While the debate on democracy in the European decision making has become a priority in many political public discourses, the very legitimacy of the European project is raised by many as a scapegoat for social policy failures due to austerity measures.

In this context, the quest for democracy in the public sphere does not reflect the reality of workers’ everyday workplace environment, where workers’ voice and representation is ever more threatened.

Worker and social cooperatives, by bringing democracy into the workplace, practice and foster a model where workers are protagonists. When we engage for the benefit of local communities, when we pursue the general interest, when we preserve the industrial heritage of our regions, when we inject economic democracy in enterprise decision-making, we actively fight social exclusion, and counter populism and anti-democratic sentiments.

Our economic model is resilient and future-proof, we take up the challenges of the future of work and we fight for social justice in Europe.

The Europe we have in mind gives voice to its citizens, cherishes entrepreneurial diversity and leaves no one behind.

In the end of May 2019, European citizens will elect the new European Parliament, and here is what cooperatives in the industry and services want for the next parliamentary mandate.
Read our Election manifesto !

The post A Cooperative Manifesto for the 2019 Elections appeared first on P2P Foundation.

The Nonprofit Democracy Network is a community of practice and peer support network for organizations working to make their organizations – and the broader nonprofit sector – more liberatory and transformative. We want the nonprofit sector to be more effective at creating a just, joyful, and sustainable world. We want our organizations to be living examples of the equitable, caring, and effective communities that we know are possible. And we know that there is a rich field of experimentation and practice of democratic self-governance from which we can learn and which we can help grow by building and sharing with one another.

We launched the network at our inaugural gathering in fall of 2017 (read more about it here). At our second gathering, March 27-29, 2019, we’ll dive into the nuts and bolts of co-creating forms of collective self-governance, taking on topics like compensation, inclusive decision-making, the impact of identity and culture on participation, coordination and accountability, and collective budgeting of time and money.

Participants in the inaugural Nonprofit Democracy Network gathering

Are you part of an organization experimenting with any of these areas? We would love for you to join us! This is an opportunity to learn about the state of the field, connect with fellow practitioners, learn from groups at the forefront of experimentation, and deepen your own organization’s practice.

We’re looking for organizations that are:

• Committed to undoing dynamics of racism, patriarchy, and other forms of structural oppression;
• Playing with more democratic internal structures, regardless of how far advanced; and
• Interested in being part of an ongoing network to deepen this work.

More details:

Format:This three day gathering will include education, conversation, and co-creation around common themes of collective leadership. The first day will focus on frameworks for organizational design and how those relate to systems change, identity, and liberation. On the second day, participants will break into smaller groups to dive deeper into specific issues and growing edges (e.g. staff/board structure, compensation policies). The third day will focus on identifying next steps and how to integrate learnings into your organizations.

Cost: Sliding scale from $400 – $1500 based on organization’s annual operating budget. We want participation in this cohort to be as accessible and community-driven as possible. We also want to justly compensate our facilitators, organizers, and other vendors. (Cost includes venue, facilitation, and meals over three days for 2 org representatives.) More information on cost included in the application form.

Organized and facilitated by: Participants in the 2017 Nonprofit Democracy Network, including staff from Sustainable Economies Law Center, Community Development Project, 350 Seattle, Reflex Design Collective, and more.

For more information and to apply: Fill out this Application by December 5th, and we will get back to you by the end of December.

WHEN
March 27, 2019 at 9am – March 30, 2019
WHERE
Exact venue TBD
Oakland, CA 94612
United States
CONTACT
Chris Tittle · [email protected]

Photo by CIFOR

The post Tools for Collective Self-Governance: A Nonprofit Democracy Network Gathering appeared first on P2P Foundation.

Playing for Team Human is Esteban Kelly. Kelly is an exemplary leader in the movement for promoting solidarity and workplace democracy. While working with the Mariposa Food Co-op, Kelly founded the Food Justice and Anti Racism working group. He was also appointed by the Mayor of Philadelphia to the Philadelphia Food Policy Advisory Council. Currently, Esteban Kelly serves as Co-Executive director of the Mariposa Food Co-opUS Federation of Worker Cooperatives as well as a director of AORTA, the Anti- Oppression Resource and Training Alliance. Kelly is also a co-founder and current board member of the Philadelphia Area Cooperative Alliance (PACA). A complete bio highlighting Kelly’s commitment to embodying democratic principles of workplace democracy, social justice, and activism can be found at Kelly’s Bio Page at AORTA .

Visit our Resources page for ways to start your own worker cooperative. There you’ll find case studies, how-to’s, and further inspiring information on solidarity movements and the effort to build a more democratic and just economy.

The post Team Human 3: Esteban Kelly on Solidarity appeared first on P2P Foundation.