[P2P-F] Cooperative Life in Chicago

[Steve Ediger]

Hello,

I'm writing to report on recent and future cooperative activities in
Chicago. On August 25, almost 300 folks involved and interested in
cooperation as economic mode gathered in Chicago, Illinois, USA for
Chicago's 1st Cooperative Economy Summit.  This website
<http://www.chi-coop-summit.org> begins to document that event.

As it turns out, many people have been working on the cooperative movement
in relatively siloed conditions.  This was the first time(barring a
smaller, less broadly represented event in 2015, Cooperation2015), that
such a broad set of folks interested in the cooperative and solidarity
economies had gathered in Chicago.

Almost all of the entities were local Chicago organizations, except three
that brought a national credentials to the summit. In other words, we were
working with local folks on local projects, projects in the dream phase, to
those that have been in operation for decades.  Cooperatives, cooperative
support, and policy organizations participated, giving the summit an aura
of holistic approaches.

Panels

   - Better Than Roommates: Housing Coops of Cook County
   - Building & Sustaining Food Co-operatives
   - Building the Chicagoland Ecosystem: Advocating for the Policy Changes
   that We Need
   - Utility Coops of Cook County: What They Are & Can Be
   - Using Political Office To Increase The Cooperative Economy
   - Hacking Traditional Capitalist Financing Tools for Rapid Cooperative
   Growth
   - Building More Cooperation In Your Life


*Discussion Breakout Groups*

   - Building a Culture of Cooperation in Chicago: Incorporating Solidarity
   Economy Principles into Our Organizations and Ourselves
   - Community Land Management
   - Collaborative Urban Food Systems
   - Interlinking the Cooperative Economy for Growth
   - People’s Workshop on Participatory Budgeting
   - Local Circular Economy Principles

Additional organizations hosted tables to present their work.  We were
amply feed and given drink (including some great beer) by various food
cooperatives and brewers.  Various cooperatives contributed printing,
translation and other services. Much discussion took place in hallways, the
dining area and after the event at an after party.

As a followup, we are meeting under the banner of Chicago Cooperative
Ecosystem Coalition on October 17, 2018
<https://www.eventbrite.com/e/chicagoland-cooperative-ecosystem-coalition-ccec-tickets-50675633183?aff=ebdssbdestsearch>.
We hope form a long term coalition of all sorts of cooperatives at this
meeting.  We're inviting all folks interested and involved in cooperatives
in the Chicagoland area to attend this seminal meeting and participate in
growing a more genuine sharing economy.* If you are in the Chicagoland area
and/or know folks interested in the cooperative or solidarity economies,
please contact them and encourage them to RSVP at the above link and
participate in forming this coalition. *

Notwithstanding these encouraging events, the cooperative and solidarity
economies face many hurdles in Chicago.  Other US cities have fostered a
much healthier cooperative culture and it shows.  A decade ago, we lost the
Hyde Park Food Cooperative, which had been around for at least four
decades. Chicago needs a much more vibrant food cooperative sector.
Housing cooperatives are in better shape, but hardly driving the housing
economy.  Utility cooperatives are not very present in the urban
landscape.  They have traditionally fared better and had federal support in
rural areas.  Chicago has quite a number of credit unions available to the
general public.  However credit unions have played only a very quiet role
in the cooperative movement in the USA.  Finally, even as we begin to come
together in coalition, many agendas, spoken and unspoken, drive the
planning.  The meeting on October 17 will better inform us of the strengths
and gaps with which we are dealing.

Cheers,

Steve Ediger
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