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The Conference is coming up soon!
Registration closes October 14th!
We're sharing with you all our official press release on the Conference of CWCF, CoopZone and Réseau COOP:
OTTAWA, ON. - The Canadian Worker Co-operative Federation (the "Federation") has announced plans to host its 26th annual fall conference in Ottawa-Gatineau from November 2-4, together with co-hosts CoopZone and Quebec's Worker Co-operation Network, le Réseau. The three-day Conference, which brings together many of the Federation's 55 member organizations and 100+ indirect members from across the country, aims to strengthen Canada's growing worker co-operative sector. It features a number of workshops, networking sessions, and guest speakers. This year's keynote speakers are Senators Lucie Moncion, former President of Co-operatives and Mutuals Canada, and Murray Sinclair, former Chief Commissioner of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission.
Read more
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Le Congrès s'en vient! L'insription termine le 14 octobre!
Nous partageons avec vous tous le communiqué de presse officiel sur le Congrès de la FCCT, CoopZone et Réseau COOP:
OTTAWA (ON), le 4 octobre 2017 - La Fédération canadienne des coopératives de travail (la « Fédération ») a annoncé son projet de tenir son 26e congrès annuel automnal à OttawaGatineau du 2 au 4 novembre, en partenariat avec CoopZone et le Réseau de la coopération du travail du Québec (RÉSEAU COOP). Ce congrès de trois jours, qui rassemble plusieurs des 55 organismes membres de la Fédération et plus de 100 membres indirects de partout au pays, vise à renforcer le mouvement des coopératives de travail. Il présente plusieurs ateliers, des séances de réseautage et des conférenciers invités. Cette année, les conférenciers-programme sont la sénatrice Lucie Moncion, ancienne présidente de Coopératives et mutuelles Canada, et le sénateur Murray Sinclair, ancien commissaire général de la Commission de vérité et réconciliation du Canada.
Lire Plus.
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Board Election / Élection du conseil d'administration
Le français suit 
This year there are two board positions up for election. They are for the board seat in the Atlantic, and one at-large seat, which is currently vacant. If you would like to know more about serving on the Board of CWCF, contact Director and Nominating Committee member Jessica Provencher at jessprovencher@outlook.com.
It is possible to make nominations for these positions, up to and including from the floor of the AGM. We will provide the statements/biographies of the candidates who have declared with the AGM Kit. CWCF has a set of diversity criteria for the board which candidates may complete or not, at their option.
En français
Élection du conseil d'administration
Cette année il y a 2 postes du conseil d'administration en l'élection. Ce sont les sièges du conseil d'administration dans les régions suivantes: l'Atlantique et un administrateur/trice sans région, et pour ce dernier il n'y a pas d'administrateur en poste. Si vous souhaitez savoir plus sur le conseil de la FCCT, communiquez avec Jessica Provencher, à jessprovencher@outlook.com.
Il est possible de faire des nominations pour ces postes jusqu'au moment de l'AGA. Nous allons fournir les déclarations / biographies des candidats avec la trousse de l'AGA. La FCCT a des critères de diversité pour le conseil que les candidat(e)s peuvent compléter ou non, à leur gré.
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CWCF Event Anti-Harassment Code of Conduct
In light of increasing legislative requirements in various provinces regarding anti-harassment, and more importantly because CWCF wishes to create a safe environment at all conferences, CWCF's Board has enacted a new Anti-harassment Code of Conduct, for all CWCF events.
All attendees including speakers, sponsors and volunteers at CWCF conferences and events are required to follow this Code of Conduct. Conference organizers will enforce this code throughout each event. We expect cooperation from all participants to help ensure a safe environment for everyone. Please see:
http://canadianworker.coop/anti-harassment-code-of-conduct/ for our new Code of Conduct.
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Worker Co-op Magazine
Collection, 1980-1992, digitized and available for download
Beginning in late 1980 with a few simple pages, Worker Co-ops magazine quickly became a regularly produced news and information source for the burgeoning Canadian worker co-op movement. The content grew from a mere 5 pages in the first issue to well over 40 later in the decade, with production quality increasing as subscriptions came in. In-depth articles on current events, updates from around the country, international news, op eds, book reviews - - the newsletter (eventually called magazine) gave a glimpse into the worker co-op movement, with an approach that was both pragmatic and visionary. For a time in the early 1990s, the newsletter was produced bilingually, with English and French pages inverted for easier reading and the additional title of Magazine Coop de Travail. Publication of Worker Co-ops came to an end in 1992 shortly after the Canadian Worker Cooperative Federation (CWCF) formalized as the trade association for worker co-ops in Canada.
To mark the 25th anniversary of the last Worker Co-ops issue, a full set has been digitized and for a limited time is now available for download. Those interested in the history of the worker co-op movement will find the collection fascinating, perhaps humorous, and in some cases still relevant to ongoing debates. Canadians aren't the only ones who will find this archival content useful - news from around the world was regularly featured, especially the United States. Although no comprehensive index exists for the newsletters, the files are text searchable.
CWCF wishes to express its deep appreciation to co-op historian Tom Pierson for digitizing the collection. CWCF is now in a position to widely distribute the newsletter archive through its website. The lion's share of the newsletter collection used for this project were from the files of Ian MacPherson (1939-2013), eminent Canadian co-op researcher and educator. The archiving effort is dedicated by Tom Pierson to the memory of Frank Adams (1934-2017), a lifelong movement organizer, a founder of the US Federation of Worker Cooperatives, and a contributing editor to several issues of Worker Co-ops.
To see the archive, visit:
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Co-operative and Mutuals Canada Undertaking National Co-operative Study
Over the last few weeks, representatives from Co-operatives and Mutuals Canada (CMC) have been contacting co-operatives by email and phone as part of a national study on the size, scope and economic impact of co-operatives in Canada.
CWCF is a member of CMC, the national, bilingual association for co-operatives and mutuals in Canada. We encourage your co-op to participate in the study. CMC has created a brief online questionnaire or you can take part in a 15-minute phone interview. But the easiest way to participate in the study is to mail or email them your most recent Annual Report.
This will be the first-ever national inventory of Canada's co-operative movement undertaken by CMC. The study will provide data on employment, sales, and even basic information like the number and types of co-operatives in each region.
By taking a few minutes to participate in the study or send your Annual Report to CMC, you'll be giving CWCF and CMC the tools we need to advocate effectively with municipal, provincial and national policy makers.
Your information will remain strictly confidential. Data will only be released and reported in aggregated and in anonymous formats that protect the privacy and industry intelligence of Canadian co-operative and mutual enterprises.
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Fogo Island Co-op Celebrate 50 years of Business
The Fogo Island Co-op, a long-time CWCF member, has not only survived, it has thrived. We have reached a milestone and this year we are celebrating 50 years in business. When giants in this industry failed, the Fogo Island Co-op remained steadfast, competitive and strong. Still resilient, the Co-op continues to adapt and is focused on the future, diversifying within and outside the fishery... A future that will take us back to our humble beginnings... COD.
We welcome people far and wide to come and celebrate this landmark year with us as push toward a new beginning.
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ALIF Partners: a story of innovation
(Article reprinted from the blog of Co-operatives First)
Co-operative businesses are more than grocery stores and gas stations. You can find co-operative businesses in every sector, performing well in some of the most challenging markets. Today, we're seeing innovative uses of the model, as well as innovations on the model, used to support impressive businesses competing regionally, nationally and internationally.
Platform co-operatives, like
Stocksy, or New Generation co-operatives, like
Westlock Terminals, are examples of this type of innovation and the versatility of the model. We've recently bumped into another impressive innovation on the model in the form of
ALIF Partners, which is a consulting firm based in Edmonton, Alberta.
ALIF's upper management consists of three partners and a senior advisor, and the business supports about 14 payroll staff and numerous contract consultants. ALIF offers a broad range of business development supports, such as strategy, market research and brand development.
ALIF Partners and Co-operatives First partnered on a project working with a northern community working to create and fund a co-operative. While working with these forward-thinking entrepreneurs, we were surprised to learn that the consulting business itself was a co-operative. So, we asked one of the three partners, Omar Yaqub, about why they chose the co-operative model and the impacts this choice has made on their operations and business. His answers might surprise you.
[Note: Alif Partners Worker Co-op member Omar Yaqub will be speaking at the CWCF Conference this year.]
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Three Reasons To Love Camino's Maple Hot Chocolate
Organic Fair trade Brand Stirs Up Good Ol' Fashioned Canadiana Just In Time For Winter
Camino, a Canadian brand of fair trade and organic products, is doing their part to remind us what being Canadian is all about. They are releasing their new Maple Hot Chocolate again, just in time for sweater weather. For all the vegan and foodies out there who are often left with little choice, this hot chocolate is vegan friendly and carefully blended with local, organic maple sugar from Citadelle, a maple syrup producer' co-operative in Quebec, to make it a truly Canadian hot chocolate suitable for the whole family. So, what makes this Maple Hot Chocolate so great?
Reason #1: It is made with real Canadian maple sugar
Camino is proud to partner with another Canadian co-operative to offer consumers a true Canadian taste with its newest hot chocolate. "Indeed, nothing says Canada quite like maple syrup and it made perfect sense for us to partner with Citadelle who have been trailblazers in the maple syrup industry in Quebec since 1925." says Mélanie Broguet, Marketing and New Product Development Manager at Camino (La Siembra Co-operative).
The resulting product: a rich, dark, and velvety hot chocolate with just the right touch of maple.
Reason #2: Focus On Sustainable Business In Canada
For the past 18 years, La Siembra Co-operative located in the Ottawa-Gatineau region of Canada which owns the brand Camino, has been working closely with co-operatives of small-scale farmers to ensure transparency, respect and fairness in the supply chain.
It's no surprise that the company's new Maple Hot Chocolate is the proud collaboration of North-South producer co-ops: from a producer co-op in Quebec for the maple sugar, to cocoa producer co-ops from the Dominican Republic and a sugar producer co-op in Paraguay.
Unlike conventional businesses, the co-operative model is an alternative business model, which focuses on democratic participation, sustainability, and benefits for their members rather than just on profit. "It is great to work with an organization that shares the same values as ours. As a cooperative, we are proud to be working with Camino on this product. It is the perfect union between chocolate and maple", says Kévin Néron, Business Development Director at Citadelle.
Reason #3: Celebrate Canada's History
As celebrations for Canada's 150th anniversary continue all over the country throughout 2017, the Maple Hot Chocolate offers a warming way to bring family and friends together. Whether it means sipping a cup by the lake on Thanksgiving or getting nice and toasty for the cold Canadian winter season, Camino has created the perfect recipe. It also makes a unique stocking stuffer or a special gift.
- end -
Mélanie Broguet
Marketing and New Product Development Manager
613.235.6122 x 325 / melanie@camino.ca
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Two London-based Worker Co-ops Launch Program Focused on Sustainable and Local Food
From OnCoop e-Newsletter, Issue 8, September 7, 2017
On the Move Organics and the London Brewing Co-operative (LBC) have teamed up to bring Londoners local, organic groceries and organic beer, delivered right to their doorstep; the first of its kind in Ontario! Every ingredient, product, and produce item can be traced back to the producer where it originated, making the box truly sustainable, local, and organic.
The early August announcement marked an exciting addition to the growing number of craft beers available to consumers, with a twist. On the Move Organics has been providing Londoners with organic produce and groceries from the Southwestern Ontario region since 2008 and will now add LBC's beer to that list.
Customers who order weekly boxes now have the option of selecting their favourite 650 mL bottle of brew to complement their heirloom tomatoes, pattypan squash, and Swiss chard. The only requirement? The customer must be of legal age and be home when the box is delivered to their door, hopefully by bike.
It's this sort of innovation that has enabled On the Move and LBC to thrive in the competitive markets of organic groceries and craft beer. For these innovative individuals, local is more than a catchphrase, organic is non-negotiable, and sustainable has been the guiding force/mantra from day one.
For more information on this new collaboration, visit On The Move Organics
online
. If you would like to learn more about the London Brewing Co-operative (LBC), visit their
website
!
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How co-operatives are better than corporations
September 11, 2017 by Kyle White
At Co-operatives First, we sometimes get asked: "what makes a co-op different from a corporation?"
In short, it depends. Every business is different and reflective of the concerns and interests of their shareholders. Plus, corporations come in a wide variety of shapes and sizes from non-profits to global conglomerates. In fact, co-operatives are corporations, but with a specific structural make up that has a wide range of applications.
This versatility in structure can produce a co-op that is nearly indecipherable from a large, investor-driven corporation or one that is very much like a small, charitable non-profit organization focused on community service.
That said, there are a few ways co-ops are better than "corporations" (i.e. large, investor-driven businesses). And one important way they aren't.
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The Canadian Worker Co-operative Federation (CWCF) is a national, bilingual grassroots membership organization of and for worker co-operatives, related types of co-operatives (multi-stakeholder co-ops and worker-shareholder co-ops), and organizations that support the growth and development of worker cooperatives. CWCF's e-newsletter is available free of charge to anyone with an e-mail address and an interest in worker co-operative developments in Canada.
Please send any comments and suggestions to:
Kaye Grant
Editor of CWCF Newsletter
(204) 257-1198
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