M2021
The Secretary
Co-operative Press Ltd, Holyoake House,
Hanover Street, Manchester, M60 OAS
secretary@thenews.coop

Classes of All Nations, later renamed the Universal
Community Society of Rational Religionists (The
Rational Society) which, by 1840 , had over 60
branches of self-styled 'socialists', with 50,000
flocking to weekly lectures, among them the young
German merchant Friedrich Engels. In late 1839,
Owen began a new community called Queenwood
on a 533-acre site designed for 700 members, but
by 1844 Queenwoodhad bankrupted the Rational
society, and organised Owenism ground to a halt.
The last decade of his life was dominated by his
conversion to spiritualism in 1853. He died at the
Bear's Head Hotel in Newtown on 17 November
1858, and was buried with his parents, next to the
abandoned church of St Mary's, Newtown.
While others - such as Dr. William King (1786-
1865) and the Rochdale Pioneers - took his ideas
and made them more workable, practical and
replicable, very early consumer co-operative
societies were indebted to his ideas.
Where to read more by and about Robert Owen
By Robert Owen:
A New View of Society and Other Writings (Penguin
Classics)
Robert Owen on Education ed H Silver (Cambridge
Texts and Studies in the History of Education )
The Selected Works of Robert Owen, ed Gregory
Claeys (Routledge, 1993)
Observations on the Effect of the Manufacturing
System (1815)
s.coop/2kmia
Report to the Committee of the Association for the
Relief of the Manufacturing and Labouring Poor
(1817)
s.coop/2kmic
Two Memorials on Behalf of the Working Classes
(1818) s.coop/2kmid
Report to the County of Lanark of a Plan for relieving
Public Distress (1821)
s.coop/2kmii
The Life of Robert Owen (1857, autobiography)
s.coop/2kmil
About Robert Owen
Lloyd Jones The Life, Times, and Labours of Robert
Owen (1905, ed William Cairns Jones, Scholars
Select, 2016)
RE Davies, Robert Owen, Philanthropist and social
reformer: An appreciation (1907, online at Internet
Archive s.coop/2kmi5)
JFC Harrison, Robert Owen And The Owenites In
Britain And America: The Quest for the New Moral
World (1969, Routledge Revivals)
Robert Owen, Prophet of the Poor; Essays in Honor
of the Two Hundredth Anniversary of His Birth ed
Sidney Pollard and John Salt (1971) s.coop/2kmir
Gregory Claeys, Paternalism and Democracy in the
Politics of Robert Owen (1982) s.coop/2kmin
I. Donnachie, Robert Owen. Owen of New Lanark
and New Harmony (2000, Tuckwell)
Robert A. Davis, Frank O'Hagan, Robert Owen (2010,
Bloomsbury)
Ophelie Simeon, Robert Owen's Experiment at
New Lanark, From Paternalism to Socialism (2017,
Pa/grave)
The Robert Owen
Collection, 3,000
manuscript letters to
and from Owen, is held
by the Co-operative
Heritage Trust
An Explanation of the Cause of Distress which
pervades the civilised parts of the world (1823)
s.coop/2kmig
Penelope Harris: Robert Owen and the Architect
Joseph Hansom: An Unlikely Form of Co-operation
(2020, Brewin)
The Revolution in the Mind and Practice of the
Human Race (1849) s.coop/2kmij
Colin Laker, Robert Owen and Slavery (essay for
Robert Owen Museum, online at s.coop/2kmi7
48 I MAY 2021

DIARY
With the Covid-19 crisis affecting mobility in the UK
and across the world, many co-op events are now
taking place on line, including some of those listed
below. If you would like to add any virtual events
taking place, please email us at:
events@thenews.coop
Worker Co-op Day
1 May 2021
Hosted by Co-operatives UK, Stir to Action
and Blake House, Worker Co-op Day aims
to help worker co-operatives learn, share
and be inspired by one another. Designed
and run by worker co-ops for worker coops,
this event will bring people together
on line to share experiences and inspire.
Due to Covid the physical Worker Co-op
Weekend was postponed until 23-26 July.
C-:::> uk.coop/events-and-training/
events-calendar/worker-co-op-day
Co-op Group AGM
15 May 2021
Unless government guidelines have
materially changed, members other than
those Co-op colleagues required to attend
as part of their job will not be able to
attend the AGM meeting in person. The
Co-op group is therefore asking eligible
members to vote beforehand and join
on the day where they can watch and
listen to the AGM proceedings and ask
questions of the Board.
C-:::> co-operative.coop/get-involved/agm
Co-op Fortnight
21 June-4 July 2021
The Co-op Fortnight is Co-operatives UK's
annual campaign that sees hundreds of
co-operatives and organisations across
the UK work together to promote co-ops.
The theme for this year's Co-op Fortnight
is #JoinACoop. Co-operatives UK is asking
co-ops to start planning how they can
get involved and spread the message
and has developed a campaign pack
with poster artwork, logos, a welcome
guide to new members and key
messages. The apex will release a
template press release, customisable
social media graphics and campaign
video for co-ops to use too.
C-:::> uk.coop/news/inspire-peop/ejoinacoop-co-op-fortnight-2021
International Day of Cooperatives
3 July 2021
The International Day of Cooperatives
(#Coops Day) is celebrated annually on
the first Saturday of July. The day aims
to raise awareness of cooperatives and
promote the movement's successes
and ideals of international solidarity,
economic efficiency, equality, and world
peace. The ICA first celebrated #CoopsDay
in 1923 while the United National
proclaimed a UN International Day of
Cooperatives to be celebrated for the
first time in 1995, marking the centenary
of the establishment of the ICA. The UN
requests all its member governments to
join with their co-operative movements
to celebrate the day.
c-:::> coopsday.coop
ICA CCR Europe Research Conference
7-9 July 2021
The International Cooperative Alliance
Committee on Cooperative Research
(!CA CCR) EUROPE will be holding a virtual
conference in July. Themed "Cooperatives
in transitions facing crisis", the
conference will explore and address
specific issues linked to the overarching
theme of the World Cooperative Congress
(1-3 December 2021) of "Deepening our
cooperative identity".
C-:::> ccr.ica.coop/en/newsroom/news/
call-papers-ica-ccr-europe-researchconference
World Credit Union Conference
11-14 July 2021
World Council of Credit Unions' 2021
World Credit Union Conference, originally
set to be held in Glasgow, Scotland from
11-14, July, will now be hosted virtually.
The event will feature more than 30
educational sessions with topics relevant
to all credit union leadership levels.
Delegates will also be able to network
with other attendees and industry
partners from across our international
cooperative movement. Further event
details including registration will be
available on the conference website
(http://www.wcuc.org/) in early 2021.
C-:::> woccu.org/newsroom/releases/
World_ Council_Announces_ Virtual_
Format_for_2021_ World_ Credit_ Union_
Conference
50 I MAY 2021