This week, we've got an informative video from CooperationWorks! on understanding how a cooperative's finances work. This is a great resource for anyone learning or teaching cooperative basics.
Then, Yavor Tarinski writes about social ecologist and political theorist Murray Bookchin's influence on contemporary social movements. From the democratic confederation of Northern Syria, to the assembly of assemblies established by the French Yellow Vest movement, Bookchin's thought and writings have had a broad influence on efforts to realize a truly grassroots democracy.
Financial Literacy for Cooperators
by CooperationWorks!
An introduction to financial literacy for cooperators, from CooperationWorks!
Bookchin and the Legacy of Direct Democracy
by Yavor Tarinski
The direct-democratic foundations of the society which Bookchin envisioned, went beyond anarchist rejections of laws and constitutions. For him it was not enough to place our hopes for more just future on intrinsic human instincts for mutual aid or sharing. Instead social movements have to propose and attempt to implement in practice new political architecture, which will make possible for the whole of society to exercise power in a stateless, noncapitalist and participatory manner.
How Venezuela's CECOSESOLA supports communities during crisis
Cooperative Development Institute (YouTube) — In this video, CDI's Pável Uranga interviews Venezuela's CECOSESOLA, a cooperative founded in 1967 with 1,500 worker-associates and 20,000 members. This is the first in a series of interviews we will be publishing to understand how cooperatives in countries facing conflict manage to thrive and support their communities...
What Do We Mean By Solidarity Economy?
Solidarity Economy Principles — Solidarity economies emerge from movements and integrate the three common strategies for social change: personal transformation, building alternative institutions, and challenging dominant institutions. Building solidarity economy movements requires building networks, federations, and coalitions that align with SE principles and practices. This is where we become truly powerful...
How intentional communities from the 70s are changing for new generations
ABC News (Australia) — According to Tuntable Falls, it began with 40 people who pooled their funds and contributed a $200 share to purchase 80 hectares of land. Now, the co-op boasts 687 hectares of land and 280 shareholders, who are residents and members who hold or rent sites...
QA, Tooling, and Worker-Owned Game Studios (Feat. Chris Watkins)
GameReady (Youtube) — Chris Watkins spent over two decades in game QA, eventually becoming Principal QA Engineer at Amazon Games. Today he co-founded Punch Up Games, a worker cooperative building the game Dig Too Deep. In this conversation he breaks down what great QA actually looks like, how tooling saves teams from painful manual work, and why he chose to build a studio where every worker is an equal owner...
The 2026 Worker Co-op Conference, Sept 25-26, Boston, MA
US Worker Co-op Conference — We're excited to announce that the 2026 Worker Co-op Conference will be held at Roxbury Community College in Boston, Massachusetts! The theme this year's conference is "Owning Our Future.” We'll explore the ways that cooperative structures expand democratic practice and community resilience, and encourage us to think innovatively to build an economy where workers and communities thrive. You can look forward to tours of the local worker co-op and solidarity economy ecosystem, breakout sessions to dig deeper into worker co-op business development, skill-building, networking, advocacy, and more...
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