October 11-17 is Co-op Week!

OTTAWA , Oct. 5 /CNW Telbec/ - Members of co-operatives and credit unions across Canada will be celebrating Co-op Week from October 11-17, a time to reflect on the contribution the co-operative sector has made to the lives of Canadians and their communities.

Co-op Week has been proclaimed across Canada every October since 1982. International Credit Union Day, which will take place on Thursday, October 15 , has been celebrated worldwide on the third Thursday of October since 1948.

This year, Co-op Week will celebrate the advantages of co-operatives in an uncertain economic environment. Co-op Week 2009 is focusing on three main themes:

    
    -   Co-operatives are...putting people first
    -   Co-operatives are...creating sustainable jobs
    -   Co-operatives are...investing in communities
    

"We know that Canadians are increasingly interested in supporting organizations that are open, democratic and put people before profits, and that's what co-operatives and credit unions are about," said Carol Hunter , executive director of the Canadian Co-operative Association (CCA).

For more information about Co-op Week 2009, visit http://www.coopscanada.coop/en/orphan/Co-op-Week-2009. Other Co-op Week activities include an online fundraising auction organized by the Co-operative Development Foundation of Canada . A preview of the auction, which will accept bids as of October 8 , can be viewed by clicking the online auction link at http://www.cdfcanada.coop/.

    
    Did you know?

    -   There are close to 9,000 co-ops and credit unions across Canada, with
        more than 17 million members.
    -   Some of Canada's best-known businesses, including Mountain Equipment
        Co-op, Federated Co-operatives Limited, UFA Co-operative Limited,
        Co-op Atlantic, Gay Lea Foods, The Co-operators (insurance), Vancity
        (credit union) and Desjardins Group are co-operatives.
    -   The co-operative sector controls over $275 billion in assets.
    -   The world's 300 largest co-operatives, nine of which are Canadian,
        have an aggregate turnover of $US 1.1 trillion
    -   More than 150,000 Canadians are employed by co-ops. Around the world,
        co-operatives employ more people than all multinational corporations
        put together.
    -   There are more than 2,200 housing co-operatives in Canada with some
        92,000 units providing homes to over a quarter of a million
        residents.
    -   Canada's co-operative sector is celebrating its 100th anniversary
        this year, marking the founding of the Co-operative Union of Canada
        in Hamilton, Ontario in 1909.

    Story ideas for Co-op Week

    -   Cover a Co-op Week event happening in your city or province. A list
        of events can be found at
        http://www.coopscanada.coop/en/orphan/CoopWeekEvents.
    -   Profile one or more co-operatives or credit unions in your community.
        What makes them different from other types of enterprises? What
        motivates people to choose a co-op over other business models?
    -   Write about what it's like to be a member of a worker co-op in your
        area, where the employees are also the owners of the business they
        work for.
    -   Talk to co-op and credit union leaders about how their organizations
        have fared during the past year's economic turndown.
    -   Report on the efforts of Canadian co-ops and credit unions to reduce
        poverty in developing countries through the Canadian Co-operative
        Association's International Development program. For more
        information, visit http://www.coopscanada.coop/en/international_dev/Welcome-to-International-Development.
    -   Interview Ingrid Fischer, who was a witness to history as the manager
        of CCA's rebuilding efforts in Sri Lanka following the 2004 tsunami.
        A native of Fort St. John, BC, Ms. Fischer will be in Ottawa during
        Co-op Week before taking on her new post in Uganda as CCA's regional
        director for Africa.
    -   Review Ian MacPherson's book, A Century of Co-operation, which was
        published in June 2009. Through text and dozens of historical and
        contemporary images, the book chronicles the history of Canada's
        co-operative movement and the people and places that made it what it
        is today. Review copies of the book are available from Tanya Gracie
        at [email protected].
    

The Canadian Co-operative Association is a national association for co-operatives in Canada , representing more than nine million co-operative and credit union members from over 2,000 organizations. CCA members come from many sectors of the economy, including finance, insurance, agri-food and supply, wholesale and retail, housing, health and the service sector. CCA provides leadership to promote, develop, and unite co-operatives and credit unions for the benefit of people in Canada and around the world.

For further information: Donna Balkan, Communications Manager, Canadian Co-operative Association, [phone], ext. 206, Cell: [phone], [email protected]; Visit our website at www.coopscanada.coop