Co-op donation and local giving programs is sometimes not enough. In order for the cooperative to remain a central and key player in the local community it can sometimes mean getting involved in local government, planning committees, and more. These are the kinds of strategies employed by Liz Haywood, CEO of People's Food Cooperative of LaCrosse and Rochester. Here Haywood calls co-ops out for [...]
The board of directors at People's Food Co-op in Kalamazoo, MI have committed to developing their awareness around racial equity. Board President Hether Frayer tells the Kzoo board story about how they ensconced their social justice values into co-op policy and monitoring.
Change can be uncomfortable. By discussing what we may be afraid of losing it can be a valuable process to get to being excited about what we might better, or more of. Chris Maher, General Manager of BriarPatch Food Co-op in Grass Valley, CA tells the story behind the BriarPatch name, and its deep connections to a rich history of cooperation across the Northern [...]
The closing of a nearby neighborhood grocer presented what could have been a great sales boost for Whole Foods Co-op in Duluth, MN. But the neighbors weren't beating down the doors of WFD. Sarah Hanningan, GM, tells the story of what it took to reach out to their neighbors and their communities. Having 'Everyone Welcome' printed on their awning simply wasn't going to be [...]
As a result of the coalescing of the regional Co-op Grocers Associations into National Co+op Grocers GreenTree Co-op was able to undergo a transformational shift in their approach to operations and customer experience. Sarah Christensen, GM at GreenTree in Mt. Pleasant, talks about what she perceives as a barrier to collaboration and true cooperation among cooperations: Independence. Christensen explores what it means to be [...]
In a lot of ways our work speaks for itself. The data supports an assertion that cooperation produces stronger happier communities, local economies, food systems and shoppers. Bonnie Hudspeth, Neighboring Food Co-op Associations Manager of Member Programs, shares a ton of powerful data points about the impact that food co-ops have in the Northeast and points out opportunities that we can seize on to [...]
So much of the critical work of movement-building is getting the word out there to those who are looking for what we offer. As the Executive Director of Neighboring Food Co-ops Association, Erbin Crowell spend a lot of his time getting the message out about cooperatives. Here he shares with you some of his tips and offers up some regional co-op data for the [...]
As director of Food Systems Initiatives for the Self-Help Credit Union, Steve Saltzman has a unique perspective on the work that is being done by food co-op sin communities throughout the region. And from where Steve sits, food co-ops are on the leading edge! When it comes to transparency, social change, and social justice, Steve sees food co-ops as the local engines driving progress.
An historic proposal was floated among members of 3 Twin Cities food co-ops to merge their 3 distinct organizations into one co-op. Two of those co-ops chose to merge, in this video we get to hear from the one that chose NOT to merge. Eastside Food Co-ops John Lacaria and Carolyn Buzza share about their next steps in deciding how their co-op can create [...]
Dan Arnett, Cooperator in Chief at Sacramento Natural Foods Co-op, tells the story of how he's inviting all staff members to create participation and impact by way of building the best burger in town. Dan has some great ideas about how even small acts can translate to greater impact in your community.
