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[Editor's note: the following is a critique of Survey of Co-operative Capital, by A. Michael Andrews; published in March 2015, by the International Co-operative Alliance’s blueprint for a co-operative decade.] 

This is a disturbing and potentially dangerous report for three reasons:

Matthew Slater sums up his experiences visiting European ecovillages.  He considers their strengths and presents questions aimed at addressing the lack of financing and true economic alternatives within the ecovillage movement. 

A documentary film by Dario Azzellini and Oliver Ressler about the factory RiMaflow in Milan, Italy, which has been recovered by the workers after the former owners engaged in a fraudulent bankruptcy.  The facility used to make auto parts but is now run as an open factory and is owned and controlled by its workers as a worker cooperative. 

[Editor's note: In Greece, Thessaloniki's VIOME cooperative recently celebrated their second year in operation.  Like many "recovered businesses" in Latin America, VIOME has faced continuing legal threats to its existence since workers first occupied their factory.  Despite the fact that the former owners stole hundreds of millions in wages from their employees—a crime for which they were found guilty— the cooperative is now being faced with a possible liquitdation order from a

[Editor's note: GEO first published these two essays on the hurdles faced by coopeative and solidarity economy enterprises in 2001.  While the cooperative movement has made great strides in the intervening 14 years, the roadblocks identified here by the authors are still concerns for both new and existing co-ops.  In light of the recent surge in support that cooperatives of all kinds have

There is a very interesting development coming out of the UK and Western Europe.  A network of folks over there are working hard on developing a framework for the convergence of co-operative, commons, solidarity, open source, and all the alternative economic movements. 

[Editor's note: This article from the European Company and Financial Law Review looks at why cooperatives are formed, considers their advantages and disadvantages compared to other forms of governance, and sets out a legal research agenda for determining how changes "in the institutional environment, i.e.

[Editor's note: Jo Bird of the UK's Co-operative Business Group (CBC), has asked GEO to share this petition with our readers (see below).  The Co-operative News recently published an article about the petition.  Marie-Claire Kidd explains:

[Editor's note: this is the third entry in a series of articles on European ecovillages by Matthew Slater.  Parts one and two looked at Spain's Lakabe and Amalurra communities.  Watch for more stories in this series as Matthew continues his tour.] 

Amalurra, Basque for 'mother earth', was formed from a meditation group with life coach Irene Goikolea over 20 years ago.  Wanting to take their practice further, they bought an old seminary and oriented their lives around making it beautiful and offering hospitality.  Fast forward to now, and there are several gleaming buildings, including a hotel, hostel, spa, cafe, restaurant, many spaces for meetings and workshops, and a sweat-lodge next to a stream and extensive gardens.