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Photos: Cooperative Events at Murphy

By Rebecca Lurie

This Thursday, the worker-owned cooperative Action OSH hosted their Grand Opening at the Murphy Institute, celebrating the National Day of Workers’ Health and Safety. Along with allies from the Center for Family Life, United Steel Workers, NYC Network of Worker Cooperatives and the Murphy Institute Community and Worker Ownership Project and elsewhere, this group will bring knowledge and power to immigrant workers in our city.  We stand proudly in support of this team of educators and activists

Later in the day, the Murphy Institute Community and Worker Ownership Project joined with Green Worker Cooperatives to welcome Luis Alberto Duenas Casal from Cuba. He is a co-founder of the Cuban worker cooperative SCENIUS and a leader in the Cuban cooperative movement. Following Principles #5 and #7 of the international creed for coops, “Education, Training and Information” and “Concern for the Community,” we learned through conversation and presentation how the economic transformation in Cuba is supporting a redesign of their Social Economy.

Friends and comrades enjoyed a full day of learning and networking!

 

Exciting Opportunities, Opportunities

Green Worker Cooperatives Co-op Academy – Apply by 1/22

Do you have a business or a business idea that you want to grow?

Are you open to sharing ownership of the business with all of its workers?

Do you have at least one other person on your team ready to make it happen?

If you answered yes to these three questions then Green Worker Cooperatives’ Co-op Academy is the opportunity for you. The Co-op Academy is the premier 19-week cooperative business boot camp designed for teams of entrepreneurs working together to launch their business as a worker cooperative. We work intensely with you and your team in order to prepare you to grow a successful cooperative business that empowers everyone involved and serves as a model for your industry and community. We are accepting applications now for the Spring 2016 semester of the Co-op Academy.

The application period ends January 22nd. But don’t delay. If you really want to make it happen, then apply today.

Here’s what you get in the Co-op Academy:

  • Business coaching by experienced entrepreneurs;
  • 60 hours of coursework in sales, marketing, finances, cooperative organizational structures; democratic decision making & meeting processes, conflict management, cooperative accounting, environmental & social responsibility, and more;
  • web site design;
  • logo design;
  • legal support incorporating the business and developing by-laws;
  • peer support network of cooperative businesses; and
  • fast track access to financing via the Cooperative Green Seed Fund, a partnership between Green Worker Cooperatives and The Working World (a worker cooperative loan fund) exclusively for graduates of the Co-op Academy

What Does it Cost?

The Co-op Academy is now  offered free of charge! That’s right. Thanks in part to support from the City of New York’s Worker Cooperative Business Development Initiative and the Simon Bolivar Foundation, we are able to offer the Co-op Academy at no charge to you.

What are the requirements?

There are only three requirements to participate: 1) You must have have at least one other person on your team; 2) you must have a single business concept in mind for you and your team when you apply; and 3) each member of your team must complete the application form.

You do not need to already be in business and you can absolutely be at the idea stage. The Co-op Academy is designed to support teams in the early stages of their business, including the idea stage.

Be Advised:

The application process for the Co-op Academy is highly competitive. We’re looking first and foremost for strong teams with a mix of talents and experience. Keep that in mind when forming your team. And while the Co-op Academy is open to all, we place a special emphasis on teams based in the Bronx.

What’s the time commitment?

The Co-op Academy takes place Monday evenings from Feb 22nd to July 18th. In addition to the weekly evening sessions, all participants are expected to meet weekly with their teams and dedicate additional time towards research, interviewing potential customers and partners, and testing their product or service. Participants will also be required to meet occasionally with the teaching team, an assigned mentor, and attorneys.

The Co-op Academy is designed to help you and your team launch your cooperative by the completion of the course and grow successfully together. Don’t delay any longer. Apply today!

For more information on the Co-op Academy, click here. If you have any questions about the Co-op Academy, email info@greenworker.coop or call (718) 617-7807 ext 700.