Cooperatives of the Americas organized a regional dialogue space focused on education and research, as part of the preparatory activities for the International Year of Cooperatives 2025.
This space organized within the framework of the project coops4dev (co-financed by the European Union and the International Cooperative Alliance), allowed us to share the wealth of experiences in the region, understand how cooperative education transforms communities, and project collaborative work in the short, medium and long term.
The meeting, held virtually on December 3, was attended by the regional director of Cooperatives of the Americas, Danilo Salerno, who opened the event by sharing key ideas and lessons from the recent Global Conference of the International Cooperative Alliance (ICA), in New Delhi, India.
Salerno stressed the importance of building on coexistence and mutual respect, while underlining the urgent need to act against climate change, a global challenge in which cooperatives play a fundamental role.
He also stressed that the International Year of Cooperatives 2025 represents a unique opportunity for the cooperative movement to strengthen its capacities through collaborative learning spaces, taking advantage of the experiences of others in order to move towards a stronger and more cooperative future.
On the other hand, the project was presented to the participants coops4dev, led by Carlos González, coordinator of the ICA-EU Programme. This project, co-financed by the European Union, seeks to promote the strengthening of cooperatives as a driving force for sustainable, democratic and inclusive development.
González reviewed the objectives of the project and highlighted the importance of coops4dev as a key tool at the service of the members of the region, directing its actions towards the benefit of the organizations and their communities.
Finally, the person responsible for education, training and research at Cooperatives of the Americas, Paula Arzadun, led the main dynamics of the activity, conceived as a space for inter-cooperative dialogue.
In this regard, the meeting brought together key voices from various organizations from Argentina, Belize, Bolivia, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica, Ecuador, El Salvador, Spain, the United States, Ethiopia, Guatemala, Honduras, Mexico, Panama, Paraguay, Peru, Puerto Rico, the Dominican Republic, Turkey, Uruguay and Venezuela.
Participants shared their needs, experiences and proposals to strengthen cooperative education processes, exploring how Cooperatives of the Americas can contribute to addressing these needs and, at the same time, how cooperatives can enhance the work of Cooperatives of the Americas in the field of education and research.
