University of Wisconsin Center for Cooperatives ICA: Building Community Jobs by Replicating Model Worker Co-ops GEO NEWSLETTER GEO is published by EDINA, The Ecological Democracy Institute of North America, with support from the Cooperative Charitable Trust. ICA: Building Community Jobs by Replicating Model Worker Co-ops Carol DiMarcello Community Jobs and Worker Co-ops Across the country, the non-profit world is looking hard at community-based economic development (CED) - for obvious and urgent reasons. The enormous jobs loss over the past fifteen years has scarred the lives of people in both urban and rural communities. How can we repair the harm? Strategies cover a broad spectrum: micro-lending programs, business incubators, entrepreneurship training, Main street revitalization, flexible business networks, and worker- and community-owned business development. The ICA Group (Industrial Cooperative Association) plays a significant role in this last category. Founded in 1978, our mission is to promote human and economic development through creation of model worker-owned and community-based enterprises that create and save jobs. | |
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