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Wednesday, November 28, 2012
The News from Solidarity Economy in Europe - November 2012
The News from Solidarity Economy in Europe - November 2012
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Monday, November 26, 2012
Lessons for Building a Co-operative Movement
From Shareable.net
Lessons for Building a Co-operative Movement
A GEO Interview with John Curl, Fall 2012
PM Press has released a second edition of John Curl’s 550 page history of “cooperation, cooperative movements, and communalism in America,” For All the People. In this interview GEO’s Michael Johnson talks with John about what is new in the second edition, the surprisingly long history of co-operatives here in the US, and what his history has to tell us about building a 21st century movement for a co-operative/solidarity economy.
John’s life has been steeped in cooperatives. He has been a member for over 30 years in the Heartwood Co-operative Woodshop in Berkeley, CA, where he lives. He has belonged to numerous other co-operatives and collectives. In addition to being a historian of extensive research, he is a poet, woodworker, social activist, and has even been a city planner.
Michael’s bio is here. He is also co-writing a book on how worker co-operators in the Valley Alliance of Worker Co-operatives are harnessing the power of the co-operative difference. Janelle Cornwell and Adam Trott, the VAWC staff person, are fellow co-writers.
The second edition of For All the People
MJ: John, let’s start with how the second edition of For All the People differs from the first one.
JC: The second edition has three additional pieces.
1) A foreword by novelist and essayist Ishmael Reed.
2) A new preface by myself that discusses developments of the last four years. The first edition came out just as the economy was collapsing into the Great Recession. In the second edition I discuss the United Nations study which shows that worker cooperatives and all cooperatives around the world have fared better than standard capitalist corporations during these hard times. I discuss the reasons why the UN declared 2012 the International Year of Cooperatives. I discuss the limited equity cooperatives created through squatting in the urban homestead movement in New York City. I discuss the Food Hub movement, a spontaneous rural cooperative movement on a national scale. I discuss the United Steel Workers Union’s partnership with Basque Spain’s Mondragon International to develop manufacturing cooperatives in the US and Canada. Finally I discuss the World Social Forum’s movement to reclaim the world commons, and cooperative management of the commons.
3) The second edition has an additional section of almost 100 pages containing my in-depth investigative report on the rise and demise of the Food System movement of the 1970s, focused on its two most successful centers: the Bay Area and the Minneapolis Twin Cities. The Food System movement was integral to the beginnings of natural and organic food in the US. This movement was particularly revealing because on the one hand it was a spontaneous grass-roots movement that arose in many locations around the country, and also because in those two urban centers it was entered into by small outside groups with ostensibly radical ideologies, which tried to take it over, and involved government undercover agents. Both of those entryist groups caused intense internal strife that sped the movement’s demise in those locations. In comparison I also discuss the movement’s rise and fall in locations not affected by those small radical groups. I look at the successes and shortcomings of that movement as a whole.
MJ: "Entryist?"
JC: Yes. A political group is accused of "entryism" when it enters into another group and tries to take it over or transform it.
MJ: How well would the metaphor of “the 1%” and “the 99%” fit the story you tell of the ups and downs of co-operative economics in the US?
JC: Leaving the 99% metaphor aside for the moment, I would say that co-operative economics today can become an important option for about half the population, those with more limited wealth or income. Co-operatives mean that people with insufficient resources pool what they have in order to get onto a more level economic playing field.
Historically, the metaphor of “the 1% and the 99%” is redolent of the decades after the American Civil War, an era of great social upheaval and strife. Wealth was being consolidated into increasingly fewer hands, while working people were becoming impoverished. American capitalism was consolidating its domination of the country, and that was emphatically opposed by the vast majority of the working population of industrial workers and farmers. The two latter groups set up organizations based in co-operatives, and at first challenged capitalism on economic terms, trying to build counter institutions that they hoped would supersede capitalism. When the plutocracy destroyed their co-operatives, they made an effort to gain power though electoral politics. This era culminated in the defeat of all the working people’s organizations and the triumph of the “Robber Barons.” Nonetheless, the era is filled with inspiring dramas of ordinary people daring to follow their dreams, endeavors that still resonate with relevance.
Today’s metaphor of “the 1% and the 99%” arises from the reality that wealth in the US is quickly being redistributed again from a larger number of people into the hands of a tiny elite. While large numbers of people are increasingly impoverished and marginalized, a handful is amassing power in the form of money and capital.
MJ: I like the phrase you just used: “the working population of industrial workers and farmers.” For two reasons. First, we tend to forget that both groups have very strong connections, which I am going to ask about later. Second, it’s refreshing to hear them referred to beyond being an economic class without that fact being brushed aside.]
JC: Independent self-employed small farmers and wage earners had a close relationship throughout the later 19th century. That was before the age of corporate farming, and the overwhelming majority of farmers were very small. Today it’s still hard to make a living as a small farmer, and many of them have another job on the side these days, so most still know what it’s like to be a wage worker.
But, as you state, “the 1% and the 99%” is a metaphor. Those are not really statistics. The numbers are there to make certain points, and bear no relationship with any statistical class analysis. The concept of class in the US is subjective, tricky, and constantly changing. To imply that there are two economic classes in the US, the 1% and the 99%, is to muddy up the waters very badly, rather than shedding light where it is sorely needed. Does the 98th percentile have more in common with the upper 1% or the lowest 20%? Compare the metaphor of “the 1% and the 99%” with Romney’s metaphor of “the 47%.” If 99% were really opposed to the 1% seizing the wealth, then this could not possibly continue; but in fact a much larger percentile than 1% actually support it and just want to get in on the action. There are a lot more shameless predators out there than just 1%. To grossly underestimate the strength of the opposition seriously weakens you.
The long history of co-operatives in the US
MJ: One of the most interesting discoveries for me in reading For All the People was how early on co-operatives and worker co-operatives emerged in the US, even before 1800. Does this reflect something special about our history or just how integral cooperation is in human life?
JC: Both. Cooperation is the basis of human society. However, most societies today have been deformed and oppressed by small authoritarian groups for a very long time. But the dynamics of cooperation do not die, because they are so essential to a decent life. I would say cooperation is the norm because it can be suppressed but it cannot be destroyed. The essential concepts of cooperation are instinctive to most people, particularly when they are young. Look at the way kids get together in the park and organize a game. Or groups of musicians get together regularly as improvised cooperatives. Or young parents form play groups for their kids. In all of these situations people spontaneously self-organize activities based on freedom, direct democracy, and a general equality. Many people only experience cooperation outside of their work lives, in their private lives, with family, friends, and associates. But cooperative instincts always remain there inside the human condition like seeds waiting for the right conditions. When an oppressive society reaches a dead end, a new generation rejects the dying husk and reinvents its world, and that creative act is always based on mutual aid and cooperation.
MJ: Before you go on to your answer to the second part of the question—that is, how cooperation has been an important part of American history—I want to challenge you a bit on your saying “most societies today have been deformed and oppressed by small authoritarian groups for a very long time.” It touches an issue that is very central to how we strategize as a movement.
Basically, I find that thinking about oppression is a very tricky thing. Frequently we assume that it is the “oppressors” that cause oppression. Some very acute thinkers like Paulo Freire in his classic “The Pedagogy of the Oppressed” argue very strongly that oppression is a joint project of the ‘oppressor’ and the ‘oppressed’. And it would seem that every liberation movement—civil rights, gays and lesbians, women, etc.—is essentially the story of people empowering themselves by not accepting the role of the ‘oppressed.’
Read more here.
Worker Cooperative Loan Fund Launches November 27th
November 23, 2012 For immediate release Contact: Wayne Landers or Stephanie Hervey at outreach@richmondcooploans.net (415) 240-8738 A new source of small loans is now available for Richmond businesses operating as worker cooperatives. This is part of an effort to encourage job seekers and entrepreneurs to band together and create their own workplaces. From 4:00 p.m. to 6:00 p.m. on Tuesday, November 27 the Richmond Worker Cooperative Revolving Loan Fund (or Richmond Co-op Loans for short) will host an informational briefing for interested parties and the media. The event will take place at the offices of Richmond Main Street, 1000 MacDonald Avenue, Suite C. Everyone is welcome. The new non-profit fund is designed to meet a specific hurdle in starting worker owned businesses. Securing financing for new cooperatives can be challenging. A number of local business resource people will offer brief presentations on both these challenges and the unique advantages of the cooperative business model. Neil Helfman, attorney and a founding member of Richmond Co-op Loans, will outline opportunities offered by the co-op model. Several members of local co-ops will report on their businesses. Randall Shores, business start up and turn around specialist with the Small Business Development Center, will cover resources for business owners, many of them free. And welcoming all the participants will be Richmond Mayor Gayle McLaughlin, with her vision of worker co-ops adding to the local business climate and strengthening a growing sense of community. “In addition to finding people who want to start co-ops we are also very interested in talking to Richmond business owners who may be thinking of selling their enterprises,” according to Richmonder Jayma Brown, another founding member or Richmond Co-op Loans. “For instance, a local business person thinking of retiring may have thought about selling the business to the employees but doesn’t know how to investigate that possibility. We’d like to help and make sure those Richmond jobs are retained.” Specifics about applying for loans, as well as general information about cooperatives, will be available at the meeting. For more information visit www.richmondcooploans.net Light refreshments will be served, catered by Liberty Ship Cafe, an emerging Richmond cooperative. Worker cooperatives follow the seven cooperative principles: voluntary and open membership; democratic member control; member economic participation; autonomy and independence; education, training, and information for members and the public; cooperation among cooperatives; and concern for community. What: Launch of Richmond Worker Cooperative Revolving Loan Fund When: Tuesday, November 27, 4:00 to 6:00 p.m. Where: Richmond Main Street, 1000 MacDonald Ave, Suite C, Richmond
Thursday, November 22, 2012
Shareable's Future Hangs in the Balance
Dear Shareable reader,
I'll get right to the point: Shareable may not be able to continue our work.
Shareable is a non-profit. We’re in the final year of a foundation startup grant from SHIFT. But the foundation will only continue to support Shareable if we diversify our funding. So we’re turning to you, our readers, to crowdfund Shareable’s future.
The foundation has generously agreed to match reader contributions 2-for-1. For every dollar of your tax-deductible contribution we'll receive two more!
To access this matching grant, we need to raise $10,000 from readers like you by December 31. You can select your level at the right.
Here's the case for why you should support Shareable's work now.
Sharing can help us save money, use resources more wisely, and strengthen local economies. It can also help us create a better world. A world where the commons is restored and celebrated. A world with more community and less social isolation. One where people can create lives with more meaning, purpose, and fun.
That’s the positive vision that Shareable is working to spread.
I think you’ll agree that over the past three years Shareable has been a constant promoter of sharing. We’ve published practical guides for people and communities who want to share more, helped to shape public dialogue about sharing, and offered inspiration to the movement.
Earlier this year we asked our readers why they read Shareable. Our readers said that we are a consistent source of inspiring and helpful information. As one reader put it:
With your support, in the year ahead we will:
Cindy is an unemployed widow from Frankfort, Indiana who reads Shareable. In August she contributed $10 to support Shareable, despite her financial challenges. As she wrote:
To keep our work going, we need your support.
We can only access the $20,000 in matching funds with your support. So, pick your level and support Shareable’s future today!
Click here now to give.
Thank you in advance for your support.
Neal Gorenflo
Publisher of Shareable
P.S. There's a limited time to have your tax-deductible contribution matched 2-for-1. Please help crowdfund Shareable today! We’ll send you your thank-you gifts, plus the best part is knowing that you're supporting Shareable’s future.
I'll get right to the point: Shareable may not be able to continue our work.
Shareable is a non-profit. We’re in the final year of a foundation startup grant from SHIFT. But the foundation will only continue to support Shareable if we diversify our funding. So we’re turning to you, our readers, to crowdfund Shareable’s future.
The foundation has generously agreed to match reader contributions 2-for-1. For every dollar of your tax-deductible contribution we'll receive two more!
To access this matching grant, we need to raise $10,000 from readers like you by December 31. You can select your level at the right.
Here's the case for why you should support Shareable's work now.
Sharing can help us save money, use resources more wisely, and strengthen local economies. It can also help us create a better world. A world where the commons is restored and celebrated. A world with more community and less social isolation. One where people can create lives with more meaning, purpose, and fun.
That’s the positive vision that Shareable is working to spread.
I think you’ll agree that over the past three years Shareable has been a constant promoter of sharing. We’ve published practical guides for people and communities who want to share more, helped to shape public dialogue about sharing, and offered inspiration to the movement.
Earlier this year we asked our readers why they read Shareable. Our readers said that we are a consistent source of inspiring and helpful information. As one reader put it:
“The greatest things that humans do to overcome their problems together and make their lives better, they are on Shareable.”Your contribution will support a small organization with a big impact. In 2012, Shareable published over 775 stories about sharing that reached tens of millions of people through our site, the media, and our distribution network. We helped get stories in NBC Nightly News, Sunset Magazine, Los Angeles Times, and on TV and radio stations. Our Share or Die contest and book reached millions of people, with stories from young people, for young people, about how they’re using sharing to deal with today’s economic challenges.
With your support, in the year ahead we will:
- Overhaul the web site to help you connect to sharing events and resources in your community
- Produce more how-to guides – one of the top requests from our reader survey. Our guides can help you and others save thousands of dollars.
- Provide more support to people who host sharing events and actions in their community
- Expand our readership by publishing more stories about the sharing economy – another top request in our reader survey
Cindy is an unemployed widow from Frankfort, Indiana who reads Shareable. In August she contributed $10 to support Shareable, despite her financial challenges. As she wrote:
“I cannot find work here in my hometown…and I don’t think it’s because there’s no money. It’s that there’s no consciousness of sharing here – yet! … but we’re working on it, with Shareable’s help!”I share Cindy’s story for two reasons. First, Shareable’s stories help real-world people. Second, everyone can help, and we have contribution levels for every budget.
To keep our work going, we need your support.
We can only access the $20,000 in matching funds with your support. So, pick your level and support Shareable’s future today!
Click here now to give.
Thank you in advance for your support.
Neal Gorenflo
Publisher of Shareable
P.S. There's a limited time to have your tax-deductible contribution matched 2-for-1. Please help crowdfund Shareable today! We’ll send you your thank-you gifts, plus the best part is knowing that you're supporting Shareable’s future.
Friday, November 9, 2012
Is Social Entrepreneurship the Rich Saving the Poor?
Why empowerment and power structures are at the very core of social entrepreneurship. Image from Africa Renewal.
Social entrepreneurship, if done properly, creates, fosters, and grows communities with new opportunities which were never within their reach before.
Over the years, as the enthusiasm for social entrepreneurship has grown, I have seen all sorts of individuals, teams, and organizations join our ranks to start to form an ecosystem. But I've also observed the term “social enterprise” used in all sorts of ways - some valid, and some completely disingenuous.
Many of these things are well-intentioned and some even make a positive difference in the lives of people and their communities. These activities include corporate social responsibility, ethical and sustainable business, “conscious capitalism,” social innovation - all of these things signal the creation of a new economy; but these models are not actually social entrepreneurship. Engaging with your stakeholders does not, alone, make you a social entrepreneur.
Social entrepreneurship is not about "giving back,” be that in donating 1-100% of your profits to a good cause or slick “buy one, give one” marketing schemes. (And especially not ones with such opaque supply chains as TOMS shoes, where it is unclear who is making the shoes, under what working conditions and how much they are getting paid.)
Social enterprise empowers people so that they can amplify the great work they are doing already. It is not something done to people or for people. It should be a collaborative effort done with and chiefly by those people.
Social entrepreneurship is not about elitist fellowships, conferences, summits, accelerators, coworking spaces, or contests. Social entrepreneurship is not about charity or even about philanthropy, and it's certainly not about wealth redistribution. Social entrepreneurship is about opportunity and power distribution.
The economy is a human construct. It’s a formalized system for how and why we relate to each other and how and why we create value for our society. Any social enterprise venture must have members of the disenfranchised in positions of power inside the venture, be that as a founder, executive or board member.
Members of privileged groups can be part of the solution by sharing power with underserved communities as they contribute their skills, knowledge and labor to solve their own problems and create value for society. This should be a partnership. Privileged groups should not be saviors or benevolent agents - rather they should be collaborators in creating a healthy economy that benefits everyone.
You don't solve poverty with money. You solve poverty with agency.
For the past three months, I've had quite a few conversations here in Philadelphia, which is chock full of social problems. I’ve had conversations about how to define social enterprise, what its goal is, and what exactly would change looks like, in the context of a citywide economic development strategy.
After much wheel-spinning, here is what I see as the central tenet of social enterprise: transformational change that, if done properly, creates new, previously out-of-reach opportunities for communities from the ground up.
"The ultimate measure of a man is not where he stands in moments of comfort and convenience, but where he stands at times of challenge and controversy. The true neighbor will risk his position, his prestige, and even his life for the welfare of others. In dangerous valleys and hazardous pathways, he will lift some bruised and beaten brother to a higher and more noble life." - Dr. Martin Luther King, Strength to Love.
This philosophy and practice is very much what my role model and hero Muhammad Yunus did in founding and developing Grameen Bank for 30 years.
Read more here.
Student Coops: the Cutting Edge of the New Economy
By Mira Luna
11.07.12
From Shareable.net
Registration desk at NASCO Institute.
On November 2-4th, 400 student cooperative members and other students gathered in Ann Arbor to attend NASCO Institute, “Cooperating to Survive and Thrive Beyond Capitalism: Building a Solidarity Economy.” The conference took place at the University of Michigan where 20 student cooperative houses and an Inter-Cooperative Council thrive with more than 600 residents. The common threads in the workshops were radical inclusion and cooperation, even amongst cooperatives.
The students generally agreed on an emerging new economic framework based on sharing and equity, as well as radical inclusion to participate in this new economy. Outside of the workshops, students attended caucuses for people with disabilities, people of color, white allies, working class, owning class allies and queer and transgendered people. From talking with students and attending a caucus myself, I was encouraged that NASCO and the student coops are at the cutting edge of diversity work and theory. The undercurrent being that inclusion means listening to, understanding and working from the unique perspectives from the oppressed (i.e. all of us) to create radical inclusion, liberation and equity for everyone. A solidarity economy for all!
I was moderately surprised to hear that women at the student co-ops felt they had a ways to go toward gender equity and that there was sadly no gender caucus to discuss it, but one workshop did address gendered labor in co-ops. It was also the first time I heard nonviolent communication described as a communication tool that can be oppressive to those who don't share that communication style. This came from the Aorta Collective, a nonprofit that teaches communication skills.
Read more here.
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