International contacts and links have always been important to the co-operative
movement, and in the post-globalisation era this more true than ever.
The
following are a list of organising who carry out research in the fields of
co-operative organisation or the broader social economy.
The New Harmony Press is a co-operative publisher that seeks to support publication of materials directed at co-operative, credit union, trade union, and social economy organisations concerned with community, family, social justice, workers organisation and labour standards, economic democracy, management and organisational development, peace and reconciliation, environmental sustainability and alternative technology. In addition to books we are interested in research monographs and training and development materials, exercises and case studies. We publish the International Journal of Co-operative Management.
The Co-operatives
Research Unit (CRU) is based at the Open University at Milton Keynes in the UK
and has nearly 30
years of experience in research, training, consultancy and
publications related to co-operatives, social enterprise and other organisations
in the social economy. It has three main aims: to encourage and develop thinking
and research on issues of importance to the social economy sector; to support
the development of co-operatives and other organisations trading for social or
ethical purposes; and to work with practitioners, policy makers and researchers
at European, national and local levels to develop comparative analyses of issues
for improving policy, development and management.
The
Research Unit for Financial Inclusion (RUFI) undertakes academic, action and
evaluative research in a wide range of areas related to poverty, financial
exclusion and the development of financial services for lower income households.
RUFI has a particular commitment to credit unions and other third sector and
co-operative financial institutions. RUFI has developed a particular expertise
in research activities aimed at strengthening credit union capacity and
effectiveness within low income communities. RUFI papers and reports are
downloadable from the website.
Cardiff Institute for Co-operative Studies was established in April 2000 (as Wales Institute for Research into Co-operatives) as the first Welsh centre providing basic, strategic and applied research covering all aspects of the social economy. It is based at Cardiff School of Management, part of the University of Wales Institute, Cardiff. Specific examples of such matters include: employee ownership, community enterprise, co-operative production, co-operative retailing, community provision of services and credit unions. CICS researchers provide academic analyses to raise the profile of the social economy and especially the co-operative sector within the academic community, while keeping a strong policy focus and sharing their academic skills to support co-operative enterprises in Wales.
The BC Institute for Co-operative Studies was founded
in January 2000 under the directorship of Dr Ian MacPherson, and is based at the
University of Victoria. The aim of the Institute’s research is to understand how
the co-operative model functions within different contexts and how it can
contribute to meeting economic and social needs. Most importantly, BCICS aims to
find out how the co-operative model can help to empower people and communities
in controlling the forces that shape their lives.
The
Canadian Association for Studies in Co-operation (CASC) is a volunteer run,
non-profit organization made up of researchers interested in co-operatives and
practitioners who work in the co-operative sector. The focus of the association
is local and international study of all aspects of co-operation and co-operative
organizations. CASC is co-published with the UK Society for Cooperative Studies
of the Journal of Cooperative Studies.
The
UCC Centre for Co-operative Studies is a university research centre based at
Cork University that
promotes education and training and independent research and consultancy in all
aspects of co-operative organisation. It
was founded in 1980, by a small group of co-operatively minded academics who
wished to explore and promote the co-operative concept through research and
teaching. Today, the Centre continues its work of fostering research, study and
education about co-operatives. It is a strong focus of support for academics who
are interested in
co-operatives and it works closely with many national and
international co-operative bodies.
The Centre for
Research and Specialisation in Agribusiness Management (CEGEA) was created in
1979 as a postgraduate training centre for agricultural co-operative management
and became a research centre within the Polytechnic University of Valencia in
1999. It is the leading University Research Centre in Spain for agricultural
co-operative research and training. Many of the most important agrifood
industries and organisations, agricultural co-operatives in particular, in Spain
and America, train their managers and technical staff in CEGEA. Research
activity is one of the mainstays of the Centre and has resulted in more than 300
publications on issues including co-operative organisations, co-operative
credit, and the social economy and co-operativism.
The CERISIS -
Interdisciplinary Research Center for Solidarity and Social Innovation - was
founded in 1995 in Hainaut. Its ‘third sector and social policy’ team deals with
socioeconomic logics of not for profit organisations (cooperatives, voluntary
organisations, social enterprises, charities). It
examines the articulations of these organisations with
public policies, the market and the community. We investigate the role of these
kinds of organisations in comparison with business and public bodies in several
fields such as socio-professional integration, social services or social
entrepreneurship.
CIRIEC (International Centre of Research and Information on the Public, Social and Cooperative Economy) is a non-governmental international scientific organization. Its objectives are to undertake and promote the collection of information, scientific research, and the publication of works on economic sectors and activities oriented towards the service of the general and collective interest. In the fields of public utilities, public and mixed enterprises, the social economy and workers' participation, CIRIEC seeks to offer information and opportunities for mutual enrichment to practitioners and academics and for promoting international action. It develops activities of interest for both managers and researchers.
