This weekend, Newsworks published an article by David Woo, Weaver’s Way Board President, in which he discusses his personal mission to “put into practice principles of cooperative business.” Woo specifically cites caring for community and cooperation among cooperatives as the principles he particularly seeks to employ as he reaches out to fledgling cooperatives in the Philadelphia area. In these early months of Bethlehem Food Co-Op development, these two principles have been evident to many of us throughout the different aspects of our planning and interaction with other co-ops. We’ve been contacted by start-up co-ops in Doylestown and Ambler, invited for a tour of Weavers Way, and have already had the opportunity to give a little back as we’ve offered advice to folks who are just now entering some of the stages we’ve passed (like logo design).
Where do these principles for co-ops come from? The 7 Principles of Co-Ops were determined in the 19th century as a group of weavers (this is where Weaver’s Way got their name) in Rochdale, England opened the first cooperative to provide “fair food at fair prices.” Inspired by the cooperators of Rochdale, the Cooperative Alliance approved the Rochdale Principles in 1995, to apply to all co-ops around the world:
- Voluntary & Open Membership
- Democratic Member Control
- Member Economic Participation
- Autonomy and Independence
- Education, Training and Information
- Cooperation Among Cooperatives
- Concern for Community
This video provides a great history about the first co-op, the growth of the co-op movement, and the relevance co-ops have in the world:
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