Gleanings

A BRIEF HISTORY OF COOPERATIVES IN THE PITTSBURGH AREA

michaeljohnson — Tue, 27 Jul 2010 14:24:43 -0400

A BRIEF HISTORY OF COOPERATIVES IN THE PITTSBURGH AREA By John Curl At the time of its incorporation in 1817, Pittsburgh was already a manufacturing center, with a population of around 6,000, supplying the western region with artisanal products almost entirely made by home industry. It had become a manufacturing center during the war of 1812, when the supply of British-made goods have been cut off in the region. In 1817 most manufacturing was still done by independent self-employed artisans using hand tools. But their livelihood was already threatened by the growth of a new system that was making their economy obsolete: factories and wage labor.

An Outline History of Cooperatives in the Bay Area and California

michaeljohnson — Tue, 27 Jul 2010 14:04:08 -0400

John Curl's history of the Bay Area Cooperative movement is eye-opening. It leaves you amazed that this country is so rich in cooperativism yet we only learn of it through John's heroic efforts. It brings to mind the saying: You need to know where you've been to know where you're going. My hope is that this history further opens up and extends our vision and our work.

Our Blessed Unrest

michaeljohnson — Thu, 22 Jul 2010 05:35:18 -0400

A striking depiction of one million organizations working for a better world. By Chris Jordan

http://www.yesmagazine.org/people-power/we-are-many-chris-jordan-captures-our-blessed-unrest

Carl Davidson's report on US Social Forum 2010

michaeljohnson — Wed, 21 Jul 2010 11:33:41 -0400

High-Energy Gathering Fires Up A New Generation of Activists in U.S. Left and Social Movements By Carl Davidson Keep On Keepin' On! When 15,000 vibrant and politically engaged people gather in one spot for five days and organize themselves into more than 1000 workshops, dozens of major plenaries and late night parties across five major cultural hot spots, no one article can claim to give a full account and get away with it. But an event on that scale livened up Detroit, Michigan during the week of June 22-26 at the US Social Forum, when Cobo Hall and several nearby universities were buzzing with thousands of people trying to shape a new world. 15,000 Attend Detroit Social Forum I won’t even try to capture it all. I’ll just affirm the common conviction that it was a major happening on the left and a huge success, an inspiration and an affirmation of hope that progress is being made towards a better future. Then I’ll humbly offer my take on it. We’ll start with some highlights and, for those who aren’t familiar with the Social Forum movement, offer a few explanations.

Jan 2010 Senate Proposal to Incentivize ESOPs

robinhooddcf — Fri, 14 May 2010 14:01:27 -0400

Legislation by Senators Sanders and others is meant to incentivize ESOPs.

Fed by the Mob

Ethan — Thu, 25 Feb 2010 09:59:45 -0500

It's like a cooperative barn raising, but it's called a "crop mob"...

Sowing Seeds of Farm Co-op In Detroit

Ethan — Tue, 05 Jan 2010 01:29:50 -0500

by John Gallagher for Common Dreams

The Mo' Green Town proposal by New York City activist Majora Carter just might hit the sweet spot in Detroit urban agriculture.

Carter visited Detroit recently to talk up her plan to create a worker-owned urban agriculture cooperative venture. By pooling the efforts of numerous small growers in Detroit, it would attempt to grow big enough to generate real profits and a return for investors. But it would be run by local community growers themselves.

Austin: A New Cooperative Development Center

jim — Tue, 29 Dec 2009 01:52:47 -0500

Third Coast Workers Cooperative (TCWC) is an new cooperative development center in Austin that works with low-income communities to help them produce their own environmentally friendly, worker-owned businesses.

Equal Exchange creating capital for new co-ops

jim — Tue, 29 Dec 2009 01:42:21 -0500

Equal Exchange, one of the largest and most successful worker co-operatives in the United States, is pioneering a model to provide capital for new co-ops.

The Case for Worker Co-ops

Ethan — Tue, 24 Nov 2009 02:21:48 -0500

Nancy Folbre (UMass Amherst economist) on the economics of worker cooperatives