Here’s a thoughtful article by long-time Earthworker comrade Antony McMullen, about how co-ops (the ‘original social enterprises’) fit in discussions about social enterprise and economic transformation.
Social enterprises hold great potential to make our world better. To realise this transformative potential, we must ensure the fullness and diversity of this sector is recognised and embraced – including co-operatives, writes Antony McMullen.
David LePage (co-founder of Buy Social Canada) said at the Social Enterprise World Forum that until we move towards “success being measured in human, social and environmental capital, nothing in this world is going to change”. He added that “in the face of the social, climate and economic crises the world is currently facing, the need for a different system that values people and the planet over profit will only get stronger” and he said the best way to achieve this is to “bring in those communities that have been excluded or used for extraction”.
To make this change, those of us engaged in the social enterprise movement need to play our part with clarity of vision and unity of purpose.
A little over two weeks ago, the revered late chair of the New Economy Network Australia (and co-operative and Australian representative on the Intercontinental network for the promotion of social solidarity economy), David Thompson, issued an urgent call to action: “We must help civil society find a unified voice and thus unleash its power”. Alternatively, a house divided will not stand.
A strong and united social enterprise movement is an important part of a thriving civil society. So we need to ensure that all genuine social enterprises are present at the social economy table – and this must include co-operatives.
Social Enterprise UK identifies the famous 1840s Rochdale co-operatives as the pioneers of social enterprise. But strangely, I have heard people argue that co-operatives aren’t real social enterprises, or, on the other hand, that any entity with a social purpose can call itself a social enterprise (or at the very least simply self-identify as a socially responsible business).
Click here to read the full article at Pro Bono Australia.