COPAC - Co-operative and Policy Alternative Center
COPAC Description
The vision of this website is to promote the cooperative idea, worker cooperative movement building and cooperative sector development in South African society and on the African continent.
Our mission is to provide the necessary information, technical tools and capacity building resources to achieve this.
This photo shows the leadership of one of the most successful producer cooperatives in South Africa. It is the Highveld Organic Rooibos Tea Cooperative. This cooperative is based in Nieuwoudtville on the border between the Western Cape and Northern Cape. It produces and exports 60 tons of organic Rooibos tea. The leadership together with the membership (51 farmers) owns and works in their cooperative.
News
COPAC has recently launched a new initiative in South Africa amongst the poor and workers to build a solidarity economy movement. This initiative is based on ten years of grass roots practice in township communities and five years of comparative research of the most exciting grass roots movements advancing alternative political economies.
In recent months the international body for worker cooperatives has launched an online news magazine. This communication resource connects worker cooperatives and movements from around the world. It is available from CICOPA.
"Driving global recovery through co-operative enterprise"
New publications and policies
This publication provides an important literature survey of cooperative experiences from different parts of the global South. It includes insights into cooperative development from Venezuela, Cuba and Ethiopia.
Upcoming Events
20 March, 2010 - 14:00
WITS University
COPAC together with the Gauteng unemployed peoples movement and local community based cooperative movements will introduce the concept of the solidarity economy to the Conference of the Democratic Left. The panel on the Solidarity Economy will speak to case, approach and content of the solidarity economy alternative.