Page 965 - Week 03 - Thursday, 7 April 2022
Next page . . . . Previous page . . . . Speeches . . . . Contents . . . . Debates(HTML) . . . . PDF . . . . Video
took off globally after World War I to counter low purchasing power. More recently, after Argentina’s economic collapse at the turn of the millennium, 400 companies across Argentina were converted to co-ops by almost 16,000 workers.
Canberra already has a really strong suite of co-ops operating across many different sectors. This motion seeks to strengthen supports to those existing organisations and provide support to the ones who are looking to establish or transition into a co-op structure. Mr Davis has been in discussion with stakeholders and constituents interested in forming co-ops, and he has heard that they are seeking support to get basic guidance on how to begin their transition. They just need information and assistance. This includes talking to the umbrella organisation CoCanberra, which is also known as Cooperative Commons and Communities Canberra. CoCanberra is an umbrella organisation we already have. It specifically focuses on how co-ops can help communities mitigate and adapt to the climate crisis.
I would love to mention just a few of the other amazing co-ops that we already have here. Canberra’s Food Co-op is Australia’s oldest food co-operative; it began in 1976 on the grounds of the ANU. I have shopped there myself. The original goal of the Food Co-Op was to provide cheap, healthy food for students. The Food Co-op remains on the ANU campus and now it is one of the only places left on campus where students can get nutritious affordable meals. Since starting their lunch program over 10 years ago, the co-op has employed migrant women to share their food cultures with a team of volunteers, while partnering with a range of organisations to upskill students and build a diverse and strong campus community.
Another stand-out example of a local cooperative working to provide economic security and shared benefits to their members is Trove Canberra. Trove Canberra is a local artist co-op. It was established in 2014 by a group of Canberra region craftspeople brought together through the Canberra Etsy sellers’ group. Fast forward eight years and Trove Canberra is a thriving, creative community of makers who have really big plans for the future. In May 2019, Trove Canberra moved to its current location in Dickson, Canberra’s vibrant restaurant and cafe district where it continues to thrive. The members create a wide range of handcrafted products, each specialising in their own particular medium, and everything is made in Australia.
Pre Power is another of our amazing local co-ops, and it provides community-level renewable energy generation. Soil City Co-operative Farms is a food sector enterprise in our region. It uses methods that capture carbon from the atmosphere. Tipua is an online artist co-op formed to remove the issue of being reliant on large companies. It supports artists by providing networking, mentoring, collaborating and showcasing art.
Co-ops can provide amazing services to our local community. They can also provide value and employment opportunities to the same community. Supporting co-ops intersects with another important area of work that we are currently undertaking here in government. My colleague Minister Vassarotti is developing the ACT’s first food and fibre strategy, and there are great opportunities for co-ops to thrive in this agricultural space. Food is about as essential as it gets, and there is no better example of where the pursuit of maximum profit above all else is failing for all of us. It fails our farmers and their workers, who are not paid enough for their labour and for their
Next page . . . . Previous page . . . . Speeches . . . . Contents . . . . Debates(HTML) . . . . PDF . . . . Video