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Cooperatives
A cooperative (also known as co-operative, co-op, or coop) is "an autonomous association of persons united voluntarily to meet their common economic, social and cultural needs and aspirations through a jointly owned and democratically-controlled enterprise".Statement on the Cooperative Identity. '' International Cooperative Alliance.'' Cooperatives are democratically controlled by their members, with each member having one vote in electing the board of directors. Cooperatives may include: * businesses owned and managed by the people who consume their goods and/or services (a [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Worker Cooperative
A worker cooperative is a cooperative owned and self-managed by its workers. This control may mean a firm where every worker-owner participates in decision-making in a democratic fashion, or it may refer to one in which management is elected by every worker-owner who each have one vote. History Worker cooperatives rose to prominence during the Industrial Revolution as part of the labour movement. As employment moved to industrial areas and job sectors declined, workers began organizing and controlling businesses for themselves. Worker cooperatives were originally sparked by "critical reaction to industrial capitalism and the excesses of the industrial revolution." Some worker cooperatives were designed to "cope with the evils of unbridled capitalism and the insecurities of wage labor". The philosophy that underpinned the cooperative movement stemmed from the socialist writings of thinkers including Robert Owen and Charles Fourier. Robert Owen, considered by many as the father ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
José María Arizmendiarrieta
Father José María Arizmendiarrieta Madariaga ( Marquina-Xemein, Bizkaia, Spain, April 22, 1915 - Mondragon, Gipuzkoa, Spain, November 29, 1976) was a Basque Catholic priest and promoter of the cooperative companies of the Mondragon Corporation, originally located in the Basque Country and currently spread throughout the world. The year 2021 is the second social economy business group in Spain, bringing together ninety-eight cooperatives, eight foundations, one mutual, ten coverage entities and seven international delegations, distributed in four areas: finance, industry, distribution and knowledge. Arizmendiarrieta was a seminarian in Vitoria when the Spanish civil war began in 1936, and consequently he was mobilized by the Basque Government. Due to his knowledge of Basque language, he was assigned to the editor of the new newspaper Eguna, where he remained until the Francisco Franco’s troops entered Bilbao. He was arrested by them, and again mobilized for the M ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Consumer Cooperative
A consumers' co-operative is an enterprise owned by consumers and managed democratically and that aims at fulfilling the needs and aspirations of its members. Such co-operatives operate within the market system, independently of the state, as a form of mutual aid, oriented toward service rather than pecuniary profit. Consumers' cooperatives often take the form of retail outlets owned and operated by their consumers, such as food co-ops. However, there are many types of consumers' cooperatives, operating in areas such as health care, insurance, housing, utilities and personal finance (including credit unions). In some countries, consumers' cooperatives are known as cooperative retail societies or retail co-ops, though they should not be confused with retailers' cooperatives, whose members are retailers rather than consumers. Consumers' cooperatives may, in turn, form cooperative federations. These may come in the form of cooperative wholesale societies, through which consumers ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Retail Co-operative
A consumers' co-operative is an enterprise owned by consumers and managed democratically and that aims at fulfilling the needs and aspirations of its members. Such co-operatives operate within the market system, independently of the state, as a form of mutual aid, oriented toward service rather than pecuniary profit. Consumers' cooperatives often take the form of retail outlets owned and operated by their consumers, such as food co-ops. However, there are many types of consumers' cooperatives, operating in areas such as health care, insurance, housing, utilities and personal finance (including credit unions). In some countries, consumers' cooperatives are known as cooperative retail societies or retail co-ops, though they should not be confused with retailers' cooperatives, whose members are retailers rather than consumers. Consumers' cooperatives may, in turn, form cooperative federations. These may come in the form of cooperative wholesale societies, through which consumers ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Platform Cooperative
A platform cooperative, or platform co-op, is a cooperatively owned, democratically governed business that establishes a computing platform, and uses a website, mobile app or a protocol to facilitate the sale of goods and services. Platform cooperatives are an alternative to venture capital-funded platforms insofar as they are owned and governed by those who depend on them most—workers, users, and other relevant stakeholders. Typology While there is no commonly accepted typology of platform cooperatives, researchers often ontologize platform cooperatives by industry. Some potential categories include: transportation, on-demand labor, journalism, music, creative projects, timebank, film, home health care, photography, data cooperatives, marketplaces. Other typologies differentiate platform cooperatives by their governance or ownership structures. Platform cooperatives have been contrasted with platform capitalism. Companies that try to focus on fairness and sharing, instead of j ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Mondragon Corporation
The Mondragon Corporation is a corporation and federation of worker cooperatives based in the Basque region of Spain. It was founded in the town of Mondragon in 1956 by José María Arizmendiarrieta and a group of his students at a technical college he founded. Its first product was paraffin heaters. It is the seventh-largest Spanish company in terms of asset turnover and the leading business group in the Basque Country. At the end of 2016, it employed 74,117 people in 257 companies and organizations in four areas of activity: finance, industry, retail and knowledge. By 2019, 81,507 people were employed. Mondragon cooperatives operate in accordance with the Statement on the Co-operative Identity maintained by the International Co-operative Alliance. History In 1941, a young Catholic priest, José María Arizmendiarrieta settled in Mondragón, a town with a population of 7,000 that had not yet recovered from the poverty, hunger, exile, and tension of the Spanish Civ ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Viamala
Viamala or Via Mala ( Romansh: literally, "bad path") is a narrow gorge along the river Hinterrhein between Zillis-Reischen and Thusis in the Canton of Graubünden, Switzerland, as well as the ancient and notorious pathway which traverses the gorge. Historically the Viamala was the most serious obstacle on the approach to the Splügen and San Bernardino mountain passes. History Antiquity A Viamala pathway already existed in Roman antiquity, though it is unclear whether it was only a foot and bridle path, or also passable by wagons. Two access paths met at the northern entrance to the Viamala gorge, which the Romans traversed by means of several rock galleries cut into the gorge's left walls. The Romans also constructed a wooden bridge crossing over to the right side of the Hinterrhein, routing traffic via Reischen to Zillis. Presumably this bridge was located somewhere below today's automobile bridge near the existing Pùnt da Suransuns pedestrian bridge. 1473 Viam ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Ownership
Ownership is the state or fact of legal possession and control over property, which may be any asset, tangible or intangible. Ownership can involve multiple rights, collectively referred to as title, which may be separated and held by different parties. The process and mechanics of ownership are fairly complex: one can gain, transfer, and lose ownership of property in a number of ways. To acquire property one can purchase it with money, trade it for other property, win it in a bet, receive it as a gift, inherit it, find it, receive it as damages, earn it by doing work or performing services, make it, or homestead it. One can transfer or lose ownership of property by selling it for money, exchanging it for other property, giving it as a gift, misplacing it, or having it stripped from one's ownership through legal means such as eviction, foreclosure, seizure, or taking. Ownership is self-propagating in that the owner of any property will also own the economic benefits of ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Supermarkets
A supermarket is a self-service shop offering a wide variety of food, beverages and household products, organized into sections. This kind of store is larger and has a wider selection than earlier grocery stores, but is smaller and more limited in the range of merchandise than a hypermarket or big-box market. In everyday U.S. usage, however, "grocery store" is synonymous with supermarket, and is not used to refer to other types of stores that sell groceries. The supermarket typically has places for fresh meat, fresh produce, dairy, deli items, baked goods, etc. Shelf space is also reserved for canned and packaged goods and for various non-food items such as kitchenware, household cleaners, pharmacy products and pet supplies. Some supermarkets also sell other household products that are consumed regularly, such as alcohol (where permitted), medicine, and clothing, and some sell a much wider range of non-food products: DVDs, sporting equipment, board games, and seasona ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Fenwick Weavers' Society
The Fenwick Weavers' Society was a professional association created in the village of Fenwick, East Ayrshire, Scotland in 1761. In 1769, the society formed a consumer co-operative for the benefit of members. The original purpose of the society was to foster high standards in the weaving craft, but activities later expanded to include collective purchasing of bulk food items and books. The latter resulted in the creation of the Fenwick Library in 1808. This practice of collective purchasing for the benefit of members has led many to consider Fenwick Weavers' Society the first co-operative. The Society was reconvened in March 2008 and has been reconstituted as a co-operative, in legal form as an industrial and provident society, in order to record, collect and commemorate the heritage of the Fenwick Weavers. References *Crawford, John. "The community library in Scottish history." 68th IFLA Council and General Conference, August 18–24, 2002.East Ayrshire Council tourism webs ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Business
Business is the practice of making one's living or making money by producing or buying and selling products (such as goods and services). It is also "any activity or enterprise entered into for profit." Having a business name does not separate the business entity from the owner, which means that the owner of the business is responsible and liable for debts incurred by the business. If the business acquires debts, the creditors can go after the owner's personal possessions. A business structure does not allow for corporate tax rates. The proprietor is personally taxed on all income from the business. The term is also often used colloquially (but not by lawyers or by public officials) to refer to a company, such as a corporation or cooperative. Corporations, in contrast with sole proprietors and partnerships, are a separate legal entity and provide limited liability for their owners/members, as well as being subject to corporate tax rates. A corporation is more complicated ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
World Council Of Credit Unions
The World Council of Credit Unions (WOCCU) is an international trade association and development agency for credit unions headquartered in Madison, Wisconsin. WOCCU aims to improve lives through credit unions and other financial cooperatives through advocacy, development and education. WOCCU's member associations account for over 86,450 credit unions in 118 countries with over 375 million members worldwide. History WOCCU was incorporated on 10 November 1970 and officially commenced operations on 1 January 1971. WOCCU has worked with the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) and the Microfinance Investment Support Facility for Afghanistan (MISFA) to build Islamic investment and finance cooperatives in Afghanistan. In 2006, WOCCU received a $6.7 million grant from the Gates Foundation to develop credit unions in Africa and Latin America. See also * Credit union A credit union, a type of financial institution similar to a commercial bank, is a memb ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
