REVIEW OF INTERNATIONAL CO-OPERATION - ICA...leadership and management of the ICA. Contents may be reprinted without permission, but citation of source is requested and three copies

REVIEW OF INTERNATIONAL CO-OPERATION

VOLUME 99 N° 1/2006

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Editorial and administrative office:

International Co-operative Alliance15, route des Morillons, CH-1218 Grand-Saconnex, GenevaSwitzerlandTel: (41-22) 929 88 88; Fax: (41-22) 798 41 22E-mail: [email protected]

The Review of International Co-operation is also available in Spanish fromIntercoop Editoria Cooperative Ltda., Moreno 1733/41, 1093 Buenos Aires,Argentina

ICA Committee on Co-operativeResearch (ICACCR)

A thematic committee of the International Co-operative Alliance, the ICA Committeeon Co-operative Research is made up of a network of individual researchers from overtwenty countries in Europe, Asia and America.

The Committee acts as a bridge between academic research and the co-operative worldand aims to strengthen activities and make the work of researchers more visible.

International Research Conferences are held every two years where possible in conjunction with ICA global meetings (General Assembly and/or Congress) andRegional Research Conferences are held regularly and where possible in conjunctionwith ICA Regional Assemblies.

Selected papers from each conference will be published yearly in the Review ofInternational Co-operation.

Opinions expressed in this publication are not necessarily those of the leadership and management of the ICA.

Contents may be reprinted without permission, but citation of source isrequested and three copies of the publication concerned should be sent toICA Review, 15, route des Morillons, 1218 Grand-Saconnex, Geneva,Switzerland.


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Editorial: by Olive McCarthy and Ian MacPherson ................................................................... 3

Forward: by Ian MacPherson ...................................................................................................... 7

Co-operatives and Community Culture by Madhav Madane .............................................. 12

Globalization and the British Columbia Co-operative Movement: A Long View by Joy Emmanuel, Ian MacPherson and Erik Martin................................................................. 20

Artists’ co-operatives and their potential to contribute to the development of the visual arts sector in Ireland by Noreen Byrne, Bridget Carroll and Michael Ward............................................................................................................................... 29

Creating a non profit network of producers for the development of local culture and tourism: the case of the wine roads of Northern Greece by Simeon Karafolas ..................................................................................................................... 36

Putting Co-operative Principles into Practice: Lessons Learned from Canada’s North by Isobel Findlay .............................................................................................................. 44

The impact of community co-operatives on shopping behaviour in rural communities in Scotland by Eric Calderwood and Keri Davies.............................................. 53

Staying Competitive and Preserving Community Identity: The Case of Tsuruoka Co-op, Japan by Akira Kurimoto ............................................................................. 62

The Role of Co-operatives in Developing and Sustaining Local and RegionalCommunities - A Success Story: Female Headed Households’ Co-operative Societies in Bam by Aliasghar Maghsoudi ................................................................................ 70

Co-operatives and community culture: The role of the media by Sanjay Kumar Verma ............................................................................................................. 77

Teaching of co-operation through the web by Pekka Hytinkoski ......................................... 83

Review of International Co-operationVol. 99 No 1/2006

Editors: Olive McCarthyIan MacPherson

Contents

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This issue of the Review contains across-section of papers from the XXIInternational Co-operative ResearchConference, hosted by the Centre for Co-operative Studies, UniversityCollege Cork, Ireland in August 2005.Being Europe’s Capital of Culture2005, Cork was a fitting location withinwhich to examine the conferencetheme, ‘The Contribution of Co-operativesto Community Culture’. Participants atthe conference came from 26 countriesand presented 48 papers. The 10papers selected for this issue attemptto reflect the diversity in range andtype of co-operatives which impact oncommunity culture, as well as the var-ied interpretations of what culturemeans for communities, and more par-ticularly, co-operatives. The first two papers explore the con-tribution of a wide range of co-opera-tives to culture. Madhav Madane’spaper documents the extraordinaryrange of activities of different types ofco-operatives in different countries

which support whole communitiesand build a community culture. Healso emphasises the essential role ofwomen in co-operatives throughoutthe world.The next six papers focus on particularco-operatives or types of co-operativewhich have community and culturalimpacts and which have helped toorganise their members more effec-tively. Noreen Byrne, Bridget Carrolland Michael Ward explore the existingand potential role of co-operativeswithin the visual arts sector in Ireland.Artists co-operatives have broughtlike-minded artists together to raisefinance and improve market exposure.In particular, through collective andcollaborative work, innovation amongthe artists is facilitated in a way whichmight never be possible if the artistsworked alone. Simeon Karafolasexamines the regeneration of vine-yards and wine tourism in Greece,which includes the involvement ofwine-producer co-operatives. The so-

Editorial

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called ‘wine roads’ of Northern Greecehave led to unique co-operationbetween wine producers and restau-rants, hotels and tourist agencies topromote local tourism and to preserveand develop local culture and heritage.Isobel Findlay’s paper builds onresearch into aboriginal co-operativesin Northern Canada. Her paper is athought-provoking piece, which dis-cusses the ‘extraordinary things beingachieved by ordinary people’ throughco-operative enterprise. For the Inuitcommunity, co-operatives havebecome multi-purpose organisations,preserving local crafts, providing retailservices, developing tourism, buildingthe socio-economic structure, andmuch more, without losing sight of theimportance of local ownership. TheInuit co-operative story is inspira-tional. Eric Calderwood and KeriDavies examine the current position ofcommunity retail co-operatives inremote communities of rural Scotland.For most of these communities, the co-operative is the only shop in the com-munity and usually serves as the mainfocal point for the residents. These co-operatives face a range of challenges,common to many co-operatives world-wide, not least of which is retainingtheir co-operative identity. Moving toJapan, Akira Kurimoto explores link-ages between co-operatives and thecommunity and describes the range ofactivities in which consumer co-opera-tives engage in order to serve the needsof their communities. He focuses in onthe case of Tsuruoka Co-op, which haseffectively responded to consumerconcerns about food safety. In the lastof these six papers, Aliasghar

Maghsoudi discusses the relevance ofco-operatives to communities in crisis.He examines the establishment of 3 co-operatives for female-headed house-holds in the aftermath of the devastat-ing earthquake which affected Bam,Iran in 2003. These co-operatives haveenabled women to take control of theirlives by providing training and creat-ing employment. Aliasghar discusseswhy the co-operative approach wasthe most effective way to organise thewomen and demonstrates that com-munity development, which is similarin its values to co-operatives, is bestachieved through co-operative organi-sation.The final two papers consider theimportance of co-operative media andco-operative education respectively.Sanjay Verma highlights the failure ofconventional media to communicatethe co-operative message or to drawattention to co-operative endeavour.He stresses the importance to co-oper-atives of developing their own mediaforms to build a positive image andbrand awareness, with specific refer-ence to India. The sentiments in thispaper will surely resonate with co-operators throughout the world.Pekka Hytinkoski looks at the use ofthe worldwide web in teaching peo-ple about co-operatives. The RuraliaInstitute at the University of Helsinkihas an online education project co-ordinating the co-operative studiesuniversity network project in Finland.Pekka is well-positioned to commenton the benefits and pitfalls of on-lineeducation and he makes a number ofvaluable observations and recommen-dations for all those who engage in or

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are planning to engage in on-line edu-cation.We hope you enjoy reading thepapers we have selected for this edi-tion. These represent less than a quar-ter of the papers presented but give aflavour for the kinds of co-operativeresearch being conducted and the dis-course and debate that took place atthe conference. Finally, we would liketo thank Patricia Sullivan-Vaucherand Yohanan Stryjan for their veryvaluable contribution and time com-mitment in helping to organise theconference in Cork and Garry Cronanfor his enormous help in bringing thisissue to completion.

Ian MacPherson and Olive McCarthy

* Ian MacPherson is Director and founderof the British Columbia Institute for Co-operative Studies at the University ofVictoria. His research has been largely onthe history of the co-operative movement,particularly in Canada. Dr. MacPhersonhas served on boards of co-operatives fortwenty-five years at the provincial,national and international levels. He wasthe founding President of the CanadianCo-operative Association. He chaired theprocess and wrote the documents bywhich the international co-operativemovement revised their basic principles atthe Manchester Congress of the Interna-tional Co-operative Alliance in 1995. He is the first recipient of the CanadianCo-operative Achievement Award(2001). In 2005, the International Co-operative Alliance (ICA) presentedProfessor MacPherson with the RochdalePioneer Award, the highest award in theinternational movement. Ian is currentlythe chair of the ICA Committee on Co-operative Research.

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Foreward

Co-operative Studies – Changes,Accomplishments and Challenges

by Ian MacPherson*

For those interested in the study ofco-operatives and Co-operativeStudies in general, the last fifteen totwenty years have witnessed aremarkable development in the field,

in large part because of the work ofthe International Co-operativeAlliance’s International ResearchCommittee. We owe much to SvenAkë Böök for his determination andvision in the 1980s and to Lars Marcusand Bruce Thordarson, respectivelythe President and Executive Directorof the ICA at the time, for their strongsupport. As one looks over these years, thereare arguably three aspects that partic-ularly stand out: the expansion of par-ticipation in the field around theworld; the reaching out for new waysto understand the co-operative expe-rience; and the struggles to create thesustaining infrastructure that wouldassure the field’s continuing growth. The expansion of the field has beenremarkable. We now have regular

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meetings in Europe, Asia, LatinAmerica1 and North America. Wenow know, based on the numbers ofpeople attending these and otherrelated research events, that there areabout 400 researchers around theworld seriously interested in the field.A particularly promising aspect ofthis growth has been the markedincrease in the numbers of young peo-ple – from universities and co-opera-tives – attending our meetings. Therehas been a significant improvement inthe quality of the research that isbeing reported, in terms of both thedepth and variety of methodologiesthey demonstrate. Those of us whohave been involved for a while havemuch fuller bookshelves devoted toco-operative subjects; even more dra-matically, we have access to a rapidlyexpanding corpus of work throughour computers. This increased activity has meant anexpansion of contacts among Co-oper-ative Studies researchers around theworld, facilitated by the Internet andfuelled by a growing number of inter-national linkages in many researchprojects. We have moved far awayfrom the isolated circumstances manyof us knew a couple of decades ago. For all of this we are indebted to manypeople and perhaps it is time to payour respect to them. We should markthe contributions of, among others,people such as Roger Spear, AkiraKurimoto, Yohanan Stryjan, MirtaVuotto, Sigismundo BialorskorskiNeto, and Madhav Madane, peoplewho have worked diligently to estab-lish and improve our meetings. It isimportant to thank the band of

researchers, like Hans Munkner, RitaRhodes, Johnston Birchall and YairLevi, for their continuous and unstint-ing participation in those meetings.We are also very much in debt to thesupport we have received from theInternational Co-operative Alliance,in the last few years especially theinterest of the President, IvanoBarberini and the Executive Director,Iain Macdonald, as well as the sup-port and leadership provided byPatricia Vaucher and Garry Cronan.Given the vitality of regional meetingsand the abundance of contributions toour international gatherings, there isno reason to expect that this trend willweaken; indeed, every reason to thinkthat it will intensify. Research begetsresearch. The growing band ofyounger scholars promises a “goldenage” for co-operative research in thefuture – if their interest can be sus-tained. Given the growth globally, it isa certainty that we will soon be able tocommence the kind of comparativeresearch that will make the field evenricher and its contributions even moreimportant. The research needs of theco-operative movement are vast andunending: at its heart, the movement is(and should be) essentially about theapplications of sound knowledge andeffective practice within frameworksprovided by co-operative values andprinciples. It is an approach thatrequires the mutual validation of the-ory by practice – and the reverse.Perhaps most significantly, the issuesaddressed in Co-operative Studieshave important widespread applica-tions in the world today. Even morethan in the past, there is immense

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scope for co-operatives amid theopportunities and problems arisingfrom an increasingly more integratedworld. If much has been accomplishedin recent years, there is much forresearchers still to do.The reaching out for new ways to under-stand the co-operative experience hastaken many forms. One of the mostwelcome, of course, has been thegrowing impact of researchers out-side the North Atlantic world, espe-cially in Asia and Latin America. Insome instances, this is just the resultof the work in those regions becomingbetter known, but it is also a conse-quence of an extension in the researchbeing undertaken and an expansionin the number of researchers. As aresult, we are gaining a deeper under-standing of the roles of culture, vary-ing political traditions, and differentbusiness approaches within co-opera-tive enterprise and in co-operativethought. It is a welcome deepening ofour understanding from only a littlewhile ago, a profound enrichment ofour international understandings.We can also see a “reaching out” toinclude more sophisticated examina-tions from different perspectives.There has been a significant increase inanalyses from the point of view ofBusiness Studies, EnvironmentalStudies, Economics, and Develop-ment Studies. There has been someexpansion from the perspective ofGender Studies; there is a need formuch more. One could also hope formore studies from the perspective ofpolitical theory, especially concerningtheoretical roles of the state, and thereis still a noticeable weakness in the area

of intellectual history and Philosophy.Recently, there has been a growing lit-erature from the perspective of youngpeople and the start of a discussionover the relationship between co-oper-atives and peace, a promising leap intothe world of Peace Studies. Moreprominently, in several countries,there has been an opening to the worldof the Social Economy, a dialogue thathad been resisted – on both sides – fora long time. Such expanding views and relation-ships offer the benefits of increasinglysophisticated analyses. They alsoopen the way for more extensivetreatment within the academy, ulti-mately meaning growth in the extentand ways that co-operatives areaddressed in teaching programmes inmany disciplines. They mean a grow-ing number of graduate theses in awide range of disciplines andincreased attention in conferencesconcerned with general topics and notjust with Co-operative Studies.This increased interest, of course,raises some challenges. The core ofCo-operative Studies, despite all thathas happened in recent years, remainsrather fragile. The long history of themovement suggests a weakness inwithstanding the intellectual and ide-ological challenges of other ideologi-cal perspectives; there have alwaysbeen dangers of being absorbed by thevalues and priorities of for-profitenterprise or government pro-grammes – that was why there wassomething of an identity crisis at theend of the twentieth century, thoughin reality the identity issue emergeddecades earlier. To hold its own,

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therefore, the co-operative approachrequires continuing and deeperresearch, more theoretical discussionsand institutional support.In short, those of us engaged in Co-operative Studies need to pay moreattention to the development of a sus-taining infrastructure for the field’s fur-ther development. Successfulresearch fields typically demonstratea number of attribute: strong net-works of researchers, successfulrecords within research funding com-petitions, strong and recognized pub-lication activities, institutional sup-port within universities and otherinstitutions, an easily accessible cor-pus of published work, and goodemployment possibilities for inter-ested graduate students – as well asstability for the academic and otherinstitutes that pursue Co-operativeStudies. When one compares the Co-operativeStudies experience against this list,the judgements are decidedly“mixed”. The networks are certainlystronger than ever and growing.There is a good recent record of Co-operative Studies researchers compet-ing effectively for funds and, in theprocess, demonstrating the impor-tance of co-operatives and, indirectlyat least, the possibilities of Co-opera-tive Studies. We need to think moreabout how to publish the results ofour work – in disciplinary and inter-disciplinary journals, in the publicpress, on the Web, as well as in books.Far too much of what is done ismerely reported at our conferencesand not widely circulated…most of itin fact is not available to others

beyond our numbers. Perhaps weshould think of some co-operativeways to address this problem, to worktogether in creating more and increas-ingly more sophisticated publicationavenues and distribution systems. Weneed to use the Web much more effec-tively to collect, promote and makemore easily available the work we do.It is a huge resource for our purposes,a way to overcome the limitations onwhat we do imposed by the ways inwhich knowledge has been organizedover the last 200 years.All of these elements are crucial to creating some stability for individualsand research centres/institutesdevoted to Co-operative Studies. Infact, there is a “catch-22” relationship:without strong research elements, it isdifficult to create such centres; with-out such centres it is difficult to createthe infrastructure to sustain theresearch activities. The last twentyyears have witnessed the coming andgoing of many research programmes,the ending of very successful begin-nings simply because an individualretired. I suspect, too, that many of usin the field know of very promisinggraduate students who made theunderstandable decision to pursueother interests more likely to secureappointments and employment. Theresult is that the field lurches about, infits and starts, leading to muchrelearning, repetition and relapses. There are, of course, no easy answersto this problem, but there are someobvious things that can be empha-sized, most of them involving us co-operating even more with each other.We can all work together to identify

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better what is being done by all of us– and by the many we do not even yetknow about. This will continue tomake the growing case for the impor-tance of the field. We can all worktogether to make more readily avail-able the work that has been done,especially through the Web. We canpartner even more in the pursuit ofresearch funding, particularly acrossinternational borders. We can collabo-rate in the development of more pub-lication outlets. We can work muchmore effectively across – as well aswithin – the frameworks of specificuniversities: it will be, as it is now, thevery rare university that will be ableto sustain a critical mass of Co-opera-tive Studies specialists to make a sig-nificant contribution. There areuntold possibilities – and advantages– in creating strong relationshipsamong groups of researchers in sev-

eral universities and within co-opera-tives. We need to do that much moreregularly and creatively, thoughgiven the competition typical in uni-versities and the powerful institu-tional holds they exert, that will not beeasy. We can work more effectivelywith co-operative organisations andwithin the ICA to develop obviouslyvaluable research agendas….withoutsacrificing the autonomy and inde-pendence required for good research.We can address more regularly andsystematically the meaning, method-ologies, responsibilities and agenda ofour field.Now isn’t that a rather strange andsurprising conclusion? The bestanswers to our challenges and for thefurther development of the field ofCo-operative Studies may well befound through more co-operativeeffort.

Notes1 In North America, the researchers (university, independent and from co-oper-

atives) meet in annual gatherings of the Association of Co-operativeEducators, the Canadian Association for Studies in Co-operation and a subgroup of the Agricultural Economists, mostly from the United States.

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BackgroundCommunity has formed the basis ofhuman society for many ages. Inknown history, communities,whether clans, tribes, nomads or anykind of habitat, have evolved theirown code of conduct to deal with eachother and laid down certain standardsfor group behaviour during farming,hunting festivals and conflicts withother communities. As these commu-nities began to settle in their perma-nent habitat, the self-regulatory codesgradually took the shape of commu-nity rules binding on all their mem-bers. These rules became the basis ofcommunity culture which underwentthe process of refinement over thecenturies.

As communities progressed all overthe globe, the process of sophistica-tion continued until certain traits ofcivilized life began to emerge. Thesebecame visible through arts, litera-ture, philosophy, rule of law and jus-tice, respect for human dignity,music and festivals. The traditions ofcivilized life became manifest inmajor civilizations. Prominentamong them were the Greek Civili-zation, the Indus Valley Civilization,the Nile Valley Civilization and theRoman Civilization in the West andthe Confucius led ChineseCivilization in the East which influ-enced the entire Orient. These civi-lizations helped evolve the now uni-versally known and recognizedvalues as the basis of our civil soci-ety. They perfected the values whichhold their ground to this day. For

Co-operatives and Community Culture

by Madhav Madane*

* Madhav Viswanath Madane has aMasters in History and Economics andLaw. He has extensive experience withFAO and the United Nationa havingbeen Senior Advisor for FAO inAfghanistan and then Rome. Madanehas worked for the ICA in the RegionalOffice in New Delhi and has been pub-lished several times in the Review ofInternational Co-operation. His writingsinclude “Agricultural Cooperative inSouth Korea – The Unitary approach”.

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example, the Vedic Society whichwas the base of Indus ValleyCivilization, had formulated codeson Democracy, Supremacy of theLaw, Equality and Social Status,Freedom, of Worship, Glory ofKnowledge, Defence of Honour andLiberty, Open and Lively Society,Welfare State and Legal NationalIdentity.During the Middle Ages, two majorfactors were responsible for pushinglong cherished human values into thebackground: the emergence of majorreligions and the lust for conquestsleading to major wars among nationsbetween followers of different faiths. The concepts of co-operative andcommunityWhen co-operatives emerged againstthe background of the IndustrialRevolution, the dominant factorbehind the efforts was exploitation ofone class by the other. There was achange of way of life from a subsis-tence economy society to a society inwhich a few prospered at the cost ofothers and currency became the majorfactor for evaluation of social status ofthe individual. Logically, moneybecame the major instrument in thepursuit of happiness in the aftermathof the Industrial Revolution. Robert Owen was the first to talk ofcooperative communities and the cre-ation of a conducive environment tobuild the character of the people. Hisefforts at New Lanark to convert thecapitalist society into a ‘New MoralWorld’ was an attempt to create self-governing communities. Owen mustbe given credit for introducing theconcept of building up community

culture which could help buildhuman dignity. However, despite hislife-long efforts, the Utopian conceptproved to be difficult to put into aworkable proposition. Dr. WilliamKing brought the co-operative con-cept to a more realistic level and camenearer to putting it into practice, notforgetting the ultimate goal of co-operative effort being human happi-ness. In the first issue of Co-operator,published on 1st May 1928, the sloganon top of the title read, “Knowledgeand Union are Power: Power, directedby Knowledge, is Happiness:Happiness is the end of Creation.”Thus, these two Pioneers had beforethem the vision to safeguard the cul-ture of the co-operative communitythey were attempting to create. TheRochdale Pioneers too, who trans-lated the co-operative concept into apractical and workable society, didnot limit their activities to trading, butright from the beginning gave equalimportance to educational, social andmoral aspects of the members andtheir families.In Germany, Friedrich WilhelmRaiffeisen, who worked tirelessly toform credit societies had, from thebeginning, the larger interests of thecommunity, namely the moral andsocial upliftment of the people, atheart. In his biography, FranzBraumann writes, “In Raiffeisen’sview, however, the ultimate aim ofthe Society should be much more far-reaching, an opinion he expressed inpoint 2 of the statutes: “In the view ofthe Society, to improve physical well-being will have a correspondinglybeneficial effect on moral welfare.

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Accordingly, its resources must beused to the best possible advantage toachieve the former end and take everyopportunity to widen every activity.”No doubt, the co-operative conceptwas recognized as something muchwider and comprehensive than eco-nomic welfare of the community theywere set to serve.” Raiffeisen alsobelieved that “The financial help to begranted to the people must be com-bined with their enlightenment.” Co-operative thinkers and practicingco-operators to this day have not lostsight of the Welfare Concept of thecommunity for which they wereworking. Their contribution in enrich-ing community culture is visible inmany forms and in varying degrees.Prof. A.F.Laidlaw, presenting hispaper on Cooperatives in the Year2000 at the ICA Congress in Moscow,had stated, “Various attempts havebeen made to improve the present for-mulation (of co-operative principles)and it is hoped that efforts will con-tinue until the basic moral and ideo-logical pillars of the co-operative sys-tem have been set in place.”Introducing the Co-operative IdentityStatement to the 1995 ManchesterCongress of the ICA, Prof. IanMacPherson stated, “The lastPrinciple refers to the traditional co-operative concern for community. Atthe Monday meeting, after reviewingsubmissions on this Principle, theBoard agreed upon a slight change ofworking and recommends to you thestatement ‘co-operatives work for the sustainable development of their communities through policiesapproved by their members.’ This

Principle implies a commitment tosustainable human development andthus nicely blends with the report on‘co-operatives and sustainable humandevelopment’. In fact, the two reportsmake good companions.’

Present day practicesCo-operatives the world over havecontributed and are still contributingto the enrichment of community cul-ture through a variety of services.They serve the community in oneform or another through schemesand programmes suited to local con-ditions. From the Women’s Guilds inthe West to the HAN groups and Co-operative Housewives Associationsin the East, women have been at theforefront in organizing services forbetter health, greater education,social welfare, and cultural and edu-cational activities for co-operativemembers and their families. Whilethe Women’s Guilds in consumersocieties have helped a great deal inretaining the interest and support ofwomen in co-operatives, they havealso provided leadership in manage-ment and have represented theirsocieties in regional, national andinternational meetings.

Farm Guidance and BetterLivingA unique feature of agricultural coop-eratives in Japan is the FarmGuidance and Better living Activities.Farm Guidance is provided byexperts employed by the co-opera-tives. Their most important activity isto help farm households to increase

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their income from small-size hold-ings. This is done through carefulplanning in production as well as inplanning the utilization of farmincome. While planning, the mem-ber’s farm size, the available man-power, educational expenses for chil-dren, social events such as marriages,and the health care requirements ofthe entire family, and other suchneeds, are taken into account. Afterassessing the total needs and theavailable land and resources, the farmplan is prepared and put into practice.This helps the farm households inmaintaining a balance in the domesticbudget and also meet the social andcultural needs of the family. The Better Living activities aredesigned for the entire community inthe village. They include health careservices, medical check-ups, weddingvenues and facilities to hold festivalsand community meetings. The co-operatives have become a meetingplace for members of the community.Consumer guidance is also providedthrough product information, cook-ing demonstrations and teaching andinformation on flower arrangementand arts and crafts. Any activity thatcan enrich the living conditions of themembers and their families is under-taken by the society.In consumer cooperatives in Japan,the HAN groups, which are organ-ized around each co-operative, andthe housewives associations, haveproduct testing laboratories to advisemembers on the usefulness and theharmful effects of tested products.These activities also include productlabeling as well as the authenticating

labels and advertisements. Hence,consumer guidance is very effectivelycarried out. In South Korea also, women’s associ-ations in agricultural co-operativesplay a very important part instrengthening co-operative activities.The multi-purpose societies in Koreahave every kind of member-relatedactivity from credit, marketing, bank-ing, insurance, savings, farm guid-ance, cultural events and health serv-ices. In many of these activities,women groups in each co-operativeplay a supportive role to enhance co-operative image among the ruralcommunity. The most significant part of co-opera-tive activity in the Orient is that theco-operatives deal with almost all therequirements of the farm householdsand urban members of the consumerco-operatives. A case study con-ducted by students of the ICA-JapanManagement Training Programmerevealed that in a small town of 16,486people, the Mikkabi-cho AgriculturalCo-operative Society achievedremarkable success through collectiveeffort in cultivating and developing apopular brand of oranges calledMikka-chan. Due to the mishandlingof funds by the President and theBoard of Directors, the Society almostwent into bankruptcy for a shortperiod. But due to the sheer grit anddetermination of the members,employees and the community, itrecovered and regained its former sol-vent position. Contributions flowedin from all members of the society andthe community. This support was dueto the very useful services provided

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by the society to the community,where it had become a symbol of asuccessful enterprise for the people. The multi-purpose type of co-opera-tives, common in the Orient, have notonly strengthened the socio-economicfibre of their communities, but havealso helped improve their living stan-dards which enable the communitymembers lead a much more happyand healthy life than during the pre-co-operative days.

Agents of changeSome of the co-operatives in India,especially those in the processing sec-tor, have been instrumental in trans-forming entire townships and sur-rounding villages into healthyco-operative communities. For exam-ple, several case studies have revealedthat the sugar co-operatives have cre-ated roads, water management sys-tems, irrigation canals, started healthcentres and hospitals, opened schoolsand colleges and provided facilitiesfor social events, gyms, organizedtraining facilities for music and otherfine arts and even organized anorchestra of their own. Co-operativeshave helped get better returns for sug-arcane growing farmers and haveprovided employment to peopleworking in all of the above activities,thereby creating a new paradigm inco-operative development. Another co-operative, which hasmade ‘AMUL’ a leading milk produc-ing organization in the world, wasstarted as a modest milk processingplant. Today, it leads the country infresh milk processing and distributionand the AMUL brand products, such

as butter, cheese, milk powder, icecream and several other items havebecome a household name in India.The most important aspect of this co-operative is that it has transformedthe small town of Anand, and sur-rounding villages, into a co-operativehub. Women also play a leading rolein this co-operative, in animal care,milking and bringing the milk to thenearest milk collection centre. Thesupporting unit producing by-prod-ucts, feed and veterinary services hasprovided employment to a large num-ber of people. The farm households,which used to cash income once ortwice a year after the harvests, arenow receiving cash daily after deliver-ing the milk to the collection centres.This has resulted in better living stan-dards. The facilities for educationfrom primary to university level arelocated nearby, within reach of allmembers of the community. A studyon the awareness of and attitudes ofmembers to milk co-operativesrevealed that, “The fair play in tradeand the various input services can,thus, be said to be the major motiva-tional force that prompted milk pro-ducers to join co-operative societiesoperating in their areas.” Aboveall,the Government has located theNational Dairy Development Boardoffice and the Rural ManagementResearch Institute at Anand. TheAMUL pattern has been followed allover the country and co-operativedairies have come into existence inmost of the States. This has also led tothe ‘White Revolution’ in the country.The main power behind AMUL, Dr.V. Kurien has said:

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“The basic philosophy of the Anandpattern is to combine India’s greatestasset, the power of its people, withprofessional management, in a verti-cally integrated co-operative structurethat establishes a direct linkagebetween those who produce the milkand those who consume it (either asmilk or milk products). This structuretransfers to the producer the largestshare of the consumer’s rupee(money), creating the incentive toimprove production. It supports pro-duction by exposing farmers tomodernity. By placing the farmer incommand, as owner of the co-opera-tive, it involves him in the process ofdevelopment. The democratic form ofthe co-operatives provides an under-pinning for democracy in the countrythrough a foundation of democraticinstitutions right down to the villagelevel.”

Paisa Fund Cooperative – ACradle to Grave ConceptIn the southern part of the State ofMaharashtra, a local teacher started acredit co-operative by collecting fromeach member just a Penny a Day as acontribution. Every month this contri-bution was credited to the member’saccount as a deposit. Later, a part ofthe amount was transferred into themember’s share. The Society took careof the expenses of the birth of a childin the member’s household, the ante-natal and post-natal care, education ofthe children, marriages, medicalexpenses, old-age pension and finallythe funeral expenses for members ofthe households. This concept ofCradle to Grave worked beautifully

and, in the process, the Society alsoincreased its financial and manpowerstrength day by day. Today, the PaisaFund Society is a financially soundCo-operative Bank serving the peoplein the town and the surrounding vil-lages.

Micro Level Coop Network inBangladeshPioneered by the Comilla Academy,the Bangladesh Academy for RuralDevelopment initiated co-operativeactivities by collecting small savingsfrom rural community members andprovided small loans for fishing,sheep rearing and even owning andoperating cycle rikshas. Earlier, theserikshas were pulled by humans aswas the tradition in that part of theundivided India. This activity freedthe poor families from the clutches ofmoney-lenders and improved theeducational and living standards ofthe rural households. The Academynow conducts adult educationcourses and runs formal educationinstitutions. It also provides health-care facilities to rural families. Expertsvisiting the Academy to study theactivities have marvelled at the trans-formation that has taken place in thearea.

The Comprehensive Approachin ChinaIn China, the former Communes havebeen replaced by Credit andMarketing Co-operatives which aremulti-purpose in character. Theyoperate small to medium scale enter-prises to transform raw material pro-

18

duced in the area into finished orsemi-finished products. For example,in the cotton growing areas, the co-operative has ginning and pressingunits as well as spinning mills andweaving facilities to prepare the clothfor the market. This integrated style ofoperating saves transportation costsof the raw material to terminal mar-kets, adds value to the semi-processedor finished product, and providesemployment to local residents in thearea, and speeds up the process ofrecycling of funds for agriculturalactivities. Most of the daily necessitiesand consumer durables are sold in theco-operative shops operated by thesociety. This approach generates con-siderable amount of savings in therural households and strengthens thefinancial position of the society andalso improves the living standards ofthe members.

The role of womenIn many parts of the world, and Asiain particular, women have formedtheir own co-operatives. These areestablished by women board mem-bers and their employees, but theservices and commodities marketedby them are available to all sections ofthe society. In India alone, there aremore than eight thousand women’sco-operatives formed for credit,preparation of handicrafts, weaving,animal rearing, poultry, preparationof condiments and other popular fooditems, and such other items. They aregenerally successful as women func-tion better as a group. Such societiesare very common in Thailand,Indonesia, Bangladesh and the

Philippines. One more aspect worthnoting is that women managers in co-operatives of all types function moreefficiently than men. This was noticedin a study of co-operatives inThailand where over seventy percentof the managers of rural cooperativeswere women. Another very important factor worthnoting is that, in India, women haveformed their own co-operative banks.They are managed exclusively bywomen board members and employ-ees and the majority of them are suc-cessful co-operatives. In Maharashtraalone, there are more than forty suchbanks and, in the country, nearly twohundred. One such bank in Pune hasbeen rated as the most successfulbank in the study by an independentagency.

Education and trainingSince the days of the RochdalePioneers, education of members andtraining of employees are the mostimportant activities of co-operativeseverywhere. Almost in every country,there are educational, training andmanagement institutions catering forthe needs of co-operatives. Co-opera-tives have become the cradles for lead-ership development and for greaterroles in other democratic institutions.India has one National Co-operativeManagement Institute, RegionalManagement Institutes in each Stateand co-operative training schools orcentres in each district. Besides these,there are mobile training units con-ducting training programmes in thevillage co-operatives. The Committeeon Co-operation (India), set up in 1965,

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had observed, “The strength of the co-operative movement depends on theexistence of a vast and enlightenedmembership and without promotionof education an enlightened member-ship does not become a reality.” Inaddition, rural training institutions,colleges and universities have co-oper-ative training programmes, some ofwhich lead to undergraduate degrees,postgraduate degrees and doctorates.These students later play importantroles in the enlightenment of the aver-

age co-operative worker, making thembetter co-operators and agents fortransforming society. In his forewordto a book by Dr. Mauritz Bonow, NilsThedin, the well-known Swedish co-operator has said, “The co-operativemovement can become an importantmeans in the fight against poverty andunderdevelopment, in the struggle fora new economic order of the world.For the heirs of the Rochdale pioneersin all countries this should be a chal-lenge.”

ReferencesBirchall J. (1994) Co-op: The people’s business. Manchester University Press.Bonow M. International Co-operation for Self-reliance. Stockholm: SwedishCooperative Centre.Braumann F. A man conquers poverty – The Story of Friedrich WilhelmRaiffeisen Madison, Wisconsin: Credit Union National Association, Inc.Co-operative Perspective. Journal of Vaikunth Mehta National Institute of Co-operative Management, Pune. IndiaHeredia R. (1970) The AMUL India Story. New Delhi: Tata McGraw-HillPublishing Company Limited.MacPherson I. (2005) Sorting out: A Selection of Papers and Presentations 1995-2005. University of Victoria, Canada: BCICSCOOPERATIVE PERSPECTIVE. Journal of Vaikunth Mehta National Instituteof Co-operative Management, Pune. India Madane M.V. Agricultural Co-operatives in Japan. New Delhi: InternationalCooperative Alliance, Regional Office for Asia and the Pacific. Madane M.V. Agricultural Co-operatives in South Korean. New Delhi:International Cooperative Alliance, Regional Office for Asia and the Pacific. Taimni K.K. Co-operatives in Asia. International Labour Organization.Weeraman P.E. Indian Co-operative Laws vis-à-vis Co-operative Principles.New Delhi: International Cooperative Alliance, Regional Office for Asia and theFar East.

* Joy Emmanuel B.A., B.Ed., M.A.Before joining BCICS in 2005, Joytaught Sociology part-time at StMary's, University in Halifax, N.S. for13 years and conducted community ori-ented research. In 1998, she foundedQuantum Research and Consulting.Joy was a founding member of the NovaScotia Branch of the Canadian Centerfor Policy Alternatives. She has under-taken training in adult education and

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How people use co-operative strate-gies and structures when confrontedwith global economic, social andpolitical changes is an interesting andcomplex topic. British Columbia is acase in point, and it is not a story thatbegan only a few years ago when theglobalisation theme became particu-larly fashionable.

Globalization and the British ColumbiaCo-operative Movement: A Long View

byJoy Emmanuel, Ian MacPherson and Erik Martin*British Columbia Institute for Co-operative StudiesUniversity of Victoria, Victoria, Canada

holds certificates in Educational Designand Transformational Leadership. In allher work, Joy's primary interest is tocontribute to a more just, caring andsustainable world.Joy's main projects at BCICS include:Best Practices in Co-op Development,B.C. Co-operatives in the New Economy,and Co-operatives and the Pursuit ofPeace.

* Erik Martin is a researcher and writer forthe BC Institute for Co-operative Studiesand a Master's history student at theUniversity of Victoria. In his undergrad-uate work, Erik studied the evolution ofco-operative movements in BC and he iscurrently studying the social history ofradical political movements in the pro-vince. Erik is also a researcher and co-hostfor BCICS' radio program 'Each for All:The Co-operative Connection.'

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How people embrace co-operativeapproaches can be seen as an underly-ing dimension in the relationshipsbetween Aboriginal peoples and theEuropeans who came by sea and over-land starting some two centuries ago.From Aboriginal perspectives, asindeed arguably from those of all peo-ples, co-operative strategies are essen-tial for survival, as important as ten-dencies towards competition. Onedoes not have to resort to the patroniz-ing simplicities of the "splendid sav-age" myths of the eighteenth and nine-teenth centuries or to thesentimentality of Margaret Mead toacknowledge that most Aboriginalpeoples have employed co-operativeapproaches throughout their history.They did so to secure dependable sup-plies of food and clothing, to partici-pate in the ceremonies central to theircultures,1 and to engage in trade withneighbouring clans and peoples. Theytypically worked in groups and reliedon kin networks to ensure survival andachieve "plenty", as they understoodthat concept: hunting for whales, deerand caribou, operating fishing weirson rivers and streams, carrying outtrade on the interior plateaus andalong the coast...the pre-contact erawitnessed many examples of co-opera-tive practices and strategies. It can be argued that these co-opera-tive endeavours were enhanced as thefur trade developed: with itsemphases on volume and quality andits requirements for more contact andcollaboration among peoples, bothNative and European. Co-operativepractices and preferences persistedafter the emerging dominance of the

modern state and the subjugation ofAboriginal peoples, reflected inAboriginal solidarity within existingbands and nations, the persistentinter-connections of communal life,the continuation of the common own-ership of land, and the emphasis onconsensus forms of decision-making;however, they were also weakened bythe advent of political structuresimposed by colonial governmentdominance and even more by eco-nomic marginalisation as the marketeconomy - as practiced by Eurocentricsocieties - took hold.2

The first mingling of local co-opera-tive strategies and changing globalrelationships, therefore, produced amixed heritage that still affectsAboriginal peoples today. The linger-ing traditions of mutuality and con-cern over consensus affect ways inwhich Aboriginal peoples both evalu-ate and react to the circumstances ofcontemporary changes: how theymaintain their customary informal co-operative strategies through band, kinand community networks, yet looksomewhat suspiciously on formal co-operative enterprise as just anotherform of foreign control.3The blurring of co-operative possibili-ties was a consequence of the firstwave of international interventionsthat started in British Columbia sometwo centuries ago. In some ways, thatblurring characterizes many of theinformal and formal co-operativeresponses to global changes that sub-sequently occurred. For more that two centuries, the westcoast of Canada has been an impor-tant part of the "hinterland" of the

22

Empire, most obviously as a source ofwealth from: timber, minerals and seaproducts for the European powers,then as the "west beyond the west"4

for Canadians, even for manyAmericans, as well as for a remark-able mixture of peoples from Europe,Asia and Latin America. The region'sdevelopment has been cyclical, itsland tenure system (Aboriginal landclaims ?) never fully resolvedthroughout the province, its economicdevelopment significantly affected bymost of the great staple economies ofCanadian history - agriculture, min-ing, forestry, and fishing. In the "rushfor spoils" that often seems to charac-terize this kind of development in BC,there have been many classic situa-tions in which organized co-operation- in the form of registered co-opera-tives incorporated under specific co-operative legislation - could prosper,as it has in many similar situationsaround the world. One of the first significant stirrings offormal co-operative endeavour can befound in the early urban areas whereworking class groups, carrying under-standings of consumer co-operation intheir cultural baggage, created a longstring of consumer co-operatives.These co-ops can be seen in large partas a response to international capitalistdevelopment; a defiant, typically local-ized response to the high cost of oftenpoorly prepared food, a defence ofworking class purchasing power, anda dimension of working class culture.These early co-operative efforts canalso be seen as a reaction to theexploitation of producers and theharsh management practices in the

retail trades. Thus, beginning as earlyas the 1860s,5 British Columbiansstarted discussing co-operatives,though the first consumer co-ops didnot appear until the turn of the cen-tury. In considering the possibilitiesand the benefits of consumer co-opera-tion, they drew particularly on theexperiences of the British movementbut they also drew on precedents set inItaly and France. These pioneering co-operative ventures were found mostcommonly in the mining districts ofVancouver Island and especially theKootenays, in South-western BritishColumbia.6

During its early decades, the con-sumer movement in BC also reflectedthe class and ideological perspectivesof its European forebears, perspec-tives that questioned many of theassumptions of emerging global capi-talism and sought to structure eco-nomic change more in the interests ofworking class people. It was also aperspective that people struggled tomaintain amid difficult circumstancesand despite problems in local co-oper-atives brought on by weak leadershipand inadequate resources. Buckinginternational trends through localaction was not easy in the formativeyears of co-operative development inBC - or afterward. Agricultural co-operatives, the othersecond important wave of co-opera-tive activity in the region, also beganin the later nineteenth century andgathered momentum - indeed, gath-ered far more momentum than theconsumer movement - in the earlyyears of the following century. Theywere strongest among the producers

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of apples, soft fruits and vegetables,particularly in the Okanagan Valleybut also in the Kootenays and onVancouver Island.7 They became use-ful, even essential, organisations formore than seventy years for theprovince's milk producers, notably inthe Fraser Valley and on VancouverIsland. While the procurement of sup-plies and inputs was important in allthese organisations, a more importantconsideration was how they couldrelate to markets at home, but moreespecially outside the region and evenacross the sea in the United Kingdom.The result was a series of marketingco-operatives that contributed signifi-cantly to rural well being until being"demutualized" - in keeping withsome global trends - in the 1980s and1990s. While the dairy co-ops demu-talized, many of the co-operatives inthe fruit and vegetable industry havecontinued to survive down to thepresent day and new co-ops for agri-cultural production have beenformed. The third wave of co-operative devel-opment, associated with the emer-gence of credit unions, began in the1930s as part of a developing interna-tional interest in the possibilities ofcommunity-based co-operative bank-ing. The BC movement borrowedextensively and directly from experi-ments in Central and Eastern Canadaand from the American experience;indirectly, they also drew signifi-cantly from the European communitybanking movement, especially theRaiffeisen system. Beginning amonggroups of co-operative enthusiasts,public servants, educators, commu-

nity activists, unions, labourers andreligious groups, the BC movementexpanded steadily, becoming one ofCanada's (indeed, one of the world's)most dynamic provincial or statemovements. During its formativeyears, the provincial credit unionmovement developed largely becauseit met needs the existing bankingindustry did not meet, especially forlower income people. As the move-ment grew, it prospered because ofentrepreneurial leadership, a capacityfor innovation, and a reputation forstrengthening communities, often inthe face of regional, national andinternational changes.8 The BritishColumbia movement, in fact, becameimportant in the international creditunion movement because of its suc-cessful community-based creditunions and the international contribu-tions of such leaders as Rod Glen fromNanaimo.9

During the 1960s and 1970s, theprovincial movement reflected othertrends that can be placed in globalperspectives. The consumer move-ment, similar to what one could findin other parts of the "developed"world, was divided as new co-opera-tors, most of them young, sought forbetter food quality than industrialagriculture and production methodswere providing. With others, notablyin the United States, they pioneered inthe development of the organic foodindustry, the first BC development inthis field actually started in the 1950swhen the Vancouver Island Organicco-op was incorporated in theCowichan Valley.10 They also experi-mented with democratic forms of

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management in the creation of someeighty new community-based co-operatives dependent to a consider-able extent on volunteer labour. 11

This interest in management issueswas strongly associated with theemergence of worker co-operatives,often embracing people interestedinorganic food production and distri-bution; this made British Columbia asignificant location for the worker co-operative movement. Still other co-operative enthusiasts reacted to inter-national consumer trends by forming"service fee" or "direct charge" co-operatives in which overhead waspaid essentially through weekly ormonthly fees, goods were sold at avery low mark-up, choice was lim-ited, and very little was spent onadvertising. For a period through theseventies and early eighties, thisexperiment was regarded as a majorinternational innovation, attractingvisitors from many parts of the world,including Ralph Nader, one of theage's great consumer advocate. British Columbia was also the home ofmany experiments in communitybuilding. From the late 1950s onward,many people in North America werebecoming disenchanted with the wayin which modern urban culture wasdeveloping, with its emphasis on sub-urbia and ignoring of the plight of thepoor. Many, too, protested the VietNam war, leading to a large exodusfrom the United States into BritishColumbia, particularly to theKootenays, the major cities, and theislands along the coast. They createdintentional communities typicallybased on common property, thereby

reviving traditions of communalismthat had been evident in provincial set-tlement patterns since the turn of thecentury. Some people joined groups inthe formation of co-operative housing,most commonly in the major cities,especially after 1972 when a federalgovernment initiative made it possibleto form communities of mixed incomegroups (an attempt to upgrade thehousing stock for peoples with lowincome and to avoid the ghettoes of thepoor then becoming increasingly evi-dent in many parts of the industrialworld). The co-operative housing sec-tor, in fact, became one of the mostdynamic parts of the provincial co-operative movement, one that affectedthe movement far beyond what itsnumbers might suggest through itsidealism and by promoting awarenessof international trends and problems.12

Some of the housing advocates alsoplayed significant roles in the creationof the worker co-operative movement,borrowing heavily from previousexperiments and traditions in theUnited States and Europe.It can be argued, therefore, that the co-operative movement in BritishColumbia must be seen within aninternational perspective as well aswithin the more commonly empha-sized frameworks of local needs andactivism. There has always been aninternational dimension to the move-ment's development in the province,both in terms of providing insights,models, information and (sometimes)support, but even more importantly indefining purposes and creating com-munity-based solutions. That patternpersists to the present day.

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Since the mid-nineties, BritishColumbia has seen the growth of newforms of co-operatives. The co-opsthat have developed during this timeframe differ in several importantways from the generation of co-oper-atives that preceded them. They oftenhave a smaller membership base(between 5 and 15 members). Theytend to connect a plurality of differentcommunity groups through a "multi-stakeholder" form of membership orbecause they engage in activities thatcross a variety of sectors within thecommunity. They tend to operate inwhat could be called niche areas (eco-tourism, the arts, transportation, oremployment for people with disabili-ties). In short, while the goals andactivities of these new co-operativesare extremely diverse, their emer-gence can often be connected to someform of expression related to commu-nity sustainability. This indicates anongoing commitment shown by pre-vious waves of co-operators related toconcern over how communities areimpacted by macro scale changes.Today, this broader theme of "com-munity sustainability" can be brokendown into four main dimensions: 1)the preservation of social services andprogrammes, 2) new forms of com-munity economic development andcontrol, 3) environmental responsibil-ity, and 4) the preservation of commu-nity culture and well-being. It can beviewed as a grassroots response tochanging social and economic condi-tions associated with the forces ofglobalization, neo-liberal economicpolicies (such as privatization, dereg-ulation, and downsizing) that have

been prevalent in British Columbiaand throughout Canada since thedecade of the 1980s, and the corre-sponding effects that these processesand policies have had on local com-munities. Below, we explore each ofthese four dimensions.Since the late 1980s, social pro-grammes have been drastically cut inCanada at both the federal andprovincial level. This has translatedinto a loss of services in many ruraland small communities, as well as anincrease in fees and a growing insecu-rity around the ability to ensure long-term services. In light of these macro-level changes, there has been asignificant growth in the numbers ofsocial or service co-ops in BC. Forexample, in both the Kootenay regionand on southern Vancouver Island co-operatives have developed aroundthe provision of a range of healthservices. In 2002, the NelsonCommunity First Health Co-op wasformed in response to the removal ofvital health services and the erosion ofthe community voice regarding localservices.13 Similar conditions con-tributed to the establishment of theSooke Child, Youth and FamilyCentre in 2004 by the QueenAlexandra Foundation for Children inpartnership with Sooke CooperativeAssociation of Service Agencies(CASA).14 Both of these co-ops have adiverse member structure: Commu-nity First incorporates individualsand community organisations, SookeCASA brings together multiple com-munity organisations and is itself amember of a regional organization.Both co-operatives seek to address a

26

wide range of health issues faced bypeople in assisted living and for chil-dren, youth, the elderly and families,as well as provide health education. While co-operatives have always beena means for meeting the economicneeds of members, new co-ops can beviewed as a response to the concern forcreating viable local economies,reclaiming a measure of economic con-trol, and creating employment forgroups affected by either the loss ofgovernment services or the downturnof a resource economy. Some new co-ops, which could also be viewed associal co-ops, reflect an effort towardjob creation addressing the loss of gov-ernment programmes and support forpeople with disabilities. In theOkanagan region, in Nelson and in thePeace area of BC, there have beenefforts to establish such multi-stake-holder co-ops. Often these have beenorganised around a worker co-opmodel that provides skills training andeconomic profit to the members andtheir community, as well as fosteringthe development of democratic modesof production and management.On both Malcolm Island and CortesIsland, (small islands off the east coastof Vancouver Island) and in theCowichan region on VancouverIsland, residents have worked hard toestablish community fishery co-oper-atives in an effort to re-build a failinglocal resource economy and addressthe unemployment associated withthe collapse of this industry. Theemergence of small agriculture andforestry co-ops is also reflective of thistrend. Other co-ops have developedin these communities in an effort to

diversify the local economy; for exam-ple, Wild Island Food Co-op, onMalcolm Island runs a small bakeryand café and may expand into foodprocessing of local products. The province also hosts at least adozen new community developmentco-operatives that help to promotecommunity oriented growth strate-gies.15 These are broad based coali-tions that bring together financial,human and social capital to encour-age community development. Intertwined with the motivation tomeet economic needs is a growingtendency toward environmentalresponsibility. This trend within co-operative development can be viewedas part of a larger shift in environmen-tal consciousness away from depend-ence on a resource economy moti-vated by profits over livelihoods andan effort by communities to ensurelocal control of resources in the face ofglobalization and economic policiesthat support "economies of scale."The growth of eco-tourism and recre-ation co-ops is an example of thistrend. At least eight of these co-opshave emerged since 1994. These co-ops offer stimulating outdoor adven-ture activities at the same time as pro-viding ecological and culturalexperiences. Here we also note thegrowth of Community Forestry Co-ops in places such as Harrop Procternear Nelson, the Cowichan Valleyand on Denman Island. These co-opsseek to protect local watersheds andforestry resources while providinglong term employment. Co-ops havealso grown up around related forestryproducts. Other types of small, envi-

27

ronmentally oriented co-ops include:a bottled water co-op, recycling co-ops, food co-ops, organic farming co-ops, and transportation co-ops.The fourth dimension to how new co-operatives are responding to chal-lenges of community sustainabilityamid global change can be seen in thegrowth of co-ops emphasizing thepreservation of community cultureand well-being. Co-op radio stationsin Vancouver and Nelson are twoexamples of new co-operativesstrengthening the voice of local cul-ture and promoting community iden-tity. The mandate of the VancouverCo-op is to create a "voice for thevoiceless"16, while one member inNelson described their co-op as beingan indispensable tool for the dissemi-nation of the community's culturalknowledge.17 Artisan co-ops, televi-sion co-ops, and schools for the Artsand Media are other examples ofgrassroots efforts to preserve and pro-mote local culture. While macro-level social forces areaffecting many BC communities, ourresearch indicates that people feel astrong commitment to developingand supporting co-operatives as amethod to support and sustain their

local economy, help create employ-ment, provide services and opportu-nities for younger members of thecommunity and plant seeds of hopefor the future. How people use co-operative strate-gies and structures to confront globaleconomic, social, and political changesis not a new story but it is one withnew twists and turns as each genera-tion of co-operators embraces the chal-lenge of globalization and the particu-lar circumstances of their day. Therelationship is in key ways reciprocal,involving external pressures of eco-nomic, political and social forces butalso internal expressions of entrepre-neurial and innovative responses bypeople in communities. The underly-ing concern for "community resilience"is also common, though perhaps moreexplicitly stated now than in the past.In any event - more than is commonlyunderstood within and without themovement - the obverse side of thislocal concern for co-operation arisesfrom a deep response to global change.It is one of the creative tensions thatprovides the co-operative movementwith its strength and creativity, onethat needs to be understood andappreciated more.

Notes1 On the West coast, the most remarkable ceremony that manifested communal

and sharing dimensions - as well as status considerations - was the potlatch, afeast based typically on salmon or seal meat, in which gifts were exchanged andin which hosting families distributed much of their wealth in return for therecognition that they would receive and the reciprocal feasts from other fami-lies when they possessed an abundance of wealth.

2 For considerations of how the encroachment of European influences alteredwork in BC Aboriginal societies, see Robin Fisher, Contact and Conflict: Indian-

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European Relations in British Columbia, 1774-1890 (Vancouver: University ofBritish Columbia, 1992).

3 Aboriginal peoples in British Columbia have been slow to adopt formal co-operative structures to meet their economic and social needs. One of the issuesthat Ian MacPherson has encountered in discussion with First Nations leadersabout the possibility of forming co-operatives is that they do not readily seethem as extensions of their economic and social systems but as structuresimposed from outside. There are, however, some promising beginnings for co-operatives involving primarily among First Nations women in Vancouver andVictoria.

4 Jean Barman, The West beyond the West: A History of British Columbia (Toronto:University of Toronto Press, 1996).

5 Victoria Colonist, May 1862.6 They were located in Nanaimo, Fernie, Revelstoke, Hillcrest, Rossland and

Natal.7 By the mid-1920s, the co-ops were marketing close to 80% of the Okanagan

apple crop. (Ian MacPherson, Each for All: A History of the Co-operative Movementin English-Canada, 1900-1945 (Toronto: Macmillan, 1939) 104.

8 Credit Unions of BC, <http://www.peoplebefore profits.ca/about/> (accessedSept 7, 2006).

9 Glen was a dynamic leader in the provincial movement. Within credit unioncircles he helped spark the reformulation of the international activities of theNorth American credit union movement that led to the formation of the WorldCouncil of Credit Unions in 1970. In the 1970s, he was the driving force behindthe creation of the service fee consumer co-operatives discussed below.

10 See case study, The Galleria, Britsih Columbia Institute for Co-operative Studieshttp://bcics.uvic.ca/galleria/bc.php?group=6&tourtype=1&story=40

11 See Ian MacPherson, Co-operation, Conflict and Consensus: B.C. Central and theCredit union Movement to 1994 (Vancouver: B.C. Central Credit Union, 1995), pp.194-196.

12 See Ian MacPherson, Co-operation, Conflict and Consensus: B.C. Central and theCredit union Movement to 1994 (Vancouver: B.C. Central Credit Union, 1995), p.178.

13 Community First Health Co-op, <http://www.healthco-op.ca/pages/co-op_history.html> (August 9, 2006).

14 Western Communities Organisations Regionally Collaborating for Action(ORCA), <http://orcasociety.com/frontend/content/view/39/72> (August9, 2006).

15 British Columbia Co-operative Association, "Co-op Online Directory"<http://www.bcca.coop/onlinedir/search.htm> (August 9, 2006).

16 Vancouver Co-operative Radio, <http://www.coopradio.org/about/index.html> (August 11, 2006).

17 BCICS, Case Studies, "Kootenay Co-op Radio".

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IntroductionThere has been almost no discussionwithin the literature of the role or con-tribution of co-operatives to culture orcreative industries, such as the visualarts, music, crafts, traditional arts, pub-lishing and writing and so on. Thispaper explores the potential of artists'co-operatives to contribute to the devel-opment of the visual arts in Ireland.

Visual arts in Ireland -a context While the Arts Council1 (2002) statesthat the Irish visual arts sector hasgrown in scale and importance and thatits infrastructure has improved, a num-ber of artists' and arts organisations'issues have been highlighted in recentreportsiii. They are grouped as follows: • The need to improve the working

conditions of artists in terms ofincome and studio space;

• The need to expand the market forvisual art and also to develop thebusiness skills of the artists; and

• The need to facilitate and encouragegreater innovation.

With such a push towards greaterself-reliance, it could be assumed thata natural point of discussion would bethe potential of artist-run initiatives aspart of the solution. However, in anyof the reports mentioned earlier thereis only limited and cursory discussionof such initiatives.

Artists’ co-operatives and their potentialto contribute to the development of thevisual arts sector in Ireland

by Noreen Byrne, Bridget Carroll and Michael Ward*

* Noreen Byrne is a Lecturer at theDepartment of Food Business &Development and a researcher at theCentre for Co-operative Studies, UCC,Ireland. Email: [email protected].

* Bridget Carroll is a Lecturer at theDepartment of Food Business andDevelopment and a researcher at theCentre for Co-operative Studies, UCC,Ireland. Email: [email protected]

* Dr. Michael Ward is Head of theDepartment of Food Business andDevelopment and Director of the Centrefor Co-operative Studies, UCC, Ireland.Email: [email protected]

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What does the literature have to sayabout Artists' Co-operatives?Artists' co-ops arose in the 1970s as aresponse to artists' dissatisfactionwith public museums and commer-cial galleries, in terms of access andlack of control over their work (Jeffri,1980:86). Sharon [1979:4] highlightsthat artists managing their own expo-sure is "one of the significant changesin the social organisation of art sincethe middle of the 19th century". Theseartists' co-operatives are also veryimportant in terms of innovation, inthat artist-led organisations can act as"radical incubators for the art of thefuture" and are to the "visual artswhat research laboratories are to sci-ence" (Zanasi et al (2000:E1). They arealso often "five to ten years ahead ofcommercial galleries in terms of styleand technique" (Joy, 2000: 91). In Ireland, there are only a small num-ber of co-operatively run galleries butthere are a significant number ofartist-run studios. However, exact

numbers are not available. As Kapleet al (1996) assert, this serious lack ofbasic statistical data hampers thedevelopment and hinders theresearch of these organisations.

Method of Study

Seven artist-run organisations werestudied. However, we could onlylocate one registered as a co-opera-tive. Other artist-run organisationsoperate as co-operatives, in that theyare controlled by their members witha democratic decision-making struc-ture, but are not formally registered asco-operatives for a variety of reasons.(For details of the organisations stud-ied, see Table 1 below.) To elicit the view of arts administra-tors in Ireland, an online survey wassent to 33 Local Authority ArtsOfficers, with a 27% return rate.Representatives from the Irish andNorthern Ireland Arts Council werealso interviewed.

Table 1: Details of the organisations studied

Organisations Nature Location No. of No. of Paid- years in members Staff*operation

Blue Umbrella Gallery Gallery Kerry, Rural Town <1 year 9 NoCrow Gallery Gallery Dublin City 1 year 7 NoLimerick Printmakers Studios & Limerick City 6 years 30 Yes

GalleryLeinster Printmakers Studio Kildare, Rural 7 years 38 NoStudio VillageCork Artists Collective Studio Cork City 22 years 10 NoBackwater Artists Group Studio Cork City 16 years 27 YesClones Artists Co-operative Network Monaghan, Rural Town 3 years 29 No

* The board of directors in all of the organisations consists of member-artists.

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FindingsAs pointed out earlier, some of thekey issues with regard to the develop-ment of the visual arts in Ireland arethe need to increase artist income andthe provision of studio space; theneed to develop the market for visualart and improve the business skills ofartists and; the need for greater inno-vation. We will examine each of theseissues separately in relation to ourstudied artist-run organisations.

Artist Income and StudioSpaceMany of the members of the studiedorganisations are emerging artistsand thus find it hard to gain exposurein public museums or commercial gal-leries. All the organisations studiedprovide opportunities for publicexposure of their members' work withthree having full-time public galleryspace. Such exposure helps to estab-lish the emerging artist and, of course,also presents the opportunity for saleof their work, thereby having thepotential to contribute to the currentand future income of the artist. Themajority of the artist-run organisa-tions studied also provide access toequipment and studio space at verylow rents. In the case of the two print-ing studios, the artists had to previ-ously travel some distance to avail ofequipment, thereby increasing theircosts. Some of the organisations alsoput particular focus on helping andtraining their members in the writingof funding proposals. This increasesthe artists' chances of successfullysourcing funding.

Development of the market forart and the development ofbusiness skills of artists To expand the small market thatexists for the visual arts in Ireland, agreater focus on audience develop-ment, enhanced strategic marketingand greater exposure for Irish artistsabroad are required. The printmaking studios are greatlycontributing to audience develop-ment through their regular public andschools-based workshops. Comparedto the commercial galleries, the artist-run galleries are unique in that it ispossible to meet the artists and some-times view them at work. This directlink between the artist and the publicsurely makes a greater and more fun-damental contribution to audiencedevelopment than would be the casein a commercial gallery. Some of the studios and galleries havesubstantial mailing lists, which areused to advertise openings and so on.The printing studios have also devel-oped a 'friends scheme' to encourageaudience loyalty and sponsorship.However, promotion in the organisa-tions studied tends to be carried outon a very ad-hoc basis, mainly due tothe lack of a designated budget forpromotion and limited skills in thisarea. Many of the organisations alsotake part in international exchanges.This creates international linkagesand may also help to promote thework of the member artists to foreigncurators and art dealers. While the organisations do notdirectly train their members in busi-ness skills, such skills are gained

32

through setting up the business,involvement on the board andthrough participation in the operationof the organisation. One key witnessfrom the Arts Council indicated thatartists who have gone through someof the better artist-run organisationscan make 'excellent administrators'.

Facilitation of innovationamong artistsThe drive to produce new or experi-mental work did not appear to be themain driving force behind the settingup of the artist-run organisations inthis study. The primary force in allcases appeared to be the provision ofspace. However, once these organisa-tions have secured that space, the pro-duction of new and experimentalwork does appear to be an importantpart of their remit. Being collective in nature these artist-run organisations have the potentialto contribute naturally to innovation.Senge (1990) cites Heisenberg, a scien-tist who states that many of the theo-ries of the great scientists (Pauli,Einstein, Bohr and others) arose out ofcollective thinking through themedium of conversations. Thus,artist-run organisations, which facili-tate collaborative working, or evenjust collectively working in a space,should facilitate greater innovationand more experimental work thanmay be the case if the artists wereworking individually and in isolationfrom each other.According to Sharon (1979:16),another factor crucial to the develop-ment of innovative work is artistsengaging in systematic critique of

each other's work. Such a curatorialpolicy would appear to be of an ad-hoc nature in the organisations stud-ied. One Arts Officer pointed this outas a weakness of artist-run organisa-tions in that they tend to "lack a clearcuratorial policy, where policy tends to bedriven by members' needs rather thanaudience or art form development needs".

Summary NoteThe artist-run organisations studiedmake a very real contribution in theareas of artists' income, provision ofstudio space, audience developmentand innovation. However, with astronger curatorial policy, better mar-keting skills and increased support,these organisations could make a fargreater contribution.

Viability of the artist-runorganisationsWith regard to viability, membercommitment, security of income andworkspace are three key issues. Sharon (1979) highlights membermotivation as a key factor for the suc-cess or failure of artist-run organisa-tions - in other words, are membersonly interested in the organisation asa first step in a traditional artist'scareer or are they interested in thedevelopment of a real alternative?Most of the key witnesses highlightedthat there were mixed-motivationsamong the members, where half seethe co-op as a first step in a traditionalcareer and half are interested in devel-oping a real alternative to the estab-lished art world. However, one keywitness from a gallery stated that the

33

members are "not limiting themselvesto the co-op gallery". This may indi-cate the potential for members to actas 'free-riders'. A related issue high-lighted by the key witness from theArts Council is that the administrativeburden of running the organisationmay be left to a few key individuals,whose "focus can shift from making orexhibiting to building maintenanceand organisational survival". This keywitness from the Arts Council indi-cated that this can also cause a degreeof tension, when the founding mem-bers neglect their own art in develop-ing an organisation which facilitatesthe development of other members'artistic careers. The organisations are designingthemselves for greater member com-mitment, by rotating board positions,holding member meetings, encourag-ing voluntary participation and byproviding practical benefits to themembers. However, this may all be invain if the established art world con-tinues to view the artists' co-operativeas just a 'stepping stone' to the estab-lished galleries, thereby seriouslyeroding member commitment. With regard to funding, the printmak-ing studios appear to have learnedfrom each other, where both were suc-cessful in sourcing funding from thelocal enterprise board. This highlightsthe advantage of encouraging net-working between artist-run organisa-tions. Both studios stated that theirlocal Enterprise Boards were verysupportive of their ventures. The ArtsCouncil appears to be less supportivein the start-up stages of development.The Arts Councils points out that it

has very limited resources with ahuge demand and would appear toprefer consolidation of the currentspaces rather than the development ofnew spaces. In terms of income, three organisa-tions have received regular fundingfrom the Arts Council. Other sourcesof income are - membership fees, pub-lic workshops and studio rental. Theprintmaking studios also run a'Friends Scheme'iv. Both studios indi-cated that they were happy with thesuccess of this scheme and that it didattract a certain amount of income. Asgalleries or open studios do notcharge an entrance fee, it is difficult togenerate income. One of the galleriesindicated that they are currently con-sidering the options of setting up acoffee shop or subletting space so asto increase income for the gallery. In terms of their workspace, all thebuildings are of a good standard, par-ticularly the galleries which are attrac-tive and professional spaces. A keyissue in terms of viability is the secu-rity of workspace tenancy. There isdiversity in terms of landlords andtenancy term. However, those organi-sations which have the local author-ity, the community or a philanthropistas their landlords are more fortunatein that rents are much lower thanwhen the landlord is private. With regard to designing themselvesfor long term sustainability, the over-riding observation we would make isthat these organisations are, out ofnecessity, very much focused onshort-term survival. They have to con-stantly budget, work towards gener-ating income and sourcing funding.

34

The issue of income is the primaryconcern, thereby leaving less time forissues such as carving out an organi-sational niche and development ofmember commitment. In the earlystages, other forms of co-operatives,such as credit unions, contacted eachother for advice on issues that arose.These artists' co-ops have no such net-work or source of advice or support. Ifthose early credit union volunteerswere as isolated as the artists runningthese organisations, they may wellhave abandoned the idea of setting upthe co-op. Therefore, we believe thatthe artist-run organisations in thisstudy are making significant efforts toincrease sustainability but that it isdifficult.

Conclusion and discussion This study highlights to us the valiantnature of these organisations - tryingto carve out a place for themselves ina very rigid art world, and all on atiny budget. These organisations areof great value to the artists in terms ofhelping them to establish themselves,building their income, providing stu-dio space, building their managementand business skills, reducing their iso-lation and providing the opportunityto develop their own creativity andinnovation. While there would appear

to be quite a few artist-run organisa-tions operating in Ireland, they gainvery little acknowledgement for theircontribution to the visual arts. Whilemost people are aware of the largerinstitutions and the commercial gal-leries in cities and towns, very few areaware of the artist-run organisationsoperating in the shadows of the oth-ers. This is a shame as the latter mayoften be where the real pulse of thevisual arts lies. To ensure that these organisationsdevelop themselves onto a sustain-able foothold, they need a supportinfrastructure. And while financial sup-port is required, there are other sup-ports equally as important, such asmentoring; networking between artist-run organisations in a variety of artforms; building resource data on theseorganisations and greater acknowl-edgement of their existence and contri-bution. Creative industries and cultural clus-ters are relatively new areas of inter-est for research and urban policy. Andwhile these areas would appear to bea natural home for co-operative devel-opment, with no co-operative sectorinvolvement, co-operatives will prob-ably play a limited role either in cre-ative clusters research, related policyor in practical developments.

35

References Annabel Jackson Associates (1998). Research into the Support for the IndividualArtist, Final report to the Arts Council of Ireland and The Arts Council ofNorthern Ireland. Everitt A. (2000a). 'The Creative Imperative: A report on Support for theIndividual Artist in Ireland'. For the Arts Council and the Arts Council ofNorthern Ireland. Everitt A (2000b). 'Towards the Third Arts Plan: Assessment of the needs of thearts in Ireland'Joy, A. (2000). 'Art, Works of Art, and the Discourse of Fine Art: between artworlds and art markets'. Research in Consumer Behavior, Vol. 9, pp 71-102.Jeffri, J ( 1980). The Emerging Arts: Management Survival and Growth. PraegerSpecial Studies.Kaple, D.A., Morris, L., Rivkin-Fish, Z., and P. DiMaggio (1996). Data on ArtsOrganisations: a review and needs assessment, with design implications. Centre forarts and Cultural Policy Studies, Princeton.Senge P. M. (1990). The Fifth Discipline: The art and practice of the learning organi-sation. Century Business, London.Sharon, B. (1979). 'Artist-Run Galleries - A Contemporary Institutional Changein the Visual Arts'. Qualitative Sociology, Vol. 2, Issue 1, pg. 3-26.Zanasi, L., Busby, C., Irvin, S., and M. Taggart (2000). Developing the Art Scene.Final report prepared for Yukon Arts Centre, Canada.

Notes 1 The arts council is an autonomous body established to stimulate public inter-

est in and promote the knowledge, appreciation and practice of the arts. It isthe Irish State's principal instrument of arts funding and an advisory body toGovernment on arts matters.

2 Annabel Jackson Associates, 1998; Everitt, 2000a, 2000b3 A sponsorship scheme - where sponsors pay a certain amount every year. In

return, they receive a box set of prints and a special discount for any workpurchased through the studio/gallery. Social occasions are also organised.

36

In recent years, non-profit associa-tions have made significant efforts inregional development, based on his-torical, cultural, tourist, and gastro-nomic attractions. In Greece, "TheAssociation of Wine Producers of theMacedonian Vineyard" (EN.O.A.M.),a non-profit civic company, created anetwork of wine producers to developlocal tourism and culture in theregions of Macedonia and later ofNorthern Greece. The association alsoco-operated with restaurants, hotels,and the tourist office. The associationparticipated in two financing pro-grams: the Thessalonica EuropeanCapital of Culture programme 1997and, more importantly, the LEADERII program, from which it receivedsignificant amounts of finance to

invest in wine tourism. Investmentsfocused on the recreation of wine fac-tories and vineyards in order to offerthe possibility of visits by tourists,and to promote and publicise thewine roads and local culture.

The creation of the Greekwine roads

Economic difficulties, even seriouseconomic crises in several regions inEurope, necessitated economicrestructuring efforts. This necessityappeared much more significantly inrural regions. This was particularlytrue of Greece over the last numberof decades, and particularly in theregions of Macedonia, where a sig-

Creating a non profit network of producersfor the development of local culture andtourism: the case of the wine roads ofNorthern Greece

by Simeon Karafolas*

* Simeon Karafolas, Associate professor,Technological Educational Institute ofWestern Macedonia, Department ofFinancial Applications, Director of thedepartment. Koila Kozanis 50100,Greece. Email. [email protected]. + 30 24610 40161, Fax. + 30 2461039682

37

nificant number of industries, espe-cially textile, became bankrupt ormoved to other countries, especiallyin the Balkan region, in order to takeadvantage of low labor costs. Theconsequence has been growingunemployment in rural areas. At thesame time, a growth in prosperity inurban areas has led to a greater inter-est in rural tourism. Wine tourism isone of the main forms of ruraltourism. It can be defined as visita-tion to vineyards, wineries, wine fes-tivals and wine shows. Wine tastingand the beauty of grape-wineregions, are the main attractions tovisitors (Hall & Mitchell, 2000; Hall,1996). Wine tourism introduced vari-ous initiatives including, as in thecase of Italy, measures related toenvironmental-protection, the devel-opment of Wine Routes, the OpenCellars, and the Cities of Wine (Hall& Mitchell, 2000).

In 1993, the Association of WineProducers of the Vineyards ofMacedonia, (EN.O.A.M.) with thetrade name "Wine Roads ofMacedonia" was created as a non-profit, non-stock corporation. Thescope of the association has been thepromotion and improvement of theimage of the region's wines, the devel-opment and exploitation of the vine-yard and the promotion and develop-ment of the cultural heritage of thevineyard and the wine (Liatsis, 2001).15 wine producers created this non-profit corporation. By the end of the1990s, nine new producers joined theAssociation while four old memberswithdrew. During this period, twowine cooperatives joined the associa-tion. On August 2003, the Associationchanged its name and became theAssociation of Wine Producers of theVineyards of Northern Greecebecause of its geographic extension to

Table 1: Wine production units and co-operating members by wine route at endof 2005*

Wine route of Region Vineyards-wine Co-operating factories members

Naousa Central Macedonia 7 7Halkidiki Central Macedonia 5 6Thessalonica Central Macedonia 4 9Pella Central Macedonia 4 2Lakes West Macedonia 4 7Dionysos East Macedonia 3 1Ipiros Epirus 2Olympian Gods Thessaly 1

Total 30 32

Source: Wine Roads (2005) and author's calculations* Some wine producers have several production units

38

Epirus and Thessaly. Wine roads havebeen developed through 8 differentwine routes covering NorthernGreece by distinguishing the differentvariety of wine but also the historicaland cultural particularities of theseregions, table 1.By the end of 2005, the association had24 wine producing members. Most ofthese producers are in the region ofCentral Macedonia and particularlyon the wine route of Naousa (seeTable 1).Among the members, three are wineco-operatives:• VAENI, Naousa, a wine co-opera-

tive in the district of Naousa,Central Macedonia

• E.A.S. Amyntaion, a union of agri-cultural co-operatives with wineproduction as their principal activ-ity in the district of Amyntaion,West Macedonia

• EASI Vineyard of Zitsa, a union ofagricultural co-operatives withwine production as their principalactivity, in the district of Ioannina,Epirus.

Wine Roads have an additional 32 co-operating members. These are profes-sionals involved in restaurants,hotels, tourist agents, and in the foodsand beverages industry. Most of themare owners of restaurants and hotelsand their activities are based in theregion of Central Macedonia coveringthe wine routes of Thessalonica,Naousa and Halkidiki (see Table 1).Wine roads have some particulargoals, which are:• To build up the image of the wines

of the Vineyards of Northern Greeceand promote them in Greece and

abroad. This initiative has a dualpurpose: on the one hand, informthe Greek population about wine,the various categories of wine andthe wine production process; on theother, to organize global action forthe effective promotion of Greekwine, in Greece and abroad.

• To develop and exploit the vine-yards of Northern Greece and thenatural environment of the partici-pant regions for tourism purposes.

• To support Greece's cultural her-itage, focusing primarily on grapegrowing and wine production, andon local cultural activities.

• To participate in the formulation ofgeneral rules governing the rela-tionships between growers, wine-makers and wine merchants, with aview to optimising co-operation,serving the consumer and improv-ing the quality of both products andservices.

In order to achieve these goals specificactions have been planned and devel-oped through the Wine Roads ofNorthern Greece (Wine Roads 2005):• Development of tourist trails

through the Vineyards of NorthernGreece, indicating all points of cul-tural and tourist interest, such asvineyards, wineries, archaeologicaland historical sites, spots of naturalbeauty, etc.

• Training of people in wine-relatedoccupations, such as restaurantowners, hotelkeepers, waiters, spe-cial guides, etc.

• Participation in international organ-izations with similar or relatedobjectives.

• Organization of gastronomic and

39

cultural events and conferences,aimed at familiarizing Greek andforeign visitors with the rich wineand gastronomic tradition and thecultural elements associated with it,through selected dining venues,interdisciplinary meetings and cul-tural activities.

• Participation in international tradefairs in Greece and abroad.

• Furthermore the development ofactivities promoting the tourismproducts of the wine roads.

The financing of Greek wineroadsThe interest expressed by nationaland European authorities to alterna-tive tourism, based on local orregional potentialities, has beenreflected in the financing of appropri-ate activities. Two main financial pro-grams financed the wine roadsthrough the Association of WineProducers of the Vineyards ofMacedonia (EN.O.A.M.). EN.O.A.M.first participated in the Organizationof Cultural Capital of Thessalonica(O.C.C.T.) 1997, as Thessalonica wasthe Cultural Capital of Europe in1997. This participation facilitated theAssociation's existene during theperiod 1994 to 1997. EN.O.A.M.enrolled the biggest part of its operat-ing and promotional cost to programsrelated to the Thessalonica Capital ofCulture programme. The total budgetfinanced by O.C.C.T reached€528,247 (Liatsis, 2001).The LEADER II program has, how-ever, been the main source of financefor the wine roads. LEADER (LiaisonsEntre Actions de Développement de l'

Economie Rurale) expresses the strat-egy of the European Union for thedevelopment of the rural economy(LEADER II, 1995). Three LEADERprograms have been launched by theEuropean Union: LEADER 1,LEADER II and LEADER +. The LEADER program is based on theactive participation of the local popu-lation, companies, associations, co-operatives and local authorities.Several authors refer to the LEADERprogram through regional or nationalexperiences; see, for example, Perez(2000), Barke and Newton (1997) forSpanish experiences, Storey (1999)and Scott (2004) for Irish cases, Buller(2000) and Ray (1998) for Frenchcases, Osti (2000) for Italy. In theGreek case, rural tourism (based onsmall hotels and restoration of oldhouses) has been the most popularmeasure of the LEADER II programwith 1,068 projects (of a total of 3,177projects) were related to ruraltourism; the second most popularmeasure was the development of agri-cultural products with 741 financedprojects (Ministry of Agriculture ofGreece, 2003). The main goal of the participation ofwine roads in the LEADER II initia-tive has been to finance small agricul-tural activities and to develop thetourism potential of the vineyardsregions. Within the LEADER II pro-gram, five measures have been pro-posed:1. Technical support that includes the

operating costs of EN.O.A.M. andactions related to information forthe local population.

2. Professional training of wine pro-

40

ducers and other participant mem-bers of the wine roads. This train-ing is related to issues of promotingtourism based on traditional artsand local culture.

3. Reinforcement of agri-tourism bytransforming the wine factories toplaces which are attractive andfriendly to visitors and where sem-inars on wine, local products andlocal gastronomy can be given.

4. Exploitation of agricultural produc-tion by supporting the productionprocesses of wine and other agri-cultural products.

5. Preservation of the cultural heritageby promoting monuments worthseeing, creating pathways, sup-porting cultural events in districtsparticipating in the wine roads,international conferences and inter-national wine competitions.

6.International co-operation withinthe European Wine Roads andother international agriculturaldevelopment organizations for thetransfer of know-how and the

development of actions with com-mon targets.

Members of wine roads and their co-operating members, as well as localcommunities, have been the benefici-aries of LEADER II financial support,to the tune of €3,587,702 (See Table 2).Public financing (provided by theEuropean Union and the Greek State)for most of actions reached 60% of thetotal proposed budget while for oper-ating costs it covered 100% of the pro-posed expenses. Table 2 shows thedistribution of the total budget for thevarious categories of financing. Themost significant category is agri-tourism which received 65% of thetotal budget. Three main categories of proposals aredistinguished, in relation to their tar-gets. "Investments in wine factories"received 69.4% of the total financing,while publicity and operatingexpenses of EN.O.A.M. received 17.2%and 13.4% respectively. The aim ofthese investments was to transform thewine factories into attractive tourist

Table 2: LEADER II program financing of wine roads in Greece: number offinanced proposals and total budget in €, by measure

Measure Number of Total budget Part on total proposals budget (%)

Agri-tourism 31 2,332,055 65Technical support 5 504,286 14.1Developing agricultural products 6 407,852 11.4Preservation of the cultural heritage 6 283,608 7.9Professional training 1 47,789 1.3International co-operation 1 12,112 0.3

Total 50 3,587,702 100

Source: EN.O.A.M. (2005) and author's calculations

41

destinations. To achieve this goal, sig-nificant investments in the infrastruc-ture for the reception of visitors weremade. Most of the financed actionsconcern all the participant membersand they are characterized as commonactions. Nevertheless within this pro-gram it appears quite clearly that somemembers, EN.O.A.M. excluded, havebeen much more active and some dis-tricts benefited more than others. Somemembers had no individual participa-tion, missing out on investmentthrough this program. The district ofNaousa received the bigger part ofinvestments: 21.4% of the total, with 11 proposals granted funding (SeeTable 3).

Among the participants, EN.O.A.M.was the most important, with 13 pro-posals receiving funding worth 25.8%of the total budget for the wine roads.All expenses were publicly financed.Among the members who have theirown individual financial participa-tion, three categories can be distin-guished: those who have a significantproportion of the total budget, from9.9% to 7.7%; those with between 6.1%and 5.5%; and finally, the majority,who have less than 3.5% of totalbudget each. These investments per-mitted 17 members of EN.O.A.M. tocreate an organized system for thereception of visitors. Furthermore,members and the local community

Table 3: LEADER II program financing to wine roads in Greece: proposals andtotal budget in €, by district

District Wine route of Proposals Total Budget Part in total (%)

Naousa Naousa 11 768,140 21.4Thesalonica Thessalonica 3 319,003 8.9Amyntaio Lakes 4 304,623 8.5Ossa Lagada Thessalonica 2 201,029 5.6Larisa Olympian Gods 2 196,625 5.5Halkidiki* Halkidiki 2 186,117 5.2Rapsani Halkidiki 2 169,803 4.7Drama Dionysos 2 148,584 4.1Giannitsa Pella 2 114,454 3.2Goumenisa Pella 1 88,775 2.5Maroneia Halkidiki 1 84,199 2.3Kozani Lakes 2 79,864 2.3Subtotal 2,661,216 74.2EN.O.A.M. 926.486 25,8

Total 3.587.702 100,0

Source: Idem table 5* Prefecture

42

benefited from the promotion andpublicity offered through the wineroads and, particularly, the culturalevents organized on the wine routes.The results of a questionnaire admin-istered to participant membersshowed that improving publicity andpromotion is the most beneficialresult for most of the members(Liatsis, 2001).

ConclusionsThe non-profit association, EN.O.A.M.,has created a means through whichwine producers can develop wine

tourism and through which Greece'scultural heritage can be supported. Ithas brought together 24 wine produc-ers, including 3 wine co-operatives and32 co-operating companies. EN.O.A.M.and some of its individual membershave successfully gained significantfunding for their activities, mostlythrough the LEADER II program.Through the actions of EN.O.A.M,wine factories and vineyards have beenregenerated and tourism has beenboosted through the promotion andpublicity of the wine roads and the pro-motion of local culture.

References1. Barke, M. and M. Newton (1997). "The EU Leader initiative and endogenous

rural development: the application of the program in two rural areas ofAndalucia, Southern Spain", Journal of Rural Studies, No 3, pp. 319-341

2. Buller, H. (2000). "Re-creating rural territories: Leader in France", Sociologia Ruralis,2, pp. 190-199

3. EN.O.A.M. (2005). Letter to author4. Hall, C.M. (1996). "Wine tourism in New Zealand" in Proceedings of Tourism

Down Under II: A Tourism Research conference (pp. 109-119). Dunedin: Universityof Otago

5. Hall, C. M. and R. Mitchell (2000). "Wine tourism in the Mediterra-nean: a toolfor restructuring and development". Thunderbird Inter-national Business Review,vol. 42 (4), pp. 445-465.

6. LEADER II (1995). "LEADER II, development of disadvantaged rural areasof the European Union". LEADER II Community Measures, Rural Europe

7. Liatsis, D. (2001), EN.O.A.M.: Study of analysis of economic and technical datafor the evolution of EN.O.A.M. and its contribution to the evolution of the sector,Non published (in Greek)

8. Ministry of Agriculture of Greece, Community Initiative LEADER II (2003).Letter to author.

9. Osti, G. (2000). Leader and partnerships: the case of Italy, Sociologia Ruralis,2, pp. 172-180

10. PA.S.E.GE.S. (2005). Letter to author

43

11. Perez, J. (2000). "The leader program and the rise of rural development inSpain", Sociologia Ruralis, 2, pp. 200-207

12. Ray, C. (1998). "Territory, structures and interpretation: two case studies ofthe European Union's leader I program", Journal of Rural Studies, no 1, pp. 79-87

13. Scott, M. (2004). "Building institutional capacity in rural Northern Ireland:the role of partnership governance in the Leader II program", Journal of RuralStudies, no 20, pp. 49-59

14. Storey, D. (1999). "Issues of integration, participation and empowerment inrural development: the case of LEADER in the Republic of Ireland", Journal ofRural Studies, no 3, pp. 307-315

15. Wine roads (2005). http://www.wineroads.gr

44

Abstract

In sharing the stories of Arctic Co-operatives Limited and Koomiut Co-operative Association in Nunavut,this essay explores what co-operativeprinciples and a co-operative model

can mean for Aboriginal communityeconomic development, for social andcultural life, for economic securityand sustainability, and whatAboriginal initiatives in remote com-munities can mean for the future ofco-operatives and for Canada’sunderstanding of globalization, indi-vidual and collective identities, andsocial cohesion. In particular, theessay strives for the productive con-vergence of community knowledgeand academic theory, the specific his-tories and geographies of communi-ties, the power of contexts and thecontexts of needs.

Introduction

Although the “true North strong andfree” is a key part of the Canadiannational imaginary and Inuit art has

Putting Co-operative Principles intoPractice: Lessons Learned from Canada’sNorth1

by Isobel Findlay*

* Dr. Isobel M. Findlay is an AssociateProfessor, Department of Managementand Marketing, College of Commerce,and Research Scholar with the Centrefor the Study of Co-operatives,University of Saskatchewan, Canada.Along with a team of researchers led byBrett Fairbairn and funded by theSocial Sciences and HumanitiesResearch Council of Canada (SSHRC),she has just completed research for theproject Co-operative Membership andGlobalization: Creating Social Cohesionthrough Market Relations. With prin-cipal investigator Lou HammondKetilson, she is beginning a five-yearresearch project funded by SSHRC onLinking, Learning, Leveraging: SocialEnterprises, Knowledgeable Economies,and Sustainable Communities. Sheteaches courses in business communica-tions, co-operative studies, businessand community, and law and culture.

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for many come to symbolizeCanadian identity, that North is aplace that Canadians do not know orunderstand as well as they might.While many Canadians view theNorth as a marginal and desolateplace of ice and snow, for those wholive on the land, the North can be aplace of power and prosperity; of richreserves of wildlife and naturalresources; of culture, community, andbreathtaking beauty. So profound isthe relationship to the land that oneInuk has described it as “my life; nuna[the land] is my body” (RCAP, 1996,1:491). Although the territory of Nunavut isvast—more than a million squarekilometers or one fifth of Canada’sland mass—the Inuit population issmall (55,700 in 53 communities), yetrepresents 85 percent of the territory’spopulation and a powerful force forchange. In a short 45-year period, theInuit have moved from a nomadiclifestyle to settled communities, fromigloos to iPods (Toman, 2006). Notonly have the people survivedoppressive government policies, butthey have also faced forced reloca-tions, negotiated incursions of multi-national interests since the 1960s and1970s, endured presumptions about avast emptiness ideal for military test-ing, worked for environmental pro-tection and sustainable development,promoted peace, and secured com-prehensive land agreements and self-government in a remarkably shortperiod of time (RCAP, 1996, 1: 230-33;454-66). They have achieved so much by“rechannelling the frequently intru-

sive hand” of the Qallunaat or non-Inuit (RCAP, 1996, 4: 402) and forgingnew alliances representing a unifiednorthern perspective while preserv-ing indigenous knowledge: for exam-ple, the national Inuit TapiriitKanatami (“Inuit are united inCanada”) incorporated in 1972 andcommitted to a politics of change andto the promotion of Inuit languageand culture. Since the 1960s co-opera-tives have played a key role sup-ported by various federated struc-tures including the InternationalCo-operative Alliance and Arctic Co-operatives Limited (ACL). To thoseimmersed in mainstream messagesabout Canadian confederation anddicta about progress and theinevitabilities of a globalizing eco-nomic logic, ACL and Koomiut Co-operative Association Limited offeran appropriate caution that the Inuitstory is far from a belated report onbelatedness, the Indigenous echo ofthe nineteenth-century industrialunderclass. Owned and controlled by33 co-operatives in Nunavut and theNorthwest Territories, ACL is anAboriginal success story and one ofthe largest co-op federations inCanada, one that would make the top500 publicly traded companies whilecontributing to the physical infra-structure and social capital of commu-nities2. In 2005, in addition to report-ing total revenue for memberco-operatives was $130 million, con-solidated net savings increased to $5.4million, and $3.7 million in patronagerefunds to member co-operatives,ACL presented to the federalStanding Committee on Aboriginal

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Peoples and worked proactively withthe Government of Nunavut todevelop a new Language Act(ACL/ACDF, 2005: 3-7). Aboriginal peoples in Canada’s North“have achieved the most in terms ofpolitical influence and institutionsappropriate to their cultures andneeds”, combining traditions with amixed economy and economic andpolitical development with environ-mental stewardship (RCAP, 1996, 1:230-33). We can all learn from theexample of “a founding people” ofCanada whose story is not simply “anearly chapter of Canadian history”:“Our history is . . . about dealing withchange as well as the causes and con-sequences of change forced on usthrough colonialism; and . . . abouthow we as a culture are able to live inbalance with the natural world” (ITK,2005).

Resisting Globalizing Logics Caught up in complex renegotiationsof pressures from the state, the mar-ket, and the media—from traditionaland modern models, from local com-munities and the environment itself—communities in the North today arechallenged to assess the opportunitiesand challenges of globalizingprocesses as apparently anonymousand impersonal as ever: “The princi-pal actors in the [globalizing] dramaare ‘terms of trade,’ ‘marketdemands,’ ‘competitive pressures,’‘productivity,’ or ‘efficiency require-ments,’ all covering up or explicitlydenying any connections with theintentions, will, decisions, and actionsof real humans with names and

addresses” (Bauman, 2004: 40). Andthose strategically anonymous forcesconstructing rather than bridginggaps and waging a “merciless war . . .against the age-old traditions of com-munal solidarity” (Rahnema &Bawtree, 1997: x) are felt most keenlyby Indigenous communities. Yet Inuitreinvigorate community by practisingthe seven Co-op principles, as theyhave “for generations”, according toBill Lyall who appeals to the “extraor-dinary things” accomplished by“[o]rdinary people in communitiesacross the Arctic.” Lyall’s story isguided not by an exclusionaryWestern binary logic but an inclusiveperspective: “Through our Co-opera-tives we have laid the foundation forfuture generations of Inuit, Dene, andMétis to participate in a meaningfulway in the economies and socialaffairs of our communities, our terri-tory, and our country.” (Cited inACL/ACDF, 2005: 3).3In co-operative principles, the Inuitfound something “very close” to theirown “sharing culture” (ACL, 2005).Co-operative enterprises interruptingthe privileges and priorities of centre-periphery relations have been ameans of ending practices that waste,neglect, or discard rich resources ofpeople and knowledge (Bauman,2004) and responding to change thathas been ever-present in the Arcticsince the European explorers ‘discov-ered’ some of this vast territory(Martin Frobisher in 1577 and WilliamBaffin in 1616) and John Franklin andJohn Simpson arrived in the nine-teenth century. Of course, as is clear inadvertisements of Inns North (the

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ACL member-owned network oftwenty hotels in the North), theexplorers had reason to winter in theArctic: the parties! Recycling coloniallanguage and presumption as humor-ous, savvy hospitality, Inns Northproudly invites people to learn fromInuit expert knowledge: “Discover thereal Arctic with us. . . . Let us intro-duce you to our local colour. Weknow the North and we’re delightedto share our knowledge with you.”

Rewriting to Reright InuitRealitiesThe caution that “research is probablyone of the dirtiest words in the indige-nous world’s vocabulary” (Smith,1999: 1) recalls the destructive prac-tices of colonial research by frag-mented social sciences focused on‘problems’ to be resolved by ‘disinter-ested’ experts monitoring and meas-uring marginalized populations. Theuncoupling of thought and knowl-edge from spiritual, ecological, andsocial relationships was but one ver-sion of the violence done toAboriginal peoples in Canada. A cog-nitive terra nullius, as it were,reduced different epistemological,spiritual, territorial, and other ordersto caricature or empty shells in favourof colonial calculation or caprice.According to dominant thinking,Aboriginal peoples needed to developto catch up with the mainstream.Since poverty was the problem ofindividuals, government policy wasdirected at business development,education and training, and buildingsocial capital for more efficient eco-nomic participation. In the current

wave of globalization, state interven-tion is itself on the increase whilesimultaneously characterized as aproblem in the way of development. It is against this history that Inuitassert their self-determination: “Thisis a story that we must begin to tell forourselves.” A strong sense of purposeguides the historical storytelling andremapping of the territory: “To be ofvalue, our history must be used toinstruct our young and to inform all ofus about who we are as Inuit intoday's world. We do not want ourhistory to confine us to the past” (ITK,2005). So the lessons here teach aboutthe shifting relations between centreand periphery, about the vitality ofidentities that resist definition anddictation from above, and about themainstream as a homogenizing forceand the margins as a haven of valuewhere “personal and collectiveresponsibilities” are linked to“responsibility to Creation, includingthe other beings that are part ofCreation” (RCAP, 4: 399).

Koomiut Co-operativeAssociation Limited,Kugaaruk, NU

Early co-operatives in the North,including Koomiut Co-operative,established in 1966 in what was PellyBay, built on traditional ways—artsand crafts, fur, and fisheries—whilediversifying to become multi-purposeco-operatives serviced by other co-operatives (from Canadian ArcticProducers on) offering marketingexpertise, consolidating buyingpower, and providing accounting,

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auditing, development, management,and other supports. In this way, theywere better able to meet consumerneeds in retail stores, enhanceemployment by operating hotels anddeveloping tourism, get involved infreight, fuel, construction, postal out-lets, real estate, cable, and theInternet, and build the socio-eco-nomic infrastructure in the interests ofengaged and cohesive communities. Named for Sir Henry Pelly, a nine-teenth-century governor of theHudson’s Bay Company, Pelly Baydeveloped around a Roman CatholicOblate mission founded in 1935. Inthe 1960s, as a result of governmentinterest in protecting northern sover-eignty and a bureaucratic investmentin facilitating the administration ofgovernment largesse, a permanentsettlement was established and PellyBay became the first hamlet incorpo-rated in the Central Arctic, though itwas also the last to receive permanenthousing ending the nomadic life,though not the traditional huntingand fishing or the traditional knowl-edge (qaujimajatuqangit) of its people.Renaming Pelly Bay Kugaaruk, theInuit or Netsilingmiut (people of theseal) insist on their special relation-ship to the land. Similarly, individualsretrieved identities obscured by government identity numbers(Kulchyski, 2005, p. 83).What is remarkable in the story ofKoomiut Co-operative is the imbrica-tion and interrelationship of tradi-tions and practices that produce cohe-sion through cooperation and therecognition of interdependence asboth necessity and value. Instead of

scorning (as some have done) Inuitclaims to have invented co-operatives(a claim we encountered more thanonce) and rehearsing Eurocentric nar-ratives of origins and originality, ofindividual and exclusive propertyregimes, it is important to respect thistestimony to co-operation within andacross Inuit communities. Inuit nei-ther defer to nor deny the inventivecapacities of others whether mission-ary or government who promoted co-operatives: “Well before the co-opera-tive . . . the people were workingtogether out on the land. That’s calledco-operative. So I think from that theylearned and I guess some people fromoutside saw that and maybe theythought of starting co-operatives‘cause people work together most ofthe time,” suggested one member.Similarly, it is important to considerwhat Inuit have done with co-opera-tives, how they have used their auton-omy, their critical capacities to inter-rogate their own and invasive modesof being and acting, to re-imagine co-operatives to serve their own socio-economic, cultural, and political aspi-rations (Coleman, 2004: 11-13). Koomiut Co-operative is “much morethan a business,” as one member putit. According to one board member,other Aboriginal communities shouldform co-operatives because the co-operative “is their own. You haveyour own control of it, your member-ship is your own people, and . . . it’syour own, your own, your own busi-ness.” Members, manager, and “avery young board of directors” takepride in “helping the community tobetter their lives or be a better com-

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munity.” Co-op membership isalmost synonymous with communitymembership (members representclose to 99 percent of the populationof 700) and the co-op pension formembers from the age of fifty-five isbut one sign of a life-long connectionto the co-operative.Inuit autonomy and critical relation tothe dominant is a result of successivewaves of globalization met by identi-ties that have never been strictlyrelated to one geographic locale buthave always been connected to theseasonal grounds of the traditionaleconomy as well as more profoundlytied to a land indivisible from thehuman bodies (“nuna is my body”)charged with its protection and stew-ardship. Although local resources andrelationships rebuilt around commonexperiences are a critical part of thestory, the local is not imagined as sep-arate from the global, or free frompower inequalities. Nor are claims ofglobalization’s obliteration of bound-aries of nation and state compelling.To ignore the tools of democratic par-ticipation and the power of sover-eignty to spurn neo-colonial infrac-tions is to submit to the ideology ofglobalism and advance globalization(Halperin & Laxer, 2003). For mem-bers of Koomiut Co-operative “hav-ing a voice” is a key part of the mean-ing of membership in a communitywhere “the majority would ratherstay. Home is home and they feelmore safe here.” To the extent that the spirit of co-oper-ation is strong in the community,members fear competition and areaware that it threatens that spirit of

co-operation. Social cohesion is bothguarded and expressed in the com-mitment to co-operative values thatare widely understood as Inuit val-ues—and in successive rebuffs of theNorthern store. One member insisted,“We said ‘no.’ We don’t wantNorthern and that Northern guy wassaying you get everything what youwant but we said ‘no,’ we want tohelp the co-op, we want to help thepeople.” Although the vote con-ducted by the hamlet in April 2006was closer than usual, some ascribedthe closeness to fatigue and exaspera-tion with the persistent efforts by theNorthern and their failure to respectcommunity decisions. In respondingto the competition, pride of owner-ship, independent decision-making,employment opportunities, leader-ship training, a sustaining federatednetwork, and co-operative values thatare Inuit values and a vital tool ofcommunity development are everybit as important as the annual divi-dend cheque—something neitherNorthern nor Wal-Mart shoppers canever hope for!

ConclusionsWhat the Inuit co-operative storyoffers is a complicating, cautionary,imaginative, inspiring, yet practicalencounter with the blind spots of theglobal which replicate only too accu-rately the presumptions of the colo-nial. Patterns of elite ignorance andinattentiveness pose questions abouthow we define success and how it canbe measured outside the hierarchiesthat still subordinate sustainability togrowth and public goods to priva-

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tized interests. To reduce Inuit co-operation to a product of privation ora mark of the pre-modern is as foolishas to characterize massive economicactivity in co-ops around the world asoutmoded or interim stages on theway to “modernity” as elites chooseto understand that term and seek toimpose their understanding on every-one for their own benefit. Inuit storiesstress capacities involved in multipleencounters and adjustments in face ofopportunity and imposition andacknowledge the benefits of multiplebelonging and the need to renew andreform an overarching version ofcohesion within the entity of thenation. Despite a painful experienceof colonial incursions, Inuit commit-ment to Canada is clear in the namingof their national organization InuitTapiriit Kanatami and its logo of awhite maple leaf surrounded by fourInuit (representing the four regions). Inuit survival in the North is not acuriosity but a fact that has particularreasons. Reversing the flow of learn-ing from North to South within thecountry, we might achieve new formsof sustainability by rethinkingscarcity (and plenty) and thereforerevisiting our apparently inevitableaddiction to growth and choice.Cohesion is often a euphemism forcoercion, but the examples of the Inuitshow both the coercive force of cir-

cumstances and government policyand resistance as relatedness and co-operation. Inuit refuse to changeexcept in ways they had done for cen-turies in the region which is only seenas a permanent white, immutablemonolith by those who have neverbeen there and who find it thereforeeasy to reduce their histories and alltheir relations to a single moment in afrozen continent frozen in time. Sothis is not a story about Frobisher andFranklin and missionaries, but aboutnow and about a people’s capacity tomake the best of colonial and otherintrusions, to maintain traditionalways and reconstruct relationships, toretell their rich histories, and to adoptand adapt what will best serve theirneeds. “Despite all of our naturalobstacles,” says Bill Lyall, “we haveworked together with one voice, andhave built a very impressive networkof community owned and controlledenterprises. They have become amodel for Aboriginal development inCanada.” And working co-opera-tively has “the goal of prosperity forour wonderful country, and in partic-ular, Canada’s Arctic” (ACL/ACDF,2005: 3).

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ReferencesArctic Co-operatives Limited (ACL). (2005). Website., “History,” retrievedAugust 8, from http://www.arcticco-op.com/about_acl.html?list=0004--Arctic Co-operatives Limited/Arctic Co-operative Development Fund(ACL/ACDF). (2005). Annual Reports. (Winnipeg).Bauman, Z. (2004). Wasted Lives: Modernity and Its Outcasts. Cambridge, UK:Polity Press.Bourdieu, P. (1998). Acts of Resistance: Against the Tyranny of the Market. Trans. R.Nice. New York: New Press.Coleman, W. D. (2004). “Globalization and Co-operatives.” In Co-operativeMembership and Globalization: New Directions in Research and Practice, ed. B.Fairbairn & N. Russell. Saskatoon: Centre for the Study of Co-operatives,University of Saskatchewan. Halperin, S. & Laxer, G. (2003). “Effective Resistance to Corporate Globalization,”in Global Civil Society and Its Limits. Basingstoke, Hampshire: PalgraveMacmillan, pp. 1-21.Hammond Ketilson, L. & MacPherson, I. (2001). A Report on Aboriginal Co-oper-atives in Canada: Current Situation and Potential for Growth. Saskatoon: Centre forthe Study of Co-operatives, University of Saskatchewan.Inns North. (2006). Advertisement. Above & Beyond: Canada’s Arctic JournalMarch/April, p. 55.Inuit Tapiriit Kanatami (ITK) website. (2005). “Our 5000 Year Heritage,”retrieved August 8, from http://www.itk.ca/500-year-heritage/index.php. Kulchyski, P. (2005). Like the Sound of a Drum: Aboriginal Cultural Politics inDenedeh and Nunavut. Winnipeg: University of Manitoba Press.Mitchell, M. (1996). From Talking Chiefs to a Native Corporate Elite: The Birth of Classand nationalism among Canadian Inuit. Montreal: McGill-Queen’s University Press.Rahnema, M. & Bawtree, V. (1997). The Post-Development Reader. London andNew Jersey: Zed Books.Royal Commission on Aboriginal Peoples (RCAP). (1996). Final Report. Volume1: Looking Forward, Looking Back. Ottawa: Minister of Supply and ServicesCanada.RCAP. (1996). Final Report. Volume 4: Perspectives and Realities. Ottawa: Ministerof Supply and Services Canada.Smith, J. (2004). “The Involvement of Inuit Women in the Formation of ArcticCo-operatives,” retrieved March 26, 2006, fromhttp://web.uvic.ca/bcics/research/studnets/arctic_co-ops.htm. Smith, L. T. (1999). Decolonizing Methodologies: Research and Indigenous Peoples.London: Zed Books, 1999.

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Toman, S. (2006). “iPods vs. iGloos: The iPod revolution has taken root in theArctic. Will it spell the end of traditional Inuit music?” Uphere: Canadian North’sIn-Flight Magazine April, pp. 49-62.

Notes1 This essay is based on research conducted with Wanda Wuttunee of the

University of Manitoba in Nunavut (and the Northwest Territories) with thesupport of Koomiut Co-operative, Great Bear Co-operative, Arctic Co-opera-tives Ltd., Nunavut Research Institute, Aurora Research Institute, as well asfunding support from the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Councilof Canada for the project Co-operative Membership and Globalization:Creating Social Cohesion through Market Relations (principal investigatorBrett Fairbairn). Some of the arguments here were presented in papers deliv-ered at 2005 meetings of the Canadian Association for Studies in Co-operationand the International Co-operative Alliance Research Conference, Cork,Ireland.

2 For a fuller account of Aboriginal co-operatives in Canada, see HammondKetilson and MacPherson, 2001. On the particular role of Inuit women, seeSmith, 2004.

3 Kulchyski, 2005 makes similar claims about what Inuit and Dene in theCanadian North can teach us about political democracy, resisting and stretch-ing the terms that govern Canadian lives, although he does not discuss thespecific role of co-operatives. While Mitchell, 1996 discusses the role of co-operatives, she does so in the context of the presumptions and problemat-ics of Western social science supplemented by tentative and speculativereconstructions (“it can be assumed” and “it is Impossible to determine” atpp. 103-04 ff) that take little account of the powers, agency, and resistance ofInuit peoples.

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IntroductionThis paper looks at the currentposition of the communityretail co-operative sector inrural Scotland. It is an interest-ing and currently topical areaof research as the ScottishExecutive recently establisheda new agency, that will furtherpromote co-operatives as amechanism for increasing eco-nomic opportunities for all on asocially and environmentally sustain-able basis.

The Role of Community RunShops in Rural AreasSmall shops in rural areas suffer frommany problems, including:

• competition from multiple retailers,higher costs and poor wages (Smithand Sparks, 1997; Shetland IslandsCouncil, 2004);

• catchment areas that although oftenlarge geographically contain com-paratively small populations, par-ticularly as some areas are still suf-fering from out-migration and a risein the number of temporary islandinhabitants (second-home owners)(Byrom et al, 2001; McEachern andWarnaby, 2005);

• generally, those consumers whodepend most on the village shop arethose with the lowest spendingpower (that is, the aged, the poor,the infirm and the immobile) (Smithand Sparks, 1997; Broadbridge andCalderwood, 2002);

• supply difficulties that lead to prob-

The Impact of Community Co-operativeson Shopping Behaviour in RuralCommunities in Scotland

by Eric Calderwood and Keri Davies*

* Eric Calderwood is a retail consultantand an occasional researcher at theInstitute for Retail Studies, Universityof Stirling, Stirling, Scotland, UnitedKingdom.

* Dr Keri Davies is a Senior Lecturer inthe Institute for Retail Studies,University of Stirling, Stirling,Scotland, United Kingdom.

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lems for food availability and choicein the stores, leading to restrictedrange of products, particularly forfruit and vegetables (Skerratt, 1999,p.543);

• a lack of training opportunities andsupport for small shopkeepers(Kirby, 1981).

In the light of these studies, commu-nity co-operatives and social enter-prises have been suggested as oneway that rural communities can bothensure local retail provision and takeback some economic power(Kurimoto, 2005). Describing theCanadian experience, Winnington-Ingram (2003) uses the definition of acommunity co-op as "people comingtogether to help themselves," actingon opportunities to gain unity andself-reliance. Thus, the establishmentof community retail cooperatives isseen as a bottom-up approach withthe local communities reaching localgoals through their own mutual andcollective efforts. Also, Lorendahl et al(1996) argued that local co-operativeskeep capital circulating in the localmarket, from the purchases made bylocal consumers, those made directlyby tourists and those made by otherbusinesses such as bed and breakfastestablishments.However, Hogeland (2005) was wor-ried that small cooperatives might notbe able to resist the "new supply chainideas and relationships in supplier-consumer networks" where supplychain power is used for the capture ofresources which can be transferred toother parts of the chain. There is aclear tension here as community runshops (whether in urban or rural

areas) tend to be small and locally-based and are therefore ill-equippedto deal with competition from largerretailers unless they retain the solidsupport of their members and thelocal community (Fullerton, 1992).This is not to suggest however thatthey can't receive support from largerco-operatives or social enterprises.Thus, Fairbairn argues that it is"important that consumer co-ops havestrong centrals, centrals that providesupport for locals in purchasing, inmanagement systems, in training.This not only makes efficiencies forlocals; it promotes good management,and it means the locals can't getpicked off, one by one, when theysooner or later make mistakes"(Fairbairn, 2004, p.7).In order to better understand theScottish experience, we can look at twovery different experiences in neigh-bouring countries: the Republic ofIreland and England. Since the late1950s the Irish government has beentrying to promote economic self-suffi-ciency in the western parts of the coun-try in order to slow or halt further out-migration and also as a mechanism forsupporting the local Gaelic-speakingcommunities. A number of commu-nity co-operatives were established inthe 'Gaeltacht' region, most of whichundertook a range of activities includ-ing some forms of retailing. The aimwas to ensure that the co-operativeswould have sufficient income to rein-vest in the business and that theywould not be over-reliant on any onearea of trading (Briscoe et al, 2000).England, on the other hand, has had avery different experience. Shepherd

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(2005) reported that there werearound 150 community run villageshops operating as social enterprisesin England in 2005, two-thirds ofwhich had been set up since 2000.Withers (2005) suggests that thisgrowth can be attributed to the activesupport of the Plunkett Foundationand the network of advisors estab-lished by VIRSA (the Village RetailServices Association). The averageannual turnover for these communitystores in England in 2005 was£145,000 (Shepherd, 2005); this com-pares to an average annual turnoverfor UK independent conveniencestores of £277,000 (IGD, 2005).

Community Retail Co-operatives in ScotlandFaced with the sorts of rural problemsoutlined above, including decliningretail provision, in November 1977the Highlands and IslandsDevelopment Board launched anexperimental scheme in the WesternIsles of Scotland to encourage the for-mation and development of multi-functional community co-operatives,based on the model of the Gaeltachtcommunity co-operatives (Gordon,2001, p.14). By 1984, there were 19 co-operatives trading, providing 55 full-time and around 200 part-time, sea-sonal or outworker jobs, withcommunity co-operative membershipof about 3,000, total local capital sub-scription of over £0.25 million, andturnover of approximately £2.5 mil-lion. Initially, these ventures weremore than just retailers and several ofthe enterprises included fish farming,craft work and knitting, with the hope

that the more profitable activitiescould subsidise weaker activitieswhich were nevertheless felt to beproviding a useful local service.However, changes in local economicconditions and the difficulties of exer-cising effective management controlover a wide range of activities havemeant that the pattern has changed inrecent years (Gordon, 2001). Whilstmany of the original enterprises arestill trading, some were less success-ful and soon closed down or havebeen sold back into the private sector;nonetheless, several new communityco-operatives have started operatingin recent years.Gordon found that by the year 2000,management committees were havingincreasing difficulty in recruiting newmembers, leading to more controlpassing to the managers. In at leastone instance, he felt that, althoughsuccessful, the enterprise retained lit-tle of the original community co-oper-ative ethos. "However, this underlinesthe need (reiterated by other co-ops)for every co-operative to be run... as aviable and profitable business; with-out that, they are unable to fulfil anyaims, economic or social" (Gordon,2001, p.35 - emphasis in original). Partof the problem may also be tracedback to the local communities whichhave tended to forget the original cri-sis that brought their shops into beingand now tend to take them forgranted, leading to more outshop-ping.Unlike the position in England, theCo-operative Group has been activelysupporting community co-ops inScotland since their inception and this

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relationship has been a vital part ofstrengthening the performance of theScottish shops. Despite this relation-ship, in the late 1990s there were someproblems with deliveries and alsoconcerns about maintaining the rangeof goods for the smaller stores. Inorder to improve the links, in 2001 aDevelopment Group was establishedafter a series of joint meetings of thecommunity retailers organised by theCo-operative Group. Then, in 2005 theCommunity Retailing Network Ltdwas established with the aims of, first,creating a supportive network toimprove the long term commercialhealth of and financial sustainabilityof community co-operative enter-prises involved in retailing; and, sec-ond, the active encouragement anddevelopment of new community co-operative enterprises.

The Current Position of theScottish Community RetailCo-operatives

In mid-2005, when this research wasundertaken, there were just ten com-munity run shops in Scotland, six ofwhich have been trading for twenty-five years or more, and only two havebeen trading for fewer than threeyears. Nine of the ten stores arelocated on the fringes of Scotland;eight are part of island communities.The bond with their local communi-ties is assisted by their relativeremoteness.In order to understand the currentposition of the Scottish communityretail co-operatives, research is beingundertaken into the co-operatives and

their customers. This paper reports onan initial stage of the work in whichstore managers and directors wereinterviewed to discover their views ofthe role and strengths/ weaknesses oftheir co-operatives. From this surveyit is clear that, like the English com-munity enterprises, Scottish commu-nity retailers are generally the onlyshop in the community and also pro-vide a focal point for other commu-nity activities. However, unlike theEnglish enterprises, the survivingScottish enterprises are generally co-operatives, generally have a largerthan average turnover, have lessdependence upon volunteers, are geo-graphically more remote and, havingbeen around for longer, can demon-strate greater progress towards a sus-tainable trading model. They are gen-erally also corporate members of theCo-operative Group; they have aturnover sufficient to justify distribu-tion support from the Co-operativeRetail Trading Group (CRTG); andthey are often the largest localemployer in the area.Despite their relative isolation, theseenterprises have continued to developover the last 25 years and haveadopted a mixed merchandisingapproach to their retailing. Whilstthey have reduced the non-retail func-tions that they carry out, they stilloffer combinations of a food store,post office, petrol filling station, milkdeliveries, solid fuel, crafts and non-food. Many co-operatives alsoarrange a prescription (medicine)pick-up service, co-ordinate bookingsystems for community events, pro-vide tourist information and sell per-

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mits for fishing and golf. In 2005, theco-operatives employed an average of2 full-time employees (both Eday andEid had no full-time employees) and 6part-timers (some of whom are sea-sonal workers).The stores tend to reflect the localcommunity very closely, and the storemanagers viewed both the co-opera-tive members and local residents ingeneral as comprising their key targetmarkets. Whilst most of the stores areopen for more than fifty hours a week,the smallest (Papay) is only open fortwenty-two hours a week. Reflectinglocal custom, half of the stores do notopen at all on Sundays.A high degree of local support is evi-dent from the share of local spendingthat the community co-ops are achiev-ing. For such small communities, theCo-ops take a very high share of avail-able spend; only one store had anaverage annual turnover of less than£100,000 per annum and the averagewas around £400,000 per annum, con-siderably higher than the average

turnover for independent conven-ience stores in the UK reported above.All but one of the co-operativesresponded that both turnover andprofit had increased over the previousthree years.As was noted above, rural retailerssometimes use different measures ofsuccess to their larger competitors.For example, an independent privateretailer may be attracted to the'lifestyle' accompanying running arural shop (that is, before they actu-ally appreciate the reality of retail). Bycomparison, first and foremost for themanagers of the existing communityco-operatives was the retention of ashop and adding to the overallvibrancy of the community. Onlyafter community ownership and con-trol and the creation of local jobs didthe store managers then rate making aprofit (Table 1). Not surprisingly, theDirectors of the co-operatives scoredprofitability higher but they did notsignificantly alter the prioritysequence.

Table 1: Measures of success used by the Community Retail Co-operativeManagers

Measure Score*Retaining a shop within the community 1.0Adding vibrancy to the community 1.4Community ownership and control 1.4Creation/ retention of local jobs 1.5Financial profitability and viability 1.7Improved availability of fresh foods 1.8Improved access and availability of services 2.0Local residents can learn/ develop skills and abilities 2.8

* Average score on a 1-5 scale, where 1 = very important and 5 = very unimportant

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Like small rural retailers in general,community co-operatives suffer fromthe dilemma of wanting to train butnot being able to find suitablecourses. Constraints such as the lim-ited staff available, as well as the costof travel and the training coursesthemselves, contribute to the difficul-ties of releasing staff for training.Further, it is also difficult for smallenterprises to correctly identify andprioritise training needs, such asHealth & Safety training.The survey of managers also high-lighted the importance of the links tothe wider co-operative movement rep-resented by the Community RetailingNetwork. These benefits are as follows.First, it has improved communicationswith the Co-operative Group andbetween the community co-operativesthemselves. The community co-opshave gained access to key Co-opGroup staff and a network of 'buddystores' has been established to helpanswer common questions. The Co-operative Group has gained increasedawareness of the role and needs of thecommunity co-ops. Second, it providesimproved access for the communityco-operatives to the CRTG, allowingthem to develop their product ranges,including, for example, Fairtrade itemsand more non foods. Importantly,many of the managers reported muchimproved availability of fresh foods,including fruit and vegetables, whichmay potentially have a significanteffect on diet and on satisfaction levelsin some of these remote communities.Third, as it is also delivering to Co-operative Group stores in Westernand Northern Scotland, the CRTG has

also been able to offer greater flexibil-ity on the size of orders and on thenumber of deliveries made eachweek. For smaller or unplanned pur-chases, many of the co-operativeshave also been able to hold aCommunity Discount Card, whichgives them a 10% discount on theretail price for purchases made in Co-operative Group supermarkets.Finally, it is an opportunity for thecommunity co-operatives to compareand 'benchmark' their operationsagainst similar small stores. In thisway, becoming part of the largermovement can help to reduce anysense of isolation felt not just by themembers but also by the Managersand Directors.

The Future for the Scottish Community RetailCo-operatives

The materials collected for this studyshow that there is still a future forcommunity retail co-operatives inrural areas. The stores studied hereremain at the heart of their communi-ties and fulfil a number of differentneeds for residents and visitors.However, there does seem to be a sug-gestion that there are two differenttypes of stores hiding under the com-munity banner. Figure 1 shows thatthese types of store share a commonset of characteristics, some of whichrelate to their co-operative or socialenterprise roots and some which mayjust be a function of their rural loca-tion. The more common form inScotland is the 'General Store' whichis remote from its nearest competitor,

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covers a range of product categories,has relatively high turnover and takesa high share of local spending. Thisdescription covers many of the longerestablished Scottish stores and showssome evidence that the store is beingtaken for granted by many customersand even members. There are lowerlevels of participation in meetings andcustomers often don't realise that thestore is a local co-operative.The 'Convenience Store' form is lesscommon in Scotland but may pre-dominate among the English villagestores run as social enterprises. Theyare located much closer to competi-tors and have lower turnover levels,being used primarily for small itemsand distress purchases. But they alsohave higher levels of usage by mem-bers and high levels of democraticactivity and awareness. This may berelated to their location but is moreprobably a function of their more

recent establishment, meaning thatthe local residents are more aware ofthe need to retain the shop and thatlocal committee members are perhapsstill more likely to be active in pro-moting the store. Lower sales meanthat they are less able to take advan-tage of the purchasing power of thewider co-operative movement.What this survey shows therefore isthe balancing act that communityretail co-operatives will need to per-form in the years ahead. The largerretail operations have demonstratedthat they are a sustainable model forthe more remote locations and theextra support now being provided bythe wider co-operative movement ishelping to improve their operationsand the service that they provide totheir communities. But this veryappearance of permanence makes itmore difficult for them to get acrosstheir co-operative difference and to

Figure 1: Can we characterize a community retailer in Scotland?

References

Briscoe, R., McCarthy, O. and Ward, M. (2000) 'Ireland's Community Co-opera-tives', in Briscoe, R. & Ward M. The Cooperatives of Ireland. Cork: Centre for Co-operative Studies, University College Cork

Broadbridge, A. and Calderwood, E. (2002) 'Rural grocery shoppers: do theirattitudes reflect their actions?' International Journal of Retail & DistributionManagement, 30 (8): 394-406.

Byrom, J., Medway, D. and Warnaby, G. (2001) Strategic Alternatives for SmallRetail Businesses in Rural Areas: Evidence from the Southern Western Isles of Scotland.Manchester Metropolitan University Business School, Working Paper 01/05,March.

Fairbairn, B. (2004) Cohesion, Consumerism and Co-operatives. Looking Ahead for theCo-operative Retailing System. Center for the Study of Co-operatives, Universityof Saskatchewan.

Fullerton, M. (ed)(1992) What Happened to the Berkeley Co-op? A Collection ofOpinions. The Center for Co-operatives, University of California, Davis.

Gordon, M.J. (2001) Voyages of discovery: the contribution of the community co-oper-atives of the Highlands and Islands of Scotland to the development of the social economy.Unpublished MA Thesis, University of Middlesex.

Hogeland, J. (2005) 'New Generation Co-op, Limited Liability Corporation,Value-Added, Demutualized: What is Still "Cooperative" about AmericanAgricultural Cooperatives?' Paper presented to The Contribution of Cooperativesto Community Culture, XXI International Co-operatives Research Conference,Cork Ireland, August 11-14.

Institute of Grocery Distribution (2005) Convenience Retailing Report 2005.Watford: IGD.

Kirby, D.A. (1981) Aid for Village Shops: A Consideration of the Forms of Aid andScope for Aid in Britain. Workshop paper URPI S3. Unit for Retail PlanningInformation: Reading.

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encourage local participation in thebusiness. On the other hand, the effortthat has gone into establishing thesmaller stores that lie close to compe-tition is reflected in more apparentlocal community support. But doubtshave to be raised about their sustain-ability because of their greater

reliance on volunteer staff and theinability to achieve better tradingterms. If these enterprises are to bearound in twenty years time theneither they have to increase their sizeand buying power or new mecha-nisms need to be put in place to bettersupport them.

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Kurimoto, A. (2005) 'How Consumer Co-ops Compete by PreservingCommunity Identity: Case of Tsuruoka Co-op,' Paper presented to TheContribution of Cooperatives to Community Culture, XXI International Co-opera-tives Research Conference, Cork Ireland, August 11-14.

Lorendahl, B. (1996) 'New Cooperatives and Local Development: A Study of SixCases in Jämtland, Sweden, Journal of Rural Studies, 12 (2): 143-150.

McEachern, M.G. and Warnaby, G. (2005) 'Food shopping behaviour inScotland: the influence of relative rurality,' International Journal of ConsumerStudies, 30 (2): 189-201.

Shepherd, J. (2005) 'Where Do Community Owned Shops Work?' Paper pre-sented to the Fifth National Rural Social Enterprises Conference, Melton Mowbray,24th & 25th November.

Shetland Islands Council (2004) Report No. DV038-F: Rural Shops in Shetland.Executive Committee Agenda Item No. 14, 11th May.

Skerratt, S. (1999) 'Food availability and choice in rural Scotland: the impact of"place,"' British Food Journal, 101 (7): 537-544.

Smith, A. and Sparks, L. (1997) Retailing and Small Shops. DevelopmentDepartment Research Programme Research Findings No. 40. Edinburgh:Scottish Office.

Winnington-Ingram, P. (2003) 'Community Co-operatives: A RevolutionaryModel of Rural Community Revitalisation,' Journal of Co-operative Studies, 36(1): 14-21.

Withers, G. (2005) 'VIRSA: A new movement is born,' Paper presented to theFifth National Rural Social Enterprises Conference, Melton Mowbray, 24th &25th November.

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IntroductionConsumer co-ops are facing increas-ing competition in every corner of theworld. Although principally theystrive to compete with other retailersby offering better goods and services,they also aim to compete by demon-

strating social and cultural values.Staying competitive has meantstreamlining business through consol-idation into larger units, while closingunprofitable smaller units. In order tocompete, co-ops are also constantlyfacing the dilemma of sourcing fromcentral buying over local sources. Inthis process, there is a tendency for co-ops to lose their traditional ties withtheir communities. This is especiallytrue for co-ops in large cities, whichare losing their community roots inboth economic and social dimensions. Co-ops in Japan have made strenuousefforts to enhance their communitybase through supporting local pro-ducers and manufacturers andaddressing problems such as environ-mental degradation and insufficientsocial welfare services. In this respect,Tsuruoka Co-op stands as a model of

Staying Competitive and PreservingCommunity Identity: The Case ofTsuruoka Co-op, Japan

by Akira Kurimoto, CCIJ

* Akira KURIMOTO is Chief ResearchOfficer for the Consumers' Co-operativeInstitute in Japan and up to 2005 wasChairperson of the ICA ResearchCommittee. Previously Manager of theInternational Department of theJapanese Consumer Co-operative Unionand Executive Director of Japan Societyfor Co-operative Studies. Kurimoto hasbeen published in many ICA Reviewsand his main writings include:JCCU's History in its first 25 Years,JCCU, Tokyo, 1977 (Japanese). Perspec-tives on Consumer Co-operatives in theIndustrialized Countries, MinervaShobo, Kyoto, 1987 (Japanese), Japan'sConsumer Co-operative Movement: ACompa-rative Review, Robert Owen andthe World of Co-operation, Tokyo, 1992.Again Learning of Success and Failure ofConsumer Co-ops in Europe and NorthAmerica, ed. Co-op Publishing Co.,Tokyo, 1997 (Japanese).

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how a co-op maintains communityinvolvement in local communitieswithin the rural areas where the pop-ulation is ever decreasing. TsuruokaCo-op, located on the rice plains northof Tokyo, holds the legacies of firstcreating Han groups and organizingconsumer-collective action against oilcartels. It has also successfully devel-oped a Sanchoku system of purchas-ing directly from local producers andhas developed a co-operative networkfor health and welfare in the commu-nity, thus contributing to the localeconomy and society.This paper gives a brief account of therelationship between co-operativesand the communities in which theyexist. It describes consumer co-opera-tives' endeavors to enhance their com-munity base and it presents the case ofTsuruoka Co-op, examining its rela-tions with local producers (Sanchoku)and its efforts in local networking toprovide health and welfare services.Finally, it offers suggestions on howto improve shortcomings in these ini-tiatives.

Linkage between Co-opera-tives and Communities A co-operative is an association ofpersons united voluntarily to meetcommon economic, social and cul-tural needs and aspirations throughjointly owned enterprises. As such, itis a functional organization to providemutual benefit for its members.Formation of co-ops is based on mem-bers' common needs such as market-ing and supply for farmers, safe andquality products for consumers,decent employment for workers, fair

banking and insurance for users, andaffordable housing. For the most part,co-ops are organized by single stake-holders to serve their specific needs.There are some exceptions such as theItalian social co-operatives organizedby multi stakeholders including dis-advantaged persons and volunteers,or the Japanese multi-purpose agri-cultural co-ops which served farmersfrom the cradle to the grave. Community is an ambiguous term.Here a local community refers to allthe people, with their different needsand characteristics, living in a particu-lar geographic area. The communitymay have dominant characteristics,be it religious or ethnic, but it cannotexclude persons with differences. It isa public sphere open to everyone, andshould be all-inclusive or universal innature. Each community has specificproblems/needs, be it those derivedfrom dense or sparse populations,environmental degradation, insuffi-cient security, shortage of education,shortage of health and welfare serv-ices, lack of employment, or access tofinance and housing. The public sec-tor alone does not have the resourcesto tackle problems such as these dueto a lack of funds, growing criticism ofbureaucracy and the inability to caterfor specific needs. So the widerinvolvement of the private sector,both corporate and non-profit, is nec-essary and advisable. Consequently, we are now witnessingco-operatives and non-profits drasti-cally increasing their involvement inhealth and social care, job creationand work integration, and the regen-eration of devastated areas, where

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services are often outsourced orfinanced by government. In thefuture, co-operatives are expected toplay an even greater role in helping tosolve these problems in communities.At the same time, they are obliged toincrease their competence in the faceof competition from other providersof goods/services and demonstratetransparency and accountability indealing with public money.How to establish linkages between co-operatives and the community is aproblem that has been debated forgenerations. Co-operatives are born incommunities, but when they grow thelinkages tend to become indirect withfew exceptions. On one hand, com-munity co-operatives were created inremote areas to directly cater to theneeds of the community. In theScottish highlands and islands, forinstance, co-ops supply lifelinegoods/services such as food, petroland postal services. In many cases, co-ops are connected with or subsidizedby local authorities since they servethe entire population in those areas.On the other hand, Laidlaw (1980)insisted on building co-operativecommunities by clustering variousservices of different co-ops in urbanareas. Although he praised theJapanese rural multi-purpose co-oper-ative model, it is not realistic to formsuch a community of co-operativeservices in the contemporary compet-itive world. Co-operative involve-ment in every aspect of life in a com-munity in fact, has been shown tomean the loss of independence, as isthe cases of the Kolkhoz and thePeople's Commune, which became a

part of the etatiste regime and failedas either co-operatives or communi-ties. The Mondragon Corporation andthe Kibbutz movement are a fewexceptional cases of successful co-operative communities (Melnyk,1985). The ICA's newly formulatedCo-operative Principles include'Concern for Community', whichencourages co-operatives to work forsustainable development of theircommunities through policiesapproved by their members.

Consumer Co-operatives'Endeavours to Enhance theCommunity Base

Since the 1960s, the driving forcebehind the expansion of consumer co-operatives in Japan has been theactive participation of housewives.These women joined co-ops out oftheir deep concern about the wide-spread use of food additives and thewish to buy unadulterated food thatwas sourced from reliable local pro-ducers. Furthermore, women mem-bers were also concerned with hyper-inflation and environmental degra-dation. To cope with these problems,they created or joined co-ops andorganized themselves into neighbor-hood groups called Han, consisting of5-6 members that functioned not onlyas joint-buying groups for safe food,but also served as the main channel ofcommunication within the co-op.These members also volunteered toserve on district committees and theyformed various study groups toaddress community issues such asenvironmental protection, local wel-

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fare, child rearing and education. Assuch, consumer co-ops were able tomaintain strong community ties andcultivated a sense of communityamong members. However intensivecompetition has led to mergersamong co-ops, which has meantlarger organizations with mainlylarger stores and less direct involve-ment through its members in the com-munity. Furthermore, since more andmore women have started workingand young people want an individu-alistic lifestyle it has become increas-ingly difficult to maintain Han groupsin large cities. Consequently, tradi-tional joint buying through Hangroups is now being replaced byhome delivery services to individualmembers. This is especially true in thegreater Tokyo area. In this regard,there is a growing concern that co-opsmight become detached from theircommunities.One way in which co-ops are stayinginvolved in their communities is bydelivering community care servicesthrough members' voluntary activi-ties or through co-ops' welfare busi-ness. Within more than 70 co-ops,members have organized themselvesinto mutual help groups, which pro-vide care for members, with a smallremuneration being paid to care-pro-viding members. Members alsoorganize community salons, meals onwheels and luncheon parties to pro-vide companionship for the elderly.Furthermore, members provideinvaluable services such as mappingout obstacles in the community for thedisabled and presenting proposals forbarrier-free community development

to local authorities. In addition, nearly50 co-ops operate welfare servicesincluding home care provision andrental/sales of medical/care equip-ment, while 12 co-ops also operatedaycare centers or nursing homes.Recently an increased number of co-ops have organized 'drop-in centers'for mothers and children in an effortto attract new young members. Someco-ops also are assisting nonprofitsand volunteer groups in the commu-nities by awarding grants.Co-ops are also making efforts toestablish collaborative partnershipswith local authorities. Most co-opsare represented on local governmentadvisory councils, mainly in thefields of consumer protection or foodsafety, while some co-ops havedeveloped partnerships in suchfields as social welfare or environ-mental protection while acceptingvery limited grants or loans fromlocal authorities (JCCU, 2004). Whenthe great earthquake hit Kobe in1995, Co-op Kobe supplied the city ofKobe with food and many of themost needed goods and helped themunicipal authorities distributethose items quickly. Collaborationsuch as this with local authorities hasincreased so that now 37 prefectures(out of 47) and 254 municipalities(out of 2,350) have agreements withco-ops.

Historical Background ofTsuruoka Co-opTsuruoka Co-op in YamagataPrefecture was founded as a 'localworker-oriented co-op' by tradeunionists in 1955 to provide inexpen-

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sive daily necessities.1 It did not, how-ever, follow precedence and in 1956developed the innovative concept ofHan groups. Originally, the idea ofHan groups was initiated by co-opemployees to disseminate knowledgeon self-service shops among the mem-bership. Groups of 5 to 10 membersheld meetings at members' homes.The discussions that evolved withinHan groups proved to be an effectivechannel of communication and the co-op decided to adopt Han as a basicorganizational unit. Tsuruoka Co-op made steady growthby increasing membership and merg-ing smaller societies. In 1979 itrenamed itself Kyoritsusha Co-op andin 1983 introduced a federative modelby which 6 regions in the prefecturehad their own boards and audit com-mittees, (although, for legal purposesone board existed) to encourage localinitiative. When the tenth regionjoined in 2005, Tsuruoka Co-op's totalmembership was 111,000 or 29% ofhouseholds in the operating area.

Sanchoku Links LocalProducers to ConsumersThe Sanchoku business model ofdirect transactions between producersand consumers has shown itself to bean extremely important method toencourage local initiative in the com-munity.2 Sanchoku was first devel-oped by co-ops to respond to con-sumer anxiety about food safety whenchemicals were unduly used onfarms. Co-ops made contracts withtrustworthy farmers specifying pro-duction standards including which, ifany, chemicals were allowed, and in

this way, they also bypassed tradi-tional wholesale markets. Sanchokuwas developed as an alternative chan-nel bringing producers and con-sumers together and in doing so bothgroups' needs were met. As such, co-ops have nourished long-term rela-tionships with specific producergroups and agricultural co-ops (Ohki,2005).Securing farmers and sources for theSanchoku system depends on thelocation and size of co-op societies. Ifco-ops are located in megalopoliseslike Tokyo, it is impossible to sourcelocally. It is also unrealistic for a largeco-op to rely on a limited number ofsources, as they need to diversify inorder to ensure supply and hedge therisks of poor harvests. In contrast, ifco-ops are located in agriculturalregions where farming plays animportant role in the local economy,they tend to source from local produc-ers. The idea of Chisan Chisho or'locally consume what is locallygrown' has special appeal to the bulkof consumers living in the proximityof production areas. Tsuruoka Co-op had a long traditionof Sanchoku. It is located in a richagricultural region renowned for itsrice, cherries and pears, which aremarketed throughout Japan. The co-op not only pioneered the develop-ment of its own Sanchoku products,but also introduced this high qualityproduce to other consumer co-ops,thus helping producers to expandtheir markets. Tsuruoka Co-op alsohelped to increase markets for locallycaught fish, which was previously notsold outside of the region. The co-op

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developed green tourism, wherebyurban dwellers can have the rusticexperience of life on a farm. TsuruokaCo-op is active in the 'slow food'movement to promote traditionalfood and 'food education' especiallyfor children. In 2004, the co-opadopted a new Sanchoku Standardwith special emphasis on equal part-nership as well as quality assurancebacked by traceability.

Inter-cooperation to DevelopCommunity Based Health andWelfare

In Japan, there is a growing need forhealth and social services for the eld-erly in the rapidly ageing society. Inparticular, health promotion, medicalcare and long-term care have not beenwell coordinated in communities forinstitutional and functional reasons(Kurimoto, 2003). This situation hasmade it difficult for seniors to accessoptimal services and has caused anegative phenomenon called 'socialhospitalization', whereby patientsstay in hospital after their treatment iscomplete because home care is notavailable.Under these circumstances, TsuruokaCo-op has worked to improve the sit-uation by co-coordinating servicesthrough collaboration among co-operatives. First in 1965, the co-opraised funds to establish ShonaiMedical Co-op.3 Then in 1995, the twoco-ops together raised funds to estab-lish a social welfare corporationnamed 'Niji-no-kai' (Rainbow Club) toprovide healthcare services for theelderly. A senior citizens' co-op was

created in 1996, which now offershome help and day care services.These four co-operatives formed aliaison committee in 1998 to plan andimplement joint action towards estab-lishing a co-operative long-term carebusiness to serve local residents. In2001, these organizations built anintegrated care center to accommo-date all of the following servicesunder one roof: day care/short stayfacility and home help station offeredby a medical co-op; equipment rentalsand members' mutual help groups'secretariat offered by a consumer co-op; and a home help station and cater-ing center offered by the senior citi-zen's co-op. This arrangement hasfacilitated better coordination amongservice providers while users have thebenefit of one-stop shopping (Hino,2004). 'Niji' (Rainbow) was created asan SME co-op in 2004 with the man-date to build communities throughinter-cooperation. The co-op plans toprovide such services as the operationof senior citizen homes, catering andpersonal care, and the development ofthe Chisan Chisho system. As an initialundertaking, it established a shelteredhouse for the elderly that offers reha-bilitation services and is staffed withnurses and care workers. It is locatedadjacent to the co-operative hospital,which can provide full medical andprofessional support. Thus, close collaboration has enabledco-ops and associated organizationsto provide all the services envisagedby the Long-term Care Insurance Lawof Japan. They have sought to build alocal community where residents canlead a healthy and secure life through

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a network that provides health pro-motion, medical care and long-termcare. Since consumers and medical co-ops together boost a membership of70% of all households in Tsuruokacity, they are having a visible impacton the community.

Concluding RemarksIn many ways Tsuruoka Co-op(Kyoritsusha) has demonstratedstrong community identity throughclose collaboration among differentco-operatives. But its representationin and partnership with local govern-ments is still very limited. It has weakcollaboration with the emerging non-profit sector that is involved in a widerange of partnerships with localauthorities. There is no liaison com-mittee of consumer organizations,although the co-op has championedvarious consumer campaigns. There

is a need, therefore, for widened col-laboration with local authorities andother civic organizations in order tohelp build a viable community. Despite the fact that women do thebulk of the work at the grass-rootslevel, women are rarely seen in co-operative leadership and manage-ment positions. Co-ops have not suc-cessfully promoted and recruitedyoung members, while non-profitsare attracting young, educatedwomen. It is often said that ruralwomen manage most domesticaffairs, but prefer to take a back seaton the official scene, but it seems co-ops are missing opportunities by notrecognizing and utilizing the skills ofwomen. If Tsuruoka Co-op wouldrecognize this weakness and solve theaforementioned problem, it wouldpresent a viable model of communityregeneration through co-operatives.

ReferencesHino, S. (2004) 'Reliable Community Network for health and welfare', Citizen'sCreating Safety Net for Life, Nihon Hyoronsha, TokyoJCCU, (2004) Survey of Activities of Prefectural Consumer Co-operative Unions, TokyoKurimoto, A. (2003) 'Co-operation in Health and Social Care: Its Role in BuildingCommunities', Social Capital in Asian Sustainable Development Management, NewYork: Nova Science Publishers.Laidlaw, A. F. (1980) Co-operatives in the Year 2000, ICA Studies and ReportsNo.15, London: International Co-operative Alliance.Melnyk, G.R. (1985) The Search for Community: From Utopia to a Co-operativeSociety, Montreal: Black Rose BooksOhki, S. (2005) 'Product Policy of Consumer Co-ops', Search for ContemporaryConsumer Co-op Studies, Tokyo: Co-op Publishing Co.

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Notes1 In the 1950s 'local worker-oriented co-ops' were set up by local trade union

councils. They recruited membership by simply registering union memberswithout knowledge of how to run a co-op. As they built stores in local towns,where no modern retailers existed, they had commercial success for a rela-tively short period which triggered the small retailer's anti-co-op campaigns.Many co-ops soon lost momentum and disappeared due to poor managementand lack of loyal membership in the wake of the supermarket revolution inthe early 1960s.

2 There is no clear-cut definition of Sanchoku, but the JCCU adopted the fol-lowing set of loose principles: identification of producers, production meth-ods disclosed, and a means for exchange between producers and consumers.

3 Shonai Medical Co-op now operates 2 hospitals, 4 clinics, 6 social service facil-ities and 1 medical fitness center.

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Introduction

There is no doubt that co-operativesplay an effective role in developingand sustaining local communities,not only in providing local servicesand meeting local needs but also inproviding local employment. Theyalso play an important role in eco-nomic capacity-building in terms ofskills development, business devel-opment, mentoring, and employ-ment. The catastrophic earthquake inBam, which wiped out many familiesand businesses, provided a greatopportunity for the co-operative sec-tor in Iran to prove the effectivenessof co-operative principles and val-ues, even in crisis.

Co-operation between a Czech non-governmental organization named"People In Need"1 and "KermanProvince's Directing General of Co-operatives" allowed for the uniqueestablishment of 3 co-operative soci-eties for Female Headed Households(FHH) in Bam. A few weeks after theearthquake, 147 women who had losttheir relatives were gathered and sup-ported by "People In Need". They weretaught different skills dealing withlocal handicrafts. Negotiationsbetween these two governmental andnon-governmental organizations ledto the choice of a co-operative society

The Role of Co-operatives in Developingand Sustaining Local and RegionalCommunities

A Success Story:Female Headed Households' Co-operativeSocieties in Bam

by Aliasghar Maghsoudi

* Aliasghar Maghsoudi is a PhD studentat Mumbai University and Chair of theResearch Department of KermanProvince's Directing General of Co-operatives, Iran.

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as the best legal framework withinwhich to organize the women. Threeco-operative societies were formed.Kerman Province's Directing Generalof Co-operatives held training coursesto teach the members co-operativeprinciples, values, laws and other sub-jects dealing with co-operative man-agement and marketing. Holding gen-eral assemblies to discuss and decideabout the general policies and bylaws,and electing the members of the boardof directors and the inspectors werethe other steps taken to establish thethree co-operative societies.This paper is divided into four parts.In the first part, the main characteris-tics of Iran will be briefly examined,with a focus on its co-operative sector.In the second part, a theoretical back-ground will be presented, exploringthe role of co-operatives in develop-ing and sustaining local communities.In the third part, the whole process ofestablishing co-operative societies forfemale headed households in Bamwill be discussed. In the fourth part,an analysis of the reasons for choosingthe co-operative society as the beststructure will be carried out, togetherwith a reflection on the social, cul-tural, psychological and economicaloutputs of the process.

Iran at a glance Covering an area of more than 1.6 mil-lion square kilometers, Iran is locatedin the southern half of the northerntemperate zone. Iran has terrestrialborders with Turkmenistan, CaspianSea, Azerbaijan and Armenia in thenorth, Afghanistan and Pakistan inthe east, the Persian Gulf and the Sea

of Oman in the south, and Iraq andTurkey in the west. Iran has 28Provinces, 128 town-ships and 724districts. According to the latest cen-sus, the population of Iran is about 70million, with a relatively young ageprofile. The rate of literacy is 80% andabout 20 million people are currentlystudying in schools and universities.According to Iran's ConstitutionalLaw, Iran's economy is categorizedinto three sectors: Governmental;Private; and Co-operative. The co-operative sector's economic activi-ties are laid down in both theConstitutional Law and in Iran'sEconomic Law of 1991. The first co-operative society was established in1935. The main fields of activity of co-operative in Iran include: Agriculture,Mining, Handcrafts, Transport,Housing, Health, Horticulture,Communications, Water Supply,Credit, and Care services.

Community development andco-operativesCommunity Development is a processwhich seeks to enable individuals andcommunities to evolve and change inline with their own needs and objec-tives. It is guided by principles of:1- Participation2- Collective action3- Empowerment4- Sharing5- Enabling6- EqualityThe key purpose of community devel-opment is to work with communitiesexperiencing disadvantage, enablingthem collectively to identify needs andrights, clarify objectives and take

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action to meet them within a demo-cratic framework which respects theneeds and rights of others. Commu-nity development could be applied toa range of different kinds of communi-ties, such as rural, urban, ethnic, andso on.There are some important pointswhich should be considered for start-ing a project aiming at communitydevelopment:

1. The process should begin withrecognition of the need to start withthe community as a focal point,providing mechanisms to enhancethe development of local leader-ship and control.

2. The essential success factor is localcontrol in the definition of needs,solutions, and evaluation.

3. Community-based planning is fun-damental to this approach.

4. The notion of partnership is a cen-tral feature, and collaborativeapproaches to problem solving arenecessary as a prerequisite tostrong partnerships.

The definition, the communities towhich the concept "community devel-opment" could be applied, and theabove mentioned important points,lead us to focus on the following keysubjects as the guidelines in a projectaimed at community development:Recognizing needs; Community as afocal point; Development of localleadership; Community-based plan-ning; Notion of partnership; andCollaborative approaches.The guiding principles of communitydevelopment and cooperative values

prove to be quite similar. The processof developing and sustaining a co-operative involves, in miniature, theprocesses of developing and sustain-ing community spirit, identity, andsocial organization. Co-operativeshave been most successful when theyhave arisen out of grassroots efforts tomeet the needs of a community. Thisgrassroots orientation is a reflection oflocal people taking the initiative tounderstand the problems which theyface and to develop solutions.

The CaseThe catastrophic earthquake in Bamled to the establishment of 3 co-oper-ative societies for female headedhouseholds in the area. The differentphases of the process were as follows:

1- Gathering statistics of Female HeadedHouseholds (FHH) in Bam Approximately 2,500 Female HeadedHouseholds (FHH) FHH in Bam andsurrounding villages demonstratedthe following characteristics:• 65% widowed during the earth-

quake, 15% before, 5% divorced• 10% with disabled husband, 5% liv-

ing with old parents or just themother

• 70% needed psychological help forinsomnia, depression, nervousness,and anxiety

• 70% taking care of children under18

• 20% have previous experience withsmall enterprising

2- Research about the living conditionsof FHHs and their psychosocial stabi-lization and support Because of very difficult circumstanceafter the earthquake, People In Need

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(PIN) started to work with a psychol-ogist and a social worker directly inthe field. More than 500 women fromdifferent zones of Bam were visitedand interviewed in order to get moreinformation about their family situa-tion.

3- Reconstruction of health and educa-tion facilities: 3 schools, 1 clinic

4- Establishment of children andteenagers' protection and educationcenters

5- Holding training courses for women toteach them new skills and to give themstability through workDirectly after the research, PIN, withthe co-operation of Kerman's StateWelfare Organization started 3 train-ing courses - pottery making, ballmaking, and traditional handicrafts.

6- Micro funding support for womenAlong with establishing the trainingcourses, PIN also has been focusingon the FHHs who had a small busi-ness before the earthquake and hadthe desire to start again. Thirtywomen were helped and were givendonations of basic equipment such asmachines for sewing, ovens for bak-ing bread and hairdressing equip-ment.

7- Establishing the FHH Co-operativesAs over 120 women were trained inthe warehouses and had shown akeen interest not only to be trainedbut also to work in groups, it was nec-essary to find a formal, legal frame-work to organize them. The process ofestablishing the formal co-operativestook place over four phases:- Holding very detailed and well organ-

ized meetings with Bam's department ofco-operatives

All of the appropriate informationabout the potential of co-operativesocieties as the legal structure toorganize the women was provided.After some time, PIN was persuadedthat the co-operative society was thebest option.- Familiarising the women with co-opera-tivesThe specialist from KermanProvince's Directing General of Co-operatives held a three-day seminarto make the women familiar with co-operative principles and values aswell as co-operative laws, bylaws andthe other official formalities.- Holding general assemblies The general assembly was held toapprove the co-operative bylaws andto elect the board of directors for eachco-operative.Registration of the co-operative societiesThe board of directors submitted thenecessary documents to Bam's depart-ment of co-operatives to register theco-operatives.Now, fortunately, the process of regis-tering 3 Co-operatives - including pot-tery making with 18 members, ballmaking with 23 members, and tradi-tional handicraft making with 50members - is complete.

The ChallengesThe established co-operatives havefaced and have tried to solve a num-ber of problems including:- Financial problems As the women headed their ownhouseholds and faced economic prob-lems of their own, they couldn't affordto pay for shares in the co-operative.The problem was solved with the help

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of the co-operative office, by decreas-ing the amount of money which waslegally necessary to be paid to registerthe co-operative. - TrainingAs the women were very eager tostart up their co-operative but hadlow levels of business experience andknowledge, they needed further sys-tematic education. Besides the actualpottery, ball making and handicrafts,practical training was stronglyneeded to train them in accounting,marketing, finance, sales, law, andcomputer skills. Kerman Province'sDirecting General of Co-operativesheld some related courses to helpsolve the problem.- Raw materialsAs quite a large quantity of raw mate-rial was needed, such as kaolin forpottery, leather for balls, palm leavesfor handicrafts, and much more, theco-operatives needed to be able tonegotiate for a good price. KermanProvince's Directing General of Co-operatives has been involved in nego-tiations to solve the problem.MarketingA permanent market in each area ofproduction such as volleyballs, foot-balls, pottery, handicrafts wasneeded. So, the co-operatives needhelp to contact the different tradepartners, institutions, sport organiza-tions etc. Kerman Province's DirectingGeneral of Co-operatives held a ses-sion with the organizations whichneed the products to encourage themto form buying contracts. The organi-zations have agreed to contracts butefforts by the boards are needed tomaintain these contracts.

AnalysisThe reasons for choosing a co-opera-tive society as the best legal frame-work revolve around two main points- the circumstances after the earth-quake, and the approach takentowards development.The ruling circumstances after theearthquake were:• Hopelessness• Depression• Devastating socio-economic, politi-

cal, psychological and genderimpacts

• Proportional equality in economicconditions

These circumstances resulted in com-mon needs and led to the emergenceof some common feelings, includingsympathy, voluntarism, and socialcohesion. The emerging circum-stances, feelings and needs allowedsome values similar to co-operativevalues to flourish. Reviewing the def-inition of co-operatives and their val-ues would be useful for the analysis atthis point.According to the ICA, a co-operativeis an autonomous association of per-sons united voluntarily to meet theircommon economic, social, and cul-tural needs and aspirations through ajointly-owned and democratically-controlled enterprise. Co-operativesare based on the values of self-help,self-responsibility, democracy, equal-ity, equity and solidarity. In the tradi-tion of their founders, co-operativemembers believe in the ethical valuesof honesty, openness, social responsi-bility and caring for others. So, theemergence of the feelings whichempowered the values, similar to the

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above mentioned ones, created a goodopportunity for the cooperative sectorto gather the people in groups toestablish economic enterprises tomeet their needs. Regarding the criti-cal circumstances, co-operative soci-eties have the characteristics that canbe adapted to the people's social, psy-chological and economic conditions. The other main reason to choose coop-erative society as the best option tolead to community development wasthe approach towards development.The capability-oriented approach isone of the most popular approaches todevelopment, presented by Sen (1999).In his book, "Development asFreedom", inspired by Aristotle, Senstates that self-respect and self-regard,and not wealth, should be the ultimategoals of human existence and, to meetthese goals, we should avoid depriva-tion and respect freedom. According toSen, some instrumental freedomsshould be regarded in developmentand people should enjoy political free-dom, economic facilities, social oppor-tunities, transparency and supportingsystems.The earthquake in Bam created anopportunity for the people to experi-ence an atmosphere providing eco-nomic facilities, social opportunitiesand supporting systems. So, it was agood chance to use the tools that leadto community development. Perhaps,it is worth reiterating that what needsto be recognized is that the strongdegree of social cohesion that oftenexists in communities affected bymany forms of crisis can provide aunique opportunity to re-build anddevelop those communities. It is also

apparent that deep-seated culturalchange only occurs when peoplebelieve that their existing social struc-tures are in crisis. The similaritybetween co-operative values and theguiding principles of communitydevelopment is a very important fac-tor in demonstrating the effective roleof co-operative societies in commu-nity development. So, regarding the critical conditions inwhich co-operative values flourish,and respecting the guiding principlesof community development, the BamFHH project started co-operativelywhich, fortunately led to the estab-lishment of co-operative societieswith the membership of the womenwho are skilled in both producing thegoods and democratically administer-ing their own co-operatives.

The outputs

The main outputs of the process couldbe categorized into four fields:

- Social outputs• Avoiding immigration• Avoiding emerging social disorder• Strengthening social cohesion• Reviving social values

- Cultural outputsPreserving native culture throughproducing products which are rootedin the native culture

- Psychological outputsMental recovery of the affectedwomen and their families

- Economic outputsEstablishment of the economic enter-prises.In addition to the above mentioned

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outputs, there are some more generaloutputs:- mutual cooperation between gov-ernmental and non-governmentalorganizations- introducing the legal framework ofco-operative societies as one of thebest options to be used to organize thepeople who will be supported by the

NGOs in the affected areas. By doingso, the NGOs can, on the one hand,arrange their activities in a definedprocess with a specific outcome andon the other hand, the supported peo-ple will be able to administer theirown enterprises within an acceptablelegal framework.

ReferencesSen, A. (1999) Development as Freedom, New York: Anchor Books

Notes1 People in Need (PIN) is a Czech Republic based, non profit, non-governmental

organization founded in 1992. Since its establishment, People in Need has pro-vided more than $55 million in relief, rehabilitation and other assistance to 32countries around the world.

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IntroductionIn today's era, when the rapid pace ofglobalisation has led to the predomi-nance of a commercial culture, it isimperative to explore how commu-nity culture can be preserved andstrengthened through effective com-munication. The identity of the co-operative sector can only be strength-ened when the concerns andaspirations of the community arewell-expressed. Membership-basedorganizations are best suited tostrengthen community culture. In thisrespect, they need to develop theirown communication media, whichare devoid of commercial considera-tions, and which can sustain the localcommunity in an effective manner.This paper will discuss the role of co-operatives, with specific emphasis oncommunity media, while makingsome reference to India which has avibrant co-operative movement andwhere co-operatives have immensepotential to contribute to communityculture.

Co-operatives andCommunity CultureIt is generally agreed that co-opera-tives, being community-based organi-zations, have to work towards devel-oping the communities in which theyoperate. The ICA's 7th Principle'Concern For Community' is builtupon this consideration. Co-operativeprinciples and values enable thebuilding up of a democratic culture,which is rooted in ethical and sociallyresponsible policies. Strategicallyspeaking, co-operatives are betterplaced than other organizations tocontribute to community culturebecause they do not jettison tradi-tional co-operative values in the pur-suit of commercial objectives. Co-operatives, being embedded in thecommunities in which they operate,try to ensure that the business reflectsthe needs of the community, rather

Co-operatives and Community Culture:The Role of the Media

by Sanjay Kumar Verma*

* Sanjay Kumar Verma, Jr. Editor,National Co-operative Union of India,Delhi. E-mail : www.ncui.net

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than manipulating the community forcommercial interests. Community isan end as well as a means for co-oper-atives. Increased solidarity with thecommunity strengthens the commu-nity, which no doubt creates a culturethat is well-grounded in communityethos.

Communicating the co-opera-tive differenceCo-operatives the world over, beinginvolved in almost all areas of socio-economic activities, are no doubt con-tributing a lot to community develop-ment, and are creating a culture oftheir own which reflects the desiresand aspirations of the community.However, a dispassionate analysis ofthe scenario clearly shows that co-operatives have not been able tostrengthen community culture fullyas they have not been able to connectthe communities through a mediumwhich understands the voice of thepeople. This means that, due to weakcommunication policies, they havenot been able to show their distinc-tiveness, as compared to other organ-izations, in developing and sustaininglocal communities.The strategic advantages which co-operatives enjoy can be fully utilizedonly if they have strong communica-tion strategies which reflect theuniqueness of their culture to the non-co-operative world. Grass-roots cul-ture that does not have strong com-munications channels, can often beweak. The community culture of co-operatives must have an impact onother cultures. The 'commercial cul-ture' must be forced to recognise the

significance of community culture.The conventional corporations mustalso re-evaluate their policies of socialresponsibility by taking into accountthe practice of co-operatives.However, this can only materialise ifco-operatives devise their own com-munication strategies which are notdependent on other forms of commer-cial communication channels.Effective communication strengthensthe social dynamism of any sector. Itmust be admitted that co-operativeslag in this respect. Due to weak com-munication strategies, they have notbeen able to vigorously advocate thatthey are the only institutions whichcan truly strengthen the communityculture. Similarly, benefits to co-oper-atives of being market-orientatedhave not been enjoyed as much asthey might.

Empowerment andCommunityThe importance of the concept ofempowerment in the case of member-ship-based organizations, such as co-operatives, is immense. Co-operativesare considered strong vehicles forempowerment. Co-operatives, byempowering people, have helpedreduce or eliminate poverty, sustainemployment, enrich social standards,and provide employment. Within thecommunity, co-operatives empowerthe marginalized sections of societyby improving the effectiveness oftheir intervention in the market econ-omy. Creating an empowering com-munity culture is one of the greatestcontributions made by co-operativeswhen compared to non-co-operative

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organizations. This gives co-opera-tives a competitive edge, which ifcommunicated effectively to a wideraudience, can play an important rolein image-building for co-operatives.That this is grossly neglected is clearlyvisible if one reviews co-operativetrends the world over.

Media-The SolutionThe communication strategies of co-operatives have yet to realize theimmense potential of the media. Thestrong catalytic role of the media inpreserving the democratic culture ofgrass-root institutions, is a fact whichis well recognized. However, the biasof the media towards commercializa-tion is a reality which cannot bebrushed aside. The media are notusing their power to end cultural sub-version in society. The media, whichcould have played a pioneering role invividly portraying the culturalvibrancy of community-based organi-zations and thus strengthening theirroots, has somehow become obliviousto its own strong developmental rolein society. By highlighting stories ofempowerment of people in co-opera-tives, the media could act as a strongforce for social change, assuming thatthe effects of development at the grass-roots levels are adequately covered.Mainstream media, consisting ofprint, electronic and radio, act as astrong catalyst for enhancing theimage of any organization, as it por-trays the popular mood of the masses.Internal media has an important placein the internal communication strate-gies of any organization. Internal pub-lications and journals have an impor-

tant role in enhancing the image of anorganization by communicatingstrongly with the stakeholders withinthe sector.The co-operative sector, despite hav-ing significant achievements andlandmarks, is still struggling to estab-lish strong links with mainstreammedia. The co-operative sector as awhole does not have a comprehensiveor unified mainstream media policy,as a result of which co-operatives atall levels suffer from poor or bad pub-licity, except perhaps those co-opera-tives which are well off and in a posi-tion to devote more resources forpublicity. The internal co-operativemedia, such as sectoral publicationsrelated to various fields of co-opera-tives does not always have a profes-sional approach to highlighting theinternal dynamics and achievementsof the co-operative sector at the grass-roots levels. Stories which emphasisethe triumph of co-operatives are neg-ligible. The above scenario clearly indicatesthat the co-operative sector needs toexplore other avenues of communica-tion so as to highlight its inherentstrengths, instead of relying on exter-nal media. Is the co-operative sectorcapable of coming up with an alterna-tive form of media which can betterunderstand its needs and highlightcommunity culture in an effectivemanner?Community Media and Co-operativesCommunication trends worldwideclearly indicate that communitymedia in more recent times hasemerged as a strong alternative to themainstream media, which is purely

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driven by commercial considerations.Social objectives are the cornerstoneof community media. Communitymedia empowers people rather thantreating them as passive consumers. Itnurtures local knowledge rather thanreplacing it with standard solutions.Ownership and control of communitymedia is rooted in the communities inwhich it serves. Community mediahas due regard for human rights,social justice, environment and sus-tainable approaches to development.Community media has strong culturalovertones, as it is an effective mediumto strengthen the culture of grass-rootinstitutions.Community media is the best alterna-tive to connect rural communities andit offers a means of public participa-tion and of defending cultural diver-sity. Community media, throughnews and views, provides a strongplatform for the active involvement ofall sections of poorer communitiesand for the dissemination of commu-nity messages related to the field ofdevelopment, culture, entertainment,etc. The main channels of communitymedia are as follows: communityradio, video collectives, popular the-atre, local television channels, etc.Co-operatives are organizationswhich are deeply embedded in thecommunities in which they serve. Co-operatives provide a strong demo-cratic medium to empower people.Community media and co-operativeswork on the same principle ofempowerment. If empowerment is astrong common denominator for bothof them, then a strong case exists forboth of them exploring avenues to

work together. The mainstreammedia's coverage of issues is oftendictated by political and commercialconsiderations. A bias towards politi-cal and sensational issues is definitelywitnessed. The mainstream mediatreats people as passive consumers.Especially at the grass-root levels, thistendency is very noticeable. Often, co-operatives do not fit into the strategicconsiderations of mainstream media.Community media set up by/for co-operatives will have some, if not all, ofthe following advantages: • Community media will provide co-

operatives with a strong grassrootscommunication medium which willnot only give them a constant feed-back mechanism but will be usefulfor them in reviewing their opera-tional strategies at the grass rootslevel.

• The poor and downtrodden whichform the major constituency of co-operatives in some countries, willhave a strong medium to ventilatetheir grievances, as it is generallyfelt that the benefits of liberalizationhave not percolated to the loweststrata of society.

• Social dynamism in the co-opera-tive sector and its ability to weldcommunities together can be bestexemplified by community mediawhich can highlight the role of co-operatives as a strong mechanismfor social change. The beneficiariesof co-operative development, manyof which are in rural areas, are thebest reporters to describe their ownsocio-economic transformation.They need a medium of communi-cation which understands their

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needs and community media is ide-ally suited. Similarly, members alsoneed a communication channelwhich can establish strong bondswithin their communities, andwhich can sensitize them to the real-ities on the ground.

• Community media will strengthenthe cultural base of co-operatives asit can provide a platform for fullparticipation of all sections of soci-ety. Fostering of open discussionand debate is also facilitated bycommunity media. Co-operatives inthe times to come will have severalopportunities to prove themselvesin various areas of socio-economicactivities. This can materialize onlyif their democratic base and culturalroots are strengthened.

Community Media andIndian Co-operatives Indian co-operatives have strongcommunity linkages due to theirdemocratic ethos and the cultural tol-erance in the country. The members ofthe co-operatives have strong attach-ment to the community. However,despite being the world's largest co-operative movement, the co-opera-tives' contribution to community cul-ture is not being sufficientlystrengthened due to their dependencyon mainstream media, and lack ofefforts to build up indigenous formsof media, which can more effectivelypresent the Indian co-operative com-munity relationships. Unfortunately,the Indian mainstream press tends tohighlight stories of co-operative fail-ure. There is an immense scope forcommunity media ventures to suc-

ceed in India if co-operatives promotethe importance of community media,and provide adequate training to helpthe poor and downtrodden sections ofsociety to start community mediaventures. Lack of education, skills,infrastructure, etc., are the stumblingblocks in the starting of communityventures. But the huge network andreach of the co-operative organisa-tions present strong opportunities toremove these impediments. The roleof community media in strengtheningthe community culture of Indian co-operatives can be a strong model forother countries to emulate.

Future VisionThe co-operative organizations, bothbusiness and promotional, shouldthink of starting community radio asan effective medium for communica-tion. The contents of the programmesmay include community and culturalmessages, educational programmesfor development including aspects ofhealth, environment, gender, and cul-turally relevant programmes.Community publications with a focuson community culture consisting ofnews and views may also be a goodstrategy adopted by the co-operativeorganizations. Local television chan-nels which can relate to the psyche ofrural communities can also be used aspowerful modes of communication.Field functionaries may be involvedin these type of ventures so that peo-ple in rural areas understand the sig-nificance of starting communitymedia ventures. The field functionar-ies must be provided with adequatetraining in the field of community

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media, its concept, methodology andimplementation strategies. Researchprojects in the field of communitymedia in the co-operative sectorshould be encouraged.Transparency should be the primeconsideration before devising com-munity media initiatives in the co-operative sector. Unless freedom ofexpression and operational owner-ship are provided to the communities,any serious headway cannot be madein terms of assessing the full impact ofcommunity media on the co-opera-tive. Effective lobbying must be donewith the government so that policyinitiatives which encourage or pro-mote community media by co-opera-tives are undertaken.

Conclusion

There is immense scope for commu-nity media to flourish in the co-opera-tive sector at a time when the main-stream media has failed todisseminate the messages of co-oper-ative development in an effectivemanner. The co-operative brand,which symbolizes its culture, can bestbe developed by community media.Image building is the dominant needfor the co-operative sector today.Community media is a strong vehiclefor this. A visionary and farsightedapproach by co-operatives at all levelsis necessary to give practical shape tothe concept of community media.

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About the teaching of co-operation The teaching of co-operation has along history and education hasalways been seen as an important partof co-operative thinking. A lot hasbeen written internationally on co-operation and co-operative research isgetting more versatile all the time.However, research on the teachingand training of co-operation hasremained narrower. This has, withoutdoubt, made the work of the teachersand instructors of co-operation moredifficult. The teaching task of co-oper-ation has become more and morechallenging. How can co-operationbest be taught now that "the newforms of co-operation, as well as thechanges of the traditional businessarea of co-operation, are connected in

sociological dialogue to the themes ofcivil society, the third sector, socialeconomy, local economy, partnership,social capital and entrepreneurshipand anthropocentric activity"(Laurinkari 2004, 148)?In today's information society, the con-tents of teaching have to be linked tothe reality surrounding us. The advan-tage in the teaching of co-operation isthat this, according to Laurinkari's(2004) point of view, is built into co-operation. Information societydemands the application and question-ing of the information learned. Likeother training, the teaching of co-oper-ation also has to offer these possibili-ties and have the courage to scrutinizethe contents of its teaching critically,while also being in dialogue withexperts and students about the work-ing and applicability of the contents.

The Teaching of Co-operation through the Web

by Pekka Hytinkoski*

* The author (M.Sc. - edu.) of this articleis interested in the combination of adulteducation and e-learning. Hytinkoskiworked in the Jyväskylä open univer-sity in teams of education and adulteducation in 2002-2003. From 2004 hehas worked as a specialist in network-based education in the University ofHelsinki Ruralia institute in Mikkeli.He is responsible for the planning andcarrying out of the e-learning in the Co-op Studies university network inFinland.

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E-learning or learningthrough the web? Computer-aided instruction (CAI)has been an area of study since the1960s and 1970s. Early studies clari-fied how different teaching and ques-tionnaire programs affect the learningof students. Later, the studies of CAIwere collected into different meta-studies, and according to these theeffect of computers/programs onlearning has been statistically clearlypositive (Edwards et al, 1975; Khaili &Shashaani 1994). In the 1980s, this so-called instructional technology think-ing, which emphasizes CAI, met witha lot of resistance and was criticizedespecially for its perspectives andways of teaching, which were biasedand emphasized an overly behavioris-tic human concept (Sinko & Lehtinen1998).Online education (or web-based edu-cation/network-based education, e-learning) has been strongly on the riseespecially in the latter half of the1990s, but only in recent years has theinterest of the researchers of e-learn-ing shifted from technology towardsthe elements that promote and pre-vent the meaningfulness of e-learningand especially towards the possibili-ties of learning in groups and the con-struction of knowledge. In practice,this has led to research publicationsintroducing different results and listsof the features of meaningful e-learn-ing or pedagogic usability (Nielsen1993; Jonassen 1995; Nevgi & Tirri2003). According to David Jonassen etal. (1999), meaningful learning isactive, constructive, intentional, andauthentic, and involves a co-operative

process. This is a much-used ("mod-ern") definition of the concept of"meaningful learning".1Online education has concentratedtoo much on transmitting informationand too little attention has been paidto the forming of a social group, theprocesses of participation or thedevelopment of a learning culturesuitable for an adult learner.Meaningful learning is active andconscious, and its measure is the indi-vidual's ability to solve (alone or withothers) new problems creatively withthe help of existing and new informa-tion. A meaningful (e-)learning envi-ronment consists of interesting andreal problems and tasks, the possibil-ity to present one's own views and thecommon construction of knowledge,which is realized in an eager group ofstudents and when the group is per-ceived as safe. Versatile and personalweb tutoring can be both a con-sciously chosen pedagogic solutionsupporting study and a central sellingpoint of online education.

Approaching web-realism Huge sums of money have beeninvested in the development andresearch of e-learning in proportion toGross Domestic Product world-wide,but especially in Finland, where theMinistry of Education gave almosthalf a billion euros for the develop-ment of online education during 1995-1999 and 2000-2004. Online educationhas been developed and studied, andsuch high aims have been set that theycannot be reached - neither in Finlandnor internationally. So far, we havefaith in the future because of renewed

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investment, new technology and ped-agogic research. With these, the con-crete and realistic aims have beenpushed further and new pilotsstarted. I believe, however, that soonthis will change and the e-learning-hype will - at least partly - become aneasy target for criticism, much likebehaviorism in the 1970s and com-puter-aided instruction in the 1980s.And the time of glorified e-learningwill be over and the time of 'web-real-ism' will have arrived. The biggest problem is that pedagogicplanning and the main principles ofadult education have been forgottenwhile teachers have been trying tokeep up with forever-progressingtechnology. The meaningful andauthentic learning of students hasbeen neglected for the sake of devel-oping multimedia presentations andsearching for funding, while univer-sity allowances are being cut at thesame time. Often, the time of the pro-ducers of online education is wastedon assuring the financiers and theadministrators in universities that theonline education being provided isfirst rate and efficient, and not enoughtime is being used to guarantee a suf-ficient level of resources and produc-ing good quality learning through theweb. It is an indisputable fact that ahigh quality web course demandsmore resources, both in terms of skillsand time, than a high quality tradi-tional classroom-based course. Withonline education, many obstacles todistance learning can be overcome,but it is not a means of saving moneyor cutting the budget. Elements of successful web courses

are: managing both the structure andcontent of the course, and maintain-ing a continuous high standard ofexperienced teaching and tutoring.Common discussion on the coursewebsite is useful and informative if itis clearly instructed and supervised,and most importantly, motivated asbest as possible.Successful online education in co-operation is the result of an active andsufficiently competent team. The dif-ferent pieces or parts of a web coursecan be ordered from "subcontractors",but still the best result will beachieved by involving differentskilled persons actively in the plan-ning and production process. Webcourses and more extensive e-learn-ing projects always have to have oneperson tasked with the main responsi-bility for the course. This person, then,has to be supported by a small teamcommitted to the project. The personresponsible and the team are neededbecause these few persons have tohave a total view of the e-learningarrangements. I stress sufficientresources because often, fancy www-pages, good-looking learning materi-als and a few multimedia clips areprepared for a web course. Then, thecourse is run by using certain basictasks and routines, without changingthe original teaching concept toomuch. Routines and certain opera-tional modes are emphasised becauseall this is usually taken care of by onlyone or two persons, on a part-timebasis, in addition to all their othertasks. And when concepts and opera-tional modes are emphasised, ratherthan teaching and learning, then

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learning becomes little more than sim-ply receiving and storing informationfrom outside. Then, is then good oldbehaviorism behind the much-adver-tised quality of e-learning afterall?Finnish researcher Yrjö Engeström(1981, 12-13) has pointed out that "aperson's meaningful learning is anactive and conscious activity, withwhich s/he tries to solve problemsand achieve better control overhis/her environment and tasks.Learning is about selecting, adapting,interpreting and applying informa-tion. Learning is not simply receivingand storing. The measure of success-ful learning is the individual's skill tosolve new problems creatively andeffectively taking advantage of theprinciples s/he has learned. Themeasure of learning is not just repeat-ing ready information".We are, unfortunately, far from this intoday's mediocre online education.Strangely, Ausubel (1968) andEngeström´s (1981) points of viewdating decades back are very topicalwhen reading today's Finnish litera-ture on e-learning, even more perti-nent than the celebrated theses oftoday's good e-learning. They areclose to the situational learning con-cept, which emphasises both the con-text of learning and the interactionand discussion of the learners and theteacher (Nevgi & Tirri 2001, 119).Classical meaningful learningapproaches the themes of situationcognition (Ausubel 1968; Engeström1981). One of its basic ideas is that aperson's intelligent activity is alwayscontext-bound. Learning cannot thusbe separated from the contexts in

which it has been learned and used(Hakkarainen, Lonka & Lipponen2000:114). The theoretical and practi-cal Finnish research of e-learning inrecent years is very strongly based onJonassen's (1995:60-63) list of the crite-ria of meaningful e-learning (e.g. Tellaet al, 2004). As a summary we couldpoint out that first, it is interestinghow the pedagogic thinking charac-teristic of adult education suits and isclose to the central theories of today'sweb pedagogy. The second, and per-haps even more notable point, is how,for instance, Engeström, in the citingabove, expresses something that is toooften forgotten in today's e-learning: aperson's meaningful learning is anactive and conscious activity, withwhich s/he tries to solve problemsand achieve a better control overhis/her environment and tasks - notjust simply receiving, storing andrepeating ready information. For thisand the above-mentioned reasons, Ibelieve that e-learning will face bigproblems and justifiable criticism inthe near future.

From web-realism to the suc-cessful use of online educationToday, online education is alreadyquite a familiar and widely usedmethod of teaching. A lot has beenwritten on the pedagogy of e-learningand it is still being studied. Co-opStudies will continue as the online edu-cation project of the University ofHelsinki Ruralia Institute in Mikkeli.Our original small team has grownstronger along the way and now we co-ordinate the Co-op Studies universitynetwork project. In addition to the

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University of Helsinki, three otherFinnish universities are taking part: theUniversity of Kuopio, the Lappeen-ranta University of Technology and theHelsinki School of Economics. Therewill still be new partners joining theuniversity network in the Spring of2006. Our teaching is carried outthrough the web. We also use class-room lecturing, in which we stronglyemphasize the use of information andcommunication technology. The Co-op Studies team at themoment does not have largeresources or a lot of staff, but on theother hand, this may have been usefulfor us also. We cannot afford a fancyvisual style or the use of versatile mul-timedia, nor do we have the skills forthis. We have been able to developboth of these little by little in twoyears, but our real objectives havebeen elsewhere. We have invested allour resources into linking the contentsof our web courses to both the societyaround us and the student's formerknowledge, interests, aims andhis/her immediate surroundings.These things we have tried to takeinto account in both the planning ofthe web courses and the active tutor-ing of them. Our web tutoring acti-vates discussion, encourages critical

inspection of the contents, guides andsupports - so the web tutor isintensely present and taking differentroles in the progressing of the course.In both the planning of web coursesand web tutoring our role is "adulteducator-like".The web tutor has an important rolealso from the perspective of commu-nity studying. Common studying, notto mention the common constructionof knowledge, does not happen byitself in the web and "free discussion"is a different matter to critical dia-logue about the content of the course.Through the study of the community,the contents of the courses can belinked to different students' advancedinformation and environments. Onthe other hand, together we can alsoprogress case-study approaches,applying theory to the students'everyday environment.All this may sound very theoreticaland very far from practice. But I reallybelieve that there is no better practicethan good theory. First you have tofigure out what you want and what isyour and your team's and your webcourse's pedagogical point of view.Your pedagogical point of views andtheories should be a good start forplanning your online education.

ReferencesAusubel, D. P. 1968. Educational Psychology: A cognitive view. New York: Holt,Rinehart and Winston, Inc. Edwards, J., Norton, S., Taylor, S., Weiss, M. & Dusseldorp, R. 1975. How effec-tive is CAI? A review of the research. Research in Review 33. 147-153. Engeström, Y. 1981. Mielekäs oppiminen ja opetus. Valtion koulutuskeskuksenjulkaisusarja B nro 17. 4. painoksen muuttama lisäpainos. Helsinki: Valtionpainatuskeskus 1984.

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Hakkarainen, K., Lonka, K. & Lipponen, L. 2001. Tutkiva oppiminen - älykkääntoiminnan rajat ja niiden ylittäminen. Helsinki: Werner Söderström osakeyhtiö,Himanen, P. 2000. The Hacker Ethic - and the Spirit of the Information Age.WSOY. New York, N.Y. 10171: Random House. Jonanssen, D.1995. Supporting communities of learning with technology: avision for integrating technology with learning in schools. EducationalTechnology 1995, 35 (4), 60-63.Jonassen, D.H., Peck, K.L., & Wilson, B.G. (1999) Learning with technology.Upper Saddle River, NJ: Merrill Publishing.Khaili, A. & Shashaani, L. 1994. The effectiviness of computer applications: ameta-analysis. Journal of Research on Computing in Education 27, 48-61. Laurinkari, J. 2004. Osuustoiminta - Utopiasta kansainvälisen yrittämisenmuodoksi. Kuopio: Suomen Graafiset Palvelut Oy. Nevgi, A. & Tirri, K. 2001. Oppimista edistävät ja estävät tekijät verkko-opiskelussa. Teoksessa P. Sallila & P. Kalli (edit.) Verkot ja teknologiaaikuisopiskelun tukena. Aikuiskasvatuksen 42. vuosikirja. Kansanvalistusseuraja Aikuiskasvatuksen tutkimusseura. Jyväskylä: Gummerus Kirjapaino Oy. 117-151.Nevgi, A. & Tirri, K. 2003. Hyvää verkko-opetusta etsimässä. Turku:Painosalama Oy. Nielsen, J. 1993. Usability Engineering. San Diego: Academic Press.Ruokamo, H & Pohjolainen, S. 1999. Etäopetus multimediaverkossa(ETÄKAMU) - tavoitetutkimus. Teoksessa H. Ruokamo & S. Pohjolainen (edit.)Etäopetus multimedia - Kansallisen multimediaohjelman ETÄKAMU-hanke.Sipoo: Paino-Center Oy. 1-38.Tella, S., Rajala, R., Ruokamo, H., Tissari, V., Vaattovaara, V. & Vahtivuori, S.2004. HelLa-projekti - Helsingin ja Lapin yliopistojen tieto- ja viestintätekniikanopetuskäytön tutkimus- ja kehittämisprojekti 2001-2003.Sinko, S. & Lehtinen, E. 1998. Bitit ja pedagogiikka. Juva: Atena.

Notes1 Meaningful learning had already been defined the same way in the area of

adult education, the difference being that it pays more attention to the specialfeatures of the learning of adults. According to the research of adult education,studying has to be useful and challenging to the student (the "classical" defi-nition of meaningful learning) (Ausubel 1968; Engeström 1981).

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