June 2004
Issue No. 368
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Tales of the unexpected
For all their faults, co-ops are more widespread and active than you might imagine. If economic democracy has anything to do with it, argues David Ransom, there will even more of them in future.

What Is A Co-op?
The basic principles.

The pollen and the bees
Economic collapse in Argentina forced thousands of workers to occupy their own places of work. Joseph Huff-Hannon reports on the aftermath.

Not so crazy
Amanda Roll-Pickering tells the story of a disused slate quarry in Wales that is now at the cutting edge of clean energy.

Co-operatives - the facts

Sex workers with attitude
Mari Marcel Thekaekara explains how raw woman power in Kolkata (Calcutta), India, has ruffled a few feathers and made a big difference.

I'm a realist get me out of here!
Unreality TV as you’ve never seen it before – a story board by Polyp.

Killing distrust
Cocoa farmers in Ghana, says Kwabena Sarpong Akosah, have every reason to join the Kuapa Kokoo co-op.

We, the Kuapa people
Georgina Kwaw and Elizabeth Adjei explain why it goes well with fair trade.

Of caulkers and quilt-makers
African Americans have a long co-operative tradition. Jessica Gordon Nembhard uncovers some of it.

The story so far
A brief history of the international co-operative movement.

Get going
Where to start and who to talk to if you want to set up a co-op of your own.

News, views, and & voices

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from
THIS MONTH'S EDITOR

YOU might have to live in several different places at once in order to do so, but it is theoretically possible to lead your life entirely within the embrace of co-operatives, before going to your grave courtesy of a co-op funeral director.

You can earn a living in a workers' co-op, go home to co-op housing, get your food, clothing, fi nance, transport, clean energy, telephone, even entertainment and creative satisfaction from one sort of co-op or another. More often than not you'll get a fairer, more environmentally friendly deal as a result.

The NI has tended to keep quiet about being a workers' co-op. The fact seemed incidental to our work. We could even be apologetic about it, perhaps because so many other co-ops failed. Recently we've made more of it and it's begun to seem more central to what we do. On the topic of this magazine at least, we know whereof we speak from personal experience.

All the same, I worry. Whenever I come across something positive, and particularly when I write about it, it tends to go wrong. I'm not so superstitious as to believe that our co-op has fl ourished only because we've kept quiet about it. But, just in case, in the picture below you see Anne our accountant in the centre; Jo, our distribution manager, on the left; Alan, one of our designers, next to her; James, who crunches numbers, on the right. If we're spared, that will have more to do with them than with me.

Paul Carter

David Ransom for the New Internationalist Co-operative davidr@newint.org

Poetry Slam in Zimbabwe

The House of Hunger poetry slam held in Zimbabwe in 2006, and organised by the Pamberi Trust, showcased young artists performing inspirational work on issues from corporate power to child soldiers. The video features four of the poets.
Published by Pambazuka News.

Raised Voices video:

Atossa Soltani from Brazil on the Climate Change

Desmond Desai from South Africa on Corporate Power

Iranian women speak out

3 March 2007, London. Women's rights activists marched through the English capital last week to celebrate International Women's Day with a protest against the misogyny of the Islamic regime in Iran and the threat of invasion by the US. Hear the voices of Iranian feminists Azar and Leila Parnian and the sounds of the demonstration as it passed through the heart of the city. Click here to learn more about the campaign.
Produced by Heidi Bachram.

Raised Voices audio:

Benny from West Papua on Corporate Power

Vinayan from India on agriculture