One of the most knowledgeable people about alternative economic forms and how they could be integrated in a ‘whole system’, with particular focus on Solidarity Cooperatives:
“Solidarity Co-operatives have been developed as a unique multi-stakeholder Co-operative system since the 1980s. They are unique because co-production members include paid workers, volunteers, service users and social investors. In Italy they provide social care, health services and educational services for local communities. There are now over 14,000 of these Co-ops across Italy providing services to 5 million. The Solidarity Co-op movement has spread in Europe to France, Spain, Portugal, Hungary and Poland. They have been developed in Quebec and in the UK there is early work underway to develop them in England and Wales.”
Watch the video here:
this post is almost identical to this one:
http://blog.p2pfoundation.net/pat-conaty-on-the-history-and-the-rediscovery-of-the-cooperative-commonwealth/2013/12/01
can’t have too much Pat Conaty though I guess! 😛