Co-op Holiday Highlights & More

Sustainergy has a "Winter is Coming" pre-season special: Free home energy assessment and instant $200 discount off energy efficiency upgrades. Just call (513) 647-6695 to schedule your assessment between now and 12/31/23.

Queen City Commons has a new Community Drop-Off Bin at Unity Christian Church in Hartwell/Wyoming. QCC composted more than 3,700 pounds of pumpkins with Hyde Park School this November, and they have some new customers: Christ Church Cathedral, Cafe Alma, the Kinetic Vision office building, and Wildweed Pasta. 

Our Harvest, the oldest co-op in our network, has a membership program for those who want to support access to healthy, local food in a way that honors land and labor. The program offers unique access and content, from farm events to educational opportunities! Learn more at ourharvest.coop/cultivators!

Cincy Cleaning Co-op is looking for new customers! Want to have a healthy, clean home with less stress in your life? Give them a call! Also, they're hiring a part-time Administrative Assistant! 

Renting Partnerships recently threw an open house at 6037 Cary Avenue, a renovated duplex with rents well below market rates. RP's next development project is a multifamily building in Avondale with 8 total units: 2 one-bedroom units, 2 two-bedroom units, and 4 three-bedroom units. Want to learn more? Get in touch!!

Massage 4 the People has gifts card available on their website! And, as always, they encourage you to fill out an online survey, which entitles you to a $45 credit!

Showing of Works for All

On Dec. 8, the Union Co-op Council and Moving Images held a special virtual screening of Works for All, a 30-minute documentary about Cincinnati's co-op economy.

The event, streamed on Zoom, included a post-screening discussion with film director Melissa Young, our Co-Director Ellen Vera, and others featured in the film.

Works for All portrays the cooperatives in Co-op Cincy’s network, which are led by people marginalized from the mainstream economy, and Co-op Cincy’s approach to training and ongoing support.

The documentary was made by Mark Dworkin and Melissa Young, who made the earlier documentary Shift Change about democratic workplaces.

Some praise of the film:

"Co-op Cincy has been plowing new ground, both literally and figuratively, sowing the seeds for a better future since 2011, and Works for All gives us first-person accounts about the power of worker-ownership from these workers themselves."

-Rob Witherell, United Steelworkers

“As a film about co-ops, this one is a must see. It is unique and important in that it highlights both the role that unions have played in supporting co-op development, and it looks at the context of building co-ops in struggling communities, where many of those involved are people of color.”

-Emily Kawano, Wellspring Cooperative 

Co-op U Manual Now Available!

Our Co-op U Manual is now available!

You can buy a print version on our website!

The Co-op U Manual is a practical guide to helping build cooperatively owned businesses that we developed for our Co-op U course.

Written by our Co-Director Kristen Barker and Racial Justice Educator and Co-op Developer Cynthia Pinchback-Hines, the Manual includes exercises, tools, resources, and more!

See coopcincy.org/resources!

Apply by Dec. 15 for Power in Numbers!

Our co-op business boot camp for Black-led teams starts Jan. 16! Applications are due by Dec. 15!

The free, 14-week course helps Black-led teams of entrepreneurs work through the process of launching a cooperative business and build wealth for the long term.

We support participants in the process and offer technical assistance and loan access after they launch their co-op business.

Know someone who might be interested? Share our info.

Movement News

  • From Shareable, a story about how Etsy sellers came together and created a cooperative marketplace!

  • More businesses are transitioning to the cooperative model!

    • From Capitol Hill Seattle Blog: “After more than a decade of providing walk-in veterinary care to Capitol Hill, Urban Animal will be transitioning to a co-op business model.”

    • From the Portland Press Herald: “O’Donal’s Nursery of Scarborough has entered a fresh chapter in its long history, becoming a worker-owned cooperative.”

The Countdown Is On for Cincinnati Gives!

Let’s Build Community Wealth Together!

Since 2011, Co-op Cincy has worked to nurture cooperatively owned businesses that build long-term community wealth.

This holiday season, can you support our work by donating as part of the Cincinnati Gives Challenge? We're seeking to raise $15,000 to boost our impact! 

You can donate now or during the challenge, which runs from 5 p.m. Mon Nov. 27 to 5 p.m. Thu. Dec 7. We'll be sending e-mail updates during this special fundraising campaign, as well as posting on Instagram, Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn.

By giving just $10, you can help us nurture family-sustaining jobs and offer ownership opportunities to individuals from historically marginalized communities. 

Your donation funds training and loans for our growing network of worker-owned businesses, helping build an economy that works for all. 
 

Our Impact


Araceli Ortiz was one of the women who started Cincy Cleaning Co-op in 2018 with the "purpose to create jobs in the community because there was a need."

In the early stages, team members worked just a few days a week. Soon they lost people who needed full-time employment. Then the Covid-19 pandemic started, presenting a new set of challenges.

With a loan and coaching from Co-op Cincy, they managed to overcome these barriers and grow.

Earlier this year, they paid off their loan. They now have 8 employees, all immigrant women. Two are worker-owners and 2 are in the process of becoming worker-owners.

"For us, it's a huge accomplishment," Araceli said of paying off the loan.

Members of the Cincy Cleaning Co-op team at the recent Union Co-op Symposium in downtown Cincinnati.

In addition to loan access, Co-op Cincy has provided ongoing coaching, such as software training, while connecting Cincy Cleaning Co-op to customers.

"It is really important to have that support," Araceli said.

Please donate via Cincinnati Gives to help more businesses like Cincy Cleaning Co-op offer family-sustaining jobs and build community wealth!

An Inspiring Symposium + Annual Event

Last month we had two energizing events: our 2023 Union Co-op Symposium and our Cheers to Cooperatives celebration!

We're so grateful that we had a chance to be together, dream together, and create some new pathways forward for greater impact. So much collective intelligence was unleashed! So many connections were formed and deepened. So many new partnerships were forged. It will be exciting to see what happens next. 

200 Gather in Cincinnati for 2023 Union Co-op Symposium 

Around 200 cooperative members, labor movement leaders, economic development professionals, and others gathered at our Symposium to co-create specific visions of an economy that works for all.

Sessions focused on varied topics, from Black ownership to workplace democracy, from mutualism to co-op policy goals.

What were the takeaways? There were so many! Here are a handful of examples. Various participants committed to:

  • Provide a course on unions for co-op developers

  • Offer a Co-ops 101 for union members

  • Create study groups about how Black cooperation and shared ownership have been foundational to African cultures and to helping African-Americans survive oppression

  • Join the National Black Cooperators

  • Promote a resident-managed housing model aligned with Mondragon's principles

  • Reach out to existing business owners to share the power of transitioning to employee ownership

  • Build union co-op coalitions to achieve policy goals

  • Explore deeper partnerships with worker co-ops and HBCUs

Our Symposium was titled From Dream to Action: The Transformative Power of Co-ops, Labor, & Community

Supporters Celebrate Co-op Movement at Cheers to Cooperatives Event

We had a great time at our Cheers to Cooperatives celebration, held at the Art Academy of Cincinnati after the first day of the Symposium. 

We shared food and made connections. We also gave awards highlighting contributions to our work and movement:

Don Barker, Co-op Champion Award: For his involvement from the inception of Co-op Cincy to the end of his days, including raising money and serving on our Board of Directors.

Melissa Young and Mark Dworkin, Expanding the Movement Award: For their inspiring work to document democratic workplaces and portray efforts to create a more equitable economy in Cincinnati, the U.S., and around the globe.

Lola McAllister, Phil Amadon Solidarity Award: For her contributions this past summer with Co-op Cincy, when she fully immersed immersed herself in our activities as an intern and exemplified solidarity. 

Barbara Bell, Exceptional Civic Partners Award: For her amazing display of solidarity in advocating for the broadening of worker-ownership in our region and across the country.

Mo Manklang, Exceptional Civic Partners Award: For working closely with us on a variety of issues and including us in important national policy conversations.

Shine Nurture Center, Co-op Cincy Network Award: For their exemplary display of inter-cooperation as a member of our co-op network.

Our Cheers to Cooperatives celebration included food, drinks, and good company! 

Co-op Cincy Awarded Half-Million-Dollar Federal Grant to Bolster Clean-Energy Jobs 

Some big news: We've been awarded a half-million-dollar federal grant to design strategies that improve equity and strengthen clean energy and sustainable construction jobs in Greater Cincinnati.

The grant will support good jobs for individuals from historically marginalized communities, particularly women, people of color, and blue-collar workers."

“We’re so honored and excited for this opportunity to drive equitable economic growth, creating an economy that works for all,” said Ellen Vera, Co-Director of Co-op Cincy. “Our goal is to empower workers and build community wealth as we transition to a more sustainable economy.”

Read more about the grant on our site. We’ll be building a broad-based coalition. More updates to come.

Sustainergy is a local worker-owned business that provides energy efficiency and solar power services in Greater Cincinnati, demonstrating the potential of combining worker power and sustainable construction.

Documentary on Co-op Network now Available

Works For All, a documentary on Cincinnati's co-op economy, is now available for viewing!

Works for All portrays the cooperatives in Co-op Cincy’s network, which are led by people marginalized from the mainstream economy, and Co-op Cincy’s approach to training and ongoing support.

The documentary was produced by Mark Dworkin and Melissa Young, who made the earlier documentary Shift Change about democratic workplaces. 

"Works For All is a beautiful and compelling glimpse into the inspiring work of Co-op Cincy. I loved getting to see inside these businesses, the people who make them run, the union partnership in their successes, and how worker-ownership has moored the values of cooperation, sustainability, and dignified work."

- Ra Criscitiello, Deputy Director of Research at SEIU UHW

Renting Partnerships Holds Open House on Monday 11/20

Renting Partnerships' newly renovated property at 6037 Cary Avenue

Renting Partnerships is having an open house from 2-5 p.m. on Monday, November 20 at their newly renovated property, which is located at 6037 Cary Avenue Cincinnati, OH 45224. 

The house has beautifully updated 2-bedroom and 4-bedroom units that can provide adequate and affordable housing for generations to come. 

As with their housing in the Avondale neighborhood, Renting Partnerships will use a renting model designed to fight gentrification and help tenants build long-term wealth. The units will be leased to low-income residents at below-market rates, and tenants will earn financial credits while participating in the maintenance of the building.

Bring a friend, walk through, and learn about Renting Partnerships!

Co-Director Ellen Vera Elected to USFWC Board

We’re thrilled that our very own Co-Director Ellen Vera is one of the new Board of Directors for the U.S. Federation of Worker Cooperatives! Congrats to Ellen and the other Board members! And thank you to USFWC members for voting! 

Co-op Cincy To Participate in Cincinnati Gives Challenge!

This year, we're participating in the Cincinnati Gives challenge with the goal of raising $15,000 to support worker-owned businesses, building an economy that works for all!

The Challenge runs from 11/27 to 12/7. We'll share more next week!

Movement News

  • From NPR: "The United Auto Workers staged an unprecedented strike against the Big Three Detroit automakers—and they emerged with three big, lucrative deals." 

  • From the The Portland Press Herald: “O’Donal’s Nursery of Scarborough has entered a fresh chapter in its long history, becoming a worker-owned cooperative.”

  • From The Capitol Hill Seattle Blog: “After more than a decade of providing walk-in veterinary care to Capitol Hill, Urban Animal will be transitioning to a co-op business model.”

  • In Forbes, Evan Edwards writes about the power of employee ownership to create quality jobs and build wealth for workers daily.

  • Did you know that 60% of manufacturing businesses have owners who are near retirement and lack a succession plan? See Project Equity's new report, Employee Ownership for Manufacturers

Our Symposium is Almost Here!

Our 2023 Union Co-op Symposium is almost here! 

You don't want to miss this unique and inspiring gathering!

The Symposium, our 6th, will take place in-person on Oct 20 and Oct 21 in downtown Cincinnati, Ohio. 

Sessions will explore topics ranging from workplace democracy to community ownership of solar to cannabis cooperatives.

Learn more and register now: 

Can't make our whole Symposium?

You can still join us on Friday, October 20 for our Cheers to Cooperatives celebration, scheduled for 7-9 p.m. at the Art Academy of Cincinnati.

A $50 ticket includes a free drink and tapas provided by Texas Joe, a catering service run by a third-generation Mexican-American. Additional drinks will be available for purchase.

You'll get a chance to connect with other people interested in creating an economy that works for all.

And you'll hear a profound conversation about balancing economic and social well-being.

Learn more and register:

Symposium Overview


What happens when we co-create a dream that energizes and inspires?

Co-op Cincy and 1worker1vote.org present our 6th Union Co-opSymposium, From Dream to Action: The Transformative Power of Co-ops, Labor, & Community. 

Dream + Action


Day One (Oct 20) is the day for dreaming. After a session that opens participants to multiple ways of knowing, we will break into smaller groups to co-create a specific vision (dream) that truly energizes and inspires. 

Day Two (Oct 21) is the action day. Groups will turn their attention to practices, tactics, and strategies for realizing the specific vision they developed. 

Session facilitators and participants will include cooperative members, labor movement leaders, representatives from the Mondragon cooperative association, faith community members, ESOP leaders, and representatives from finance institutions. 

Our Cheers to Cooperatives celebration, scheduled for 7-9 p.m. on Friday Oct 20, will include drinks, food, a star studded speaker line-up, and more! 

Learn more and register:

Documentary from Makers of Shift Change to Premiere at Symposium 

Works For All, a documentary on Cincinnati's co-op economy, will premiere on Saturday, October 21 at the Union Co-op Symposium!

Works for All portrays the cooperatives in Co-op Cincy’s network, which are led by people marginalized from the mainstream economy, and Co-op Cincy’s approach to training and ongoing support.

The documentary was produced by Mark Dworkin and Melissa Young, who made the earlier documentary Shift Change about democratic workplaces. 

"Works For All: Cincinnati's Co-op Economy shows us the magic–as well as the hard work, and detailed planning and education–that goes into developing co-ops through Co-op Cincy." 

- Jessica Gordon Nembhard, Professor of Community Justice and Social Economic Development at the City University of New York and author of Collective Courage: A History of African American Cooperative Economic Thought and Practice 

"The Cincinnati union co-op movement should be an inspiration to everyone looking for what racial and economic justice looks like in practice."

- Esteban Kelly, Executive Director of the U.S. Federation of Worker Cooperatives

Learn more and register for our Symposium:

Co-op Cincy Awarded Half-Million-Dollar Federal Grant to Bolster Clean Energy Jobs in Greater Cincinnati

Co-op Cincy Chosen by U.S. Department of Labor To Support Transition to Green Economy

CINCINNATI — Co-op Cincy has been awarded a half-million-dollar federal grant to design strategies that improve equity and strengthen clean energy and sustainable construction jobs in Greater Cincinnati.

The 18-month grant is part of $16 million awarded by the U.S. Department of Labor to center the needs of workers while transitioning to a green economy.

The $495,816 grant will support good jobs for individuals from historically marginalized communities in Greater Cincinnati, particularly women, people of color, and blue-collar workers.

“We’re so honored and excited for this opportunity to drive equitable economic growth, creating an economy that works for all,” said Ellen Vera, Co-Director of Co-op Cincy. “Our goal is to empower workers and build community wealth as we transition to a more sustainable economy.”

“As part of our efforts, we’re going to form a broad-based coalition that includes local businesses, government entities, labor groups, local organizations, and educational institutions,” Vera added. 

Co-op Cincy will identify practical strategies to improve job quality, the availability of good jobs, and worker influence in the climate resiliency sector, among other impacts. Vera pointed to Sustainergy Cooperative, a residential energy energy efficiency and solar power business in Co-op Cincy’s network, as evidence of how we can combine sustainable construction and good jobs.

Sustainergy is a local worker-owned business that provides energy efficiency and solar power services in Greater Cincinnati, demonstrating the potential of combining worker power and sustainable construction.

The federal grant will help Cincinnati tackle wealth inequality while benefiting from the transition to a green economy. Nearly 25% of Cincinnatians live in poverty, while 6 of Ohio’s 10 most common jobs pay too little to support a family of 3. Around the country, the climate crisis is expected to create dramatic job growth in clean energy and sustainable construction. The recently passed Inflation Reduction Act will help drive expansion in the climate resiliency sectors.

“This is a historic opportunity to build community wealth while responding to the climate crisis,” said Vera. “We have to be very intentional about how we meet this moment.”

Brent Parton, Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary for Employment and Training at the Department of Labor, said the recent grant awards “will enable recipients to create and expand partnerships to develop training programs to provide the workforce needed in high-demand industries.” 

2023 Union Co-op Symposium Sessions

Symposium Basics


What happens when we co-create a dream that energizes and inspires?

Co-op Cincy and 1worker1vote.org present our 6th Union Co-op Symposium, From Dream to Action: The Transformative Power of Co-ops, Labor, & Community. The dynamic event will wake us up to the possibilities of being networked in meaningful ways. Activities will highlight equity, labor, community wealth-building, and care for the earth and ourselves.

This year's Symposium will take place in-person on Oct 20 and Oct 21 in downtown Cincinnati, Ohio. Register today: 

Dream, Then Action


Day One (Oct 20) is the day for dreaming. After a session that opens participants to multiple ways of knowing (mind, body, and spirit), we will break into smaller groups of approximately 20 to 30 people. The groups will co-create a specific vision (dream) that truly energizes and inspires. The day will close with keynote addresses offering concrete examples of dreaming boldly. 

Day Two (Oct 21) is the action day. Groups will turn their attention to practices, tactics, and strategies for realizing the specific vision they developed. The day will close with sharing and activities that focus on deepening solidarity and staying in the work for the long haul. 

Session facilitators and participants will include cooperative members, labor movement leaders, representatives from the Mondragon cooperative association, faith community members, ESOP leaders, and representatives from finance institutions. 

Our Cheers to Cooperatives celebration, scheduled for 7-9 p.m. on Friday Oct 20, will include drinks, food, a star studded speaker line-up, and more! Get your tickets now!

Our last Union Co-op Symposium, Economics of Well-Being: Building a Just Economy, drew over 200 people from around the world. 

Our Dream Sessions


Here are some of the sessions we're planning.We're still putting the finishing touches on the schedule and will update the list of sessions and facilitators on our symposium web page in the coming weeks. 
 

Mutualism: Learning from Emilia-Romagna, Mondragon, & Argentina to Energize the Solidarity Economy


By connecting with the wisdom of long-established cooperative ecosystems as well as the fresh perspectives and experiences of budding cooperative ecosystems, participants will share their questions, learnings, and insights on how to deepen and catalyze our regional ecosystems in a way that helps consciously shape a future where the planet and people thrive. 
 

Unleashing Workplace Democracy: The Power of Labor & Co-ops Together


Worker-ownership is a proven strategy for achieving many of the goals of the labor movement, as well as for creating resilient, family-sustaining jobs that workers own and control. What is stopping us from having unions embrace co-op development as one of the essential tools for rebuilding the labor movement? What is stopping the cooperative movement from fully joining forces with the labor movement to overhaul our economy and put people over profits?
 

Affordable Housing: Cooperatives, Land Trusts, & Faith Community Assets in Transition


How can we enable caring people from faith and other communities to create housing opportunities that allow people to overcome racial, social, and wealth inequalities?


Place-Based ‘Maker’ Ecosystems: Re-localizing Textile Manufacturing & Beyond


It’s possible to employ ourselves and our communities by making goods in the US again. Industrial Commons is an exciting example of a thriving, apparel-based cooperative network that is re-localizing apparel manufacturing in North Carolina. Learning from Industrial Commons and other examples from around the country, this session will delve into the nuts and bolts of how to create and strengthen place-based cooperative “maker” ecosystems, relocalize apparel manufacturing, and create transparent value chains where worker rights are centered.
 

Policy & Co-ops: Creating Policy-Enabling Environments for Worker Co-ops


We’ll share examples of municipal policy efforts that have been successful, including in Massachusetts, Colorado, California, and Washington, and how worker co-op advocates can move policy forward in their town, cities, regions, and states.
 

Community Ownership of Solar: How Worker-Owned Solar Installers, Purchasing Co-ops, & Rural Electrics Can Partner To Power the Country 


Solar power can knit together disparate urban and rural communities and create shared purpose and wealth. In order to make solar this transformative, we have to ensure that everyone, and especially communities that have borne the brunt of the current energy system, has material access to solar. The Inflation Reduction Act has given us many of the tools we need, but it’s up to us to come together and build the solar-powered world we want to live in.
 

Dignified Work: Individual & Collective Responsibility in Democratic Workplaces


In this dream session, we will explore the border between personal responsibility and the role of the collective, seeking to reconcile our personal and collective traumas with the dreams we want to make real. We will consider the following questions: What does it mean to be a leader in a democratic workplace? What does sovereignty of labor mean for us (as worker-owners, cooperative advocates, workers)? What's the role of personal growth in a democratic workplace? How can we re-imagine workplace democracy through community and resource synergy? Join us for an honest exploration of our own values and needs within democratic workplaces.
 

Black Ownership: Creating an Economy For Us, By Us


How can we strengthen and deepen relationships among Black professionals and business owners to create supportive business communities that share resources and foster connection? How can we tap into our collective power to overcome challenges such as racial trauma, historical distrust, and systemic disempowerment? In this dream session, we will delve into the impact of Western society’s emphasis on individual gains. We will examine how to cultivate trust and connection as the foundation for a thriving Black economy.
 

Cannabis & Co-ops: Building High-Paying & Empowering Jobs


The United Food and Commercial Workers Union has identified union co-ops as a tool for building worker power, investing in sustainable communities, and pursuing racial justice in the cannabis industry. These businesses combine democratic governance and financial ownership with strong labor protections and institutional resources. This dream session will explore how to build union co-ops in the cannabis industry and unlock financing.
 

Own the Metrics: Building a Broad Movement for Sustainable Development


If we all do our part to build sustainable communities and economies, the UN’s sustainable development goals present a surmountable challenge. This is not just a challenge for Fortune 500 corporations and sovereign governments; it's one for those of us in the social and solidarity economy. We can lead by example, showing that greenwashing is unacceptable; that inclusive governance is doable; that ownership needs to take a seventh-generation perspective of profits; and that social transformation of the economy can be humane and inclusive. We need to catalyze community wealth in a way that does not recreate the problems of the current economy, but instead fosters business and organizational development that aligns with the sustainable development goals.
 

Manufacturing Renaissance: Rebuilding Our Manufacturing Sector Inclusively


Advanced manufacturing is at the heart of international best practices in economic democracy (Mondragon, the Basque Country in general, and Emilia-Romagna). We need to rebuild our manufacturing sector in a way that’s profoundly inclusive, such as through the dramatic expansion of worker-owned companies, and we need policies at the national, state, and local levels that reflect this objective—Inclusion & Industry 4.0!—and provide the needed funding. This session will use the values, experiences and perspectives of attendees as a foundation for a shared campaign to create an economically, socially, and environmentally sustainable society. This campaign will offer an alternative to industrial policy guided by securing the personal wealth of a tiny segment of society. Specifically, we will build a Federation for a Manufacturing Renaissance that will represent our interests in shaping national, regional, and local economic policies inspired by the Basque Country and other international models and that promote advanced manufacturing, economic democracy, and community development. 
 

Broadening Ownership: Reducing Inequality & Creating a Thriving Tri-State through Employee Ownership


If we bring together local leaders involved with ESOPs, B-Corps, Conscious Capitalism, and worker-owned co-ops, there is breathtaking potential to move the needle on broadening ownership and reducing income inequality. Across the country, 2/3 of privately owned businesses belong to baby boomers. Private companies generally provide 50-60% of the jobs in a community, yet only 20% of businesses have a succession plan. The upcoming wave of retirements by baby-boomer business owners could be a destabilizing crisis for our communities. Or, local leaders could turn this potential disaster into an unprecedented opportunity with the help of organizations like Co-op Cincy and the Ohio Employee Ownership Center, which provide technical assistance and access to funds enabling owners to sell to their employees. Imagine the impact a powerful group of leaders can have by inspiring business owners to sell to their employees, thereby broadening ownership and helping create a Tri-State where all people have an opportunity to thrive. Join us for this powerful dream/action session!
 

More Than Just Money: Restorative Investing & Capital


Restorative investing and capital represent a transformative approach to finance that prioritizes equitable wealth distribution and the empowerment of marginalized communities, especially those impacted by systemic racism. Rooted in principles of justice and inclusivity, restorative investing redirects resources to uplift those historically kept in cycles of disadvantage, focusing on healing, restoring, and reinvigorating these communities. By challenging traditional financial paradigms that prioritize profits over people, this approach aims to bridge the racial wealth gap and foster shared prosperity. Inspired by the ethos of restorative economics, the objective is not merely financial return, but societal healing and holistic community development. It's about more than just money; it's about recalibrating the financial system to be in service of all, ensuring an equitable, inclusive, and resilient economic future. We invite impact investors and community builders to embrace and champion this revolutionary approach.

Movement

Unions + Co-ops: A Labor Day Appeal

Can You Support Our Work?

This Labor Day, will you donate to help us combine the best of the labor and cooperative movements?

With your support, we can enable more workers to thrive in businesses that are both jointly owned and unionized.

On this Labor Day, we recognize the contributions of workers and the labor movement. As we wrote in a recent blog post, unions have a long record of improving the lives of working people. 

We’re thrilled that there’s been a recent resurgence of unions. However, this comes after decades of declining union membership and growing economic inequality.

We believe combining unions and co-ops is a powerful way to create an economy that works for everyone. If you think so too, you can donate to support our work. You can also sign up for our upcoming Union Co-op Symposium here in Cincinnati.

One business that uses the union co-op model is Sustainergy, the second oldest cooperative in our network. We’ve supported Sustainergy’s growth through business coaching and loan access. 

As a cooperative, Sustainergy is owned and operated by its worker-owners. As a unionized workplace, the workers can negotiate with the appointed CEO to improve their working conditions.

Kristen Barker of Co-op Cincy (center) and Austin Williams of Sustainergy (right) during a recent coaching session.

Austin Williams, a worker-owner at Sustainergy who was recently elected Vice-President of the United Steelworkers Local 14734, said that being in a unionized cooperative (or union co-op) means workers have all the information they need to ensure the company is making the best possible decisions, including about working conditions. Recently they re-negotiated their collective bargaining agreement and increased paid holidays, among other improvements.

Being in a union also connects them to the larger labor movement, he said, enabling them to support workers around the country. 

“We’re entering precarious and very conflict-heavy times,” Austin said. “And if we don’t build institutions that can survive that, we’re going to be really struggling.”

“I hope that this integration of organized labor and the co-op model can be a step forward. And it may not be a step forward immediately. But it’s at least a step in a different direction. And with experimentation and patience, I hope we can really change things.”
 

Please Donate Now to help us support the union co-op model. 
 

As a nonprofit, our work is funded by grants and donations. Your gift will go toward coaching and loan access for union co-ops like Sustainergy. 

*Please consider making a monthly recurring gift. 


Sincerely,

Ellen Vera
Co-Director
Co-op Cincy 

Unions + Co-ops

Reflections Ahead of Labor Day

As Labor Day approaches, we’ve been thinking about the importance of unions to our work.

As you may know, we were inspired by a historic 2009 pact between Mondragon and the United Steelworkers (USW), the largest industrial union in North America. In that agreement, Mondragon and the USW pledged to adapt collective bargaining principles to the cooperative model.

Co-op Cincy formed a few years later in the belief that combining unions and co-ops is a powerful way to generate family-sustaining jobs. By launching co-ops whose workers were unionized, we were the 1st organization to bring the 2009 Mondragon-USW agreement to life.

Unions have a long record of improving the lives of working people in this country. They ended child labor. They fought for a 40-hour work week, health benefits, and compensation for injured workers.

After decades of declining union membership, we're heartened to be seeing a resurgence of collective action around the country. Workers have organized at companies ranging from Starbucks to Amazon.

You might be wondering: Why should co-ops, whose workers already have a vote in key decisions, be unionized?

When a co-op grows, disputes can arise between management and workers. There can also be other conflicts. A union creates a defined space for addressing workplace issues. It's also a reinforcing structure, helping a co-op keep its value intact. In addition, it connects workers to the larger labor movement, helping improve working conditions for all.  

Lewis Connell of Sustainergy, a union co-op in our network, said that being in a union ensures each worker has a voice in their “experience as a worker”. And it ensures they can fix any workplace problems, he said. Sustainergy’s workers recently re-negotiated their contract, increasing paid time off, among other improvements.

Lewis Connell (right) of Sustainergy talks with CEO Flequer Vera.

On our Resources page, you can find tools to help support the growth of union co-ops, including our Worker-Owner Workbook and the Union Toolkit for Cooperative Solutions.

We're hosting our 6th Union Co-op Symposium from October 20-21 in Cincinnati to promote the union co-op model (see below for more info).

To help us support the growth of union co-ops, you can also donate today.

More Details on 2023 Union Co-op Symposium

We're still finalizing the schedule for our Union Co-op Symposium, From Dream to Action: The Transformative Power of Co-ops, Labor, and Community, which we're co-hosting with 1worker1vote. The Symposium will take place in-person on Oct 20 and Oct 21 in Cincinnati, Ohio.

Here's info on 3 of the sessions we're planning:

  • Community Ownership of Solar: How Worker-Owned Solar Installers, Purchasing Co-ops, and Rural Electrics Can Partner To Electrify the Country – Solar power can knit together disparate urban and rural communities and create shared purpose and wealth. In order to make solar this transformative, we have to ensure that everyone, and especially communities that have borne the brunt of the current energy system, have material access to solar. The Inflation Reduction Act has given us many of the tools we need, but it’s up to us to come together and build the solar-powered world we want to live in.

  • Unleashing Workplace Democracy: The Power of Labor and Co-ops Together – Worker-ownership is a proven strategy for achieving many of the goals of the labor movement, as well as for creating resilient, family-sustaining jobs that workers own and control. What is stopping us from having unions embrace union co-op development as one of the essential tools for rebuilding the labor movement? What is stopping the cooperative movement from fully joining forces with the labor movement to overhaul our economy and put people before profits?

  • Mutualism: Learning from Emilia Romagna, Mondragon, and Quebec to Energize the Solidarity Economy – By connecting with the wisdom of long-established cooperative ecosystems as well as the fresh perspectives and experiences of budding cooperative ecosystems, participants will share their questions, learnings, and insights on how to deepen and catalyze our regional ecosystems in a way that helps consciously shape a future where the planet and people thrive. 

See our Symposium page for more info on our dream sessions:

Co-op Cincy Selected to Host Young African Leader

We're proud to share that we have been selected to host Arindo Akweni, a Fellow from the Democratic Republic of Congo, in the Professional Development Experience (PDE) component of the U.S. Department of State’s Mandela Washington Fellowship for Young African Leaders from August 7 to September 1.

Arindo is an agricultural engineer who holds a PhD in crop production and food processing from the University of Zululand in South Africa. During his Fellowship, he will deepen his understanding of the cooperative business model, agricultural practices, and grant writing while helping support food-related cooperatives.

Arindo said, “As an agricultural expert, I intend to contribute to changing the sad narrative of my country which is known to possess the largest fertile lands in the world and a lot of business opportunities but is still ranked among the poorest countries in the world with the highest rate of food shortage and poverty.”

Stanford Intern Joins Team for Summer

We’re very excited to have Lola McAllister interning with us this summer. Lola studies Anthropology and Spanish at Stanford University, where she lives in a co-op on campus. She’s been involved in various activities and communities throughout her time there, from hosting a social entrepreneurship speaker series to consulting for social enterprises to teaching English as a second language to Spanish-speaking workers.

She is working on a senior thesis about worker cooperatives and the experience of worker-ownership, which is what brings her to Co-op Cincy and Cincinnati! This summer she is working with our co-op coaches and interviewing worker-owners in our network.

New Book Explores Mondragon-Style Economic Practices

ICYMI, the book Humanity @ Work & Life: Global Diffusion of the Mondragon Cooperative Ecosystem Experience is out! 

The book explores how solidarity and innovation can forge Mondragon-style, sustainable economic practices.

It's edited by Christina A. Clamp, a professor of sociology and the director of the Center for Cooperatives and Community Economic Development at Southern New Hampshire University, and 1worker1vote Executive Director Michael A. Peck.

Our co-directors, Kristen Barker and Ellen Vera, have a chapter in the book, as do many of the presenters at our Union Co-op Symposium.

Sustainergy CEO Joins Clean Energy Event

Flequer Vera, CEO of Sustainergy, participated in a Sustainable Finance Hub event as part of the Midwest Regional Rally Up earlier this summer. 

The gathering convened sustainable investors, labor and community leaders, and business partners to foster a collaborative approach to best position the Midwest-Upper Appalachian region to compete for the historic clean infrastructure funds ushered in by the Biden Administration and Congress.

Movement

Co-op Cincy Selected to Host Young African Leader

Co-op Cincy is proud to announce that it has been selected to host Arindo Akweni, a Fellow from the Democratic Republic of Congo, in the Professional Development Experience (PDE) component of the U.S. Department of State’s Mandela Washington Fellowship for Young African Leaders from August 7 to September 1, 2023.

The Mandela Washington Fellowship, the flagship program of the Young African Leaders Initiative (YALI), empowers young African leaders through academic coursework, leadership training, mentoring, networking, professional opportunities, and local community engagement. YALI was created in 2010 and supports young Africans as they spur economic growth and prosperity, strengthen democratic governance, and enhance peace and security across Africa. 

Arindo is an agricultural engineer who holds a PhD in crop production and food processing from the University of Zululand in South Africa. During his Fellowship, he will deepen his understanding of the cooperative business model, agricultural practices, and grant writing while helping support food-related cooperatives.

Arindo said, “As an agricultural expert, I intend to contribute to changing the sad narrative of my country which is known to possess the largest fertile lands in the world and a lot of business opportunities but is still ranked among the poorest countries in the world with the highest rate of food shortage and poverty.”

Since 2014, the U.S. Department of State has supported nearly 5,800 Mandela Washington Fellows from across Sub-Saharan Africa to develop their leadership skills and foster connections and collaboration with U.S. professionals. 

Kristen Barker, Co-Director of Co-op Cincy, said, “I am really grateful to have someone with Arindo’s background and fresh perspective to help us with some of our food cooperatives, which have the lowest margins.” 

Kristen pointed out that the cooperative business model is common across the world and that Arindo was already familiar with it. “For many people, this is just how business works,” she said.

Twenty-eight U.S. educational institutions hosted Leadership Institutes for the approximately 700 Mandela Washington Fellows in June and July. The six-week program supported the development of Fellows’ leadership skills through academic study, workshops, mentoring, networking with U.S. leaders, and collaboration with members of the local community.  

After the Leadership Institutes, Fellows participated in the Mandela Washington Fellowship Summit, where they took part in networking and panel discussions with each other and with U.S. leaders from the public, private, and non-profit sectors. 

Up to 100 competitively selected Fellows also participate in four weeks of professional development with U.S. non-governmental organizations such as Co-op Cincy, private companies, and government agencies. The PDE component allows Fellows to learn and grow as young professionals while providing enriching opportunities for U.S. organizations to participate in collaborative exchanges. 

Thank you for a wonderful Co-op Fest! 🎉

We're incredibly grateful to our co-ops and supporters for celebrating with us!

Last month, we had an amazing time at our 3rd annual Co-op Fest! We connected with supporters, ate delicious food from Hopes Fulfilled Farm 2 Table, and enjoyed a beautiful afternoon on Our Harvest's urban farm.

A big thanks to everyone who joined us. Special thanks to the students from Xavier University who volunteered.

Here are some photos from the event. Feel free to share.

If you attended, we’d love for you to complete a brief, 3-question survey. Your feedback will help us shape our activities going forward.

Did you enjoy the Co-op Fest? You can support our work by donating today!

Notes from Black Cooperative Agenda Conference

Cynthia Pinchback-Hines, our Racial Justice Educator and Co-op Developer, has a new blog post about the recent Black Cooperative Agenda conference in Las Vegas. 

Cynthia talked to Jessica Gordon-Nembhard, acclaimed author of Collective Courage: A History of African American Cooperative Economic Thought and Practice, and other attendees and speakers.

She was joined at the conference by Mona Jenkins, our Cooperative Food Justice Coordinator.

Cynthia Pinchback-Hines (left) with Jessica Gordon Nembhard at the Black Cooperative Agenda conference.

We Just Finished 2 of Our Trainings!

3rd Cohort Receives Cooperative Management Certificates

Participants in the recent Cooperative Management Certificate course celebrate with Co-op Cincy staff after the final class.

After completing our recent Cooperative Management Certificate, Morgan Hood, Community Programs Manager of Dayton's Gem City Market, said:

“I loved taking this class with Kristen and Paloma! It was so enlightening, expansive and helpful. Their willingness to be of service and passion for this work is evident. I appreciate their attention to detail, abundance of materials, and intent to create lasting relationships of collaboration.

“I am excited to move forward with the knowledge I have gained and sharing it with my community. This class is valuable for anyone who is interested in mindful business practices, cooperative philosophy, and/or has passion for incorporating social needs into economic development.”

Thanks to Morgan and everyone who joined us and made the course such a meaningful experience! Our next class will be in 2024 — stay tuned for more info.

The Culture Collaborative Takes 1st Prize in Co-op U Pitch Night

Three teams recently completed Co-op U, our co-op business boot camp! 

Congratulations to The Culture Collaborative, an emerging consulting, training, and coaching co-op, whose business plan took 1st place during our recent Pitch Night.

Congrats also to Sew Valley (a sustainably focused apparel company) and NuSol Farm (a BIPOC farming collective), who put together exciting co-op business plans.

And thanks to our Pitch Night judges and speakers:

  • Cynthia Pinchback-Hines, our Racial Justice Educator and Co-op Developer

  • Brianna Dzuricsko, Director of Funding and Impact at Main Street Ventures

  • Aharon Brown, Racial Justice Fund Manager at Greater Cincinnati Foundation

  • Rebecca Fisher-McGinty, Worker-Owner at Round Sky Solutions.

2023 Union Co-op Symposium is 4 Months Away

We're putting the finishing touches on the schedule for our Union Co-op Symposium, From Dream to Action: The Transformative Power of Co-ops, Labor, and Community, which we're co-hosting with 1worker1vote. The Symposium will take place in-person on Oct 20 and Oct 21 in Cincinnati, Ohio.

The Symposium will focus on combining the best of the co-op and union movements, and it will highlight equity, labor, community wealth-building, and care for the earth and ourselves.

Our Cheers to Cooperatives celebration, scheduled for 7-9 p.m. on Friday Oct 20, will include drinks, food, a star studded speaker line-up, and more! Get your tickets now!

Queen City Commons Welcomes New Soil Slinger

Queen City Commons, a composting co-op in our network, recently welcomed a new team member!

Kaelee has a background in business marketing, retail, and restaurant work. 

In addition to picking up food scraps, Kaelee has been managing the residential drop-off program and spreading the good word about compost!

Sustainergy Team Members Elected to USW Local

Sustainergy worker-owner Austin Williams has been elected Vice President of the United Steelworkers Local 14734, and fellow worker-owner Lewis Connell has been elected Trustee. Co-op Cincy Co-Director Ellen Vera has been voted Secretary. Congratulations all!

Representatives from Morehouse and Tuskegee Visit Co-op Cincy

We recently had the pleasure of hosting Dr. Cynthia Hewitt of Morehouse College, Dr. Abdul Salau of Tuskegee University, and Terron Ferguson of Morehouse's Black Employee Ownership Initiative, a partnership with Project Equity. 

The trio are exploring how to close the racial wealth gap through employee ownership and union organizing. As part of their visit, they met with some of the co-ops in our network, including Heritage Hill, Our Harvest, Shine Nurture Center, Queen Mother’s Market, and Calabash Distribution.

Our Business Legacy Fund Helps Cleveland Company Become Worker-Owned

Earlier this year, our Business Legacy Fund helped The Fund for Employee Ownership, a project of Evergreen Cooperatives, acquire an industry-leading manufacturer of custom wood crates and heavy-duty skids. As part of the deal, the company will transition to the employee-owned model, with 20 employees that will become owners.

The Fund is looking to help more businesses become worker-owned. Learn more at becomeworkerowned.org.

Clare Kennedy, Xavier Student, Joins Us for the Summer

We're excited to have Clare Kennedy of Xavier University interning with us this summer!

Clare is a rising senior majoring in Psychology with minors in Communications and Population Health, and she serves as a peer educator for the Student Wellbeing Advocacy Group on campus.

This summer she’s assisting with events like Co-op Fest, collaborating with staff on communications work, and helping systematize and streamline internal processes. 

New Mandela Washington Fellow Starting in August

Arindo Akeni will be joining us later this summer as a Mandela Washington Fellow from the Democratic Republic of Congo! 

The Mandela Washington Fellowship for Young African Leaders is the flagship program of the U.S. Government’s Young African Leaders Initiative.

We’ll share more info in August about Arindo on Instagram, Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn, as well as through our newsletter.

Our tour of the Mondragon cooperative association in Spain was featured recently in Next City and on WVXU's Cincinnati Edition.

Here's a quote by Pastor Damon Lynch, III from the discussion on Cincinnati Edition:

“We all live in a democracy but most of us don’t work in a democracy. You don’t get to make decisions; decisions are made for you. And I think it’s more empowering to be part of an economic society where you get to help make the decisions.”

Pastor Lynch, III was joined on the show by Vice-Mayor Jan-Michele Kearney, our Co-Director Ellen Vera, and Barbara Bell, District Director for Congressman Greg Landsman.

In April, we brought a delegation of 40 civic, philanthropic, faith, and business leaders to tour the Mondragon cooperative association in Spain, one of the largest networks of worker-owned businesses in the world. Our goal was to help our region learn from this proven model for equitable economic growth. After we returned, we presented our takeaways to the City Council.

Movement

  • This month, the Department of Labor announced a new initiative to help “create and promote business ownership by America’s workers.”

Notes from the Black Cooperative Agenda Conference in Las Vegas

A MESSAGE FROM CYNTHIA PINCHBACK-HINES, RACIAL JUSTICE EDUCATOR & CO-OP DEVELOPER FOR CO-OP CINCY

Jessica Gordon-Nembhard with Cynthia Pinchback-Hines at the Black Cooperative Agenda conference in Las Vegas

Jessica Gordon-Nembhard, acclaimed author of Collective Courage: A History of African American Cooperative Economic Thought and Practice, was honored at the 2nd annual conference on the Black Cooperative Agenda.

Jessica is widely acknowledged for initiating the fourth wave of the Black economic movement. The first wave occurred in the Reconstruction Era, followed by the second wave during the post Jim Crow period, and the third after the civil rights movement. Each wave met with oppressive measures in response to Black economic and social progress. The current, fourth wave started in the post Obama era.

Organized by Ron Hanz and staff of the Network for Developing Conscious Communities (NDCC), the recent Black Cooperative Agenda conference took place in Las Vegas in early June. Distinguished speakers from across the Black cooperative spectrum shared their insights and experiences on conference topics centered on “Advancing Black Cooperative Economies Through Liberatory Practices.”

Co-op Dayton’s Amaha Sellassee, who participated in the panel discussion “Developing Cooperative Grocery Markets Within Underserved Neighborhoods,” expressed his enthusiasm for the event, describing it as “super powerful.” Amaha noted the intergenerational engagement of attendees and remarked, “The elders like to see the energy of the youngsters. Our history provides context for our present.”

Mona Jenkins, Cooperative Food Justice Coordinator for Co-op Cincy and Co-Founder of Queen Mother’s Market and Calabash Distribution, served as a panelist for the session on “Propelling Black Political Power.” She and Kathi Thomas Gibson, Executive Director of the Las Vegas Department of Neighborhood Services, presented a compelling argument emphasizing the importance of understanding the political landscape while fostering community and solidarity. Their aim is to prevent displacement through gentrification or other means detrimental to the African American community.

Mona commended the NDCC for establishing the National Association of Black Cooperators, an ecosystem of Black cooperators dedicated to reinvesting in the African American community. Mona also expressed hope that reinvestment would encompass healing, stating, “We need to heal because we try to bury trauma we’ve experienced. It will fester if we don’t address it.”

The conference underscored the significance of self-determination and sovereignty for the Black community.

It's Co-op Fest Time!

On Sat 6/24, you can meet our co-ops & connect with people interested in the cooperative movement

There will be music & free food 

On Saturday June 24 from 4-6 pm, come celebrate with us!

You’ll meet our co-op teams, learn about their products, and connect with other people interested in the cooperative movement!

There will be locally grown food from Hopes Fulfilled Farm 2 Table and Our Harvest, plus popsicles from Honey Child Artisan Pops. 

The festival is at Our Harvest's beautiful urban farm in College Hill, located at 969 W. North Bend Road Cincinnati, OH 45224. Please bring your own blanket or chair. 

The food (and popsicles!) will be free. 

2022 Annual Report Released

We've released our 2022 annual report, Setting the Stage for Scale.

The report details what we've learned at this point in our organizational development and key strategies going forward.

It also details our accomplishments from this past year, including helping a childcare center and apparel company become worker owned.

Check out the report.

Join Our 2023 Union Co-op Symposium 

From Dream to Action: The Transformative Power of Co-ops, Labor, and Community

We're 4 months away from our Union Co-op Symposium, From Dream to Action: The Transformative Power of Co-ops, Labor, and Community, which we are co-hosting with 1worker1vote. The Symposium will take place in-person on Oct 20 and Oct 21 in Cincinnati, Ohio.

The Symposium focuses on combining the best of the co-op and union movements to forge a new economy rooted in connection. The event will be dynamic and inspiring, waking us up to the possibilities of being networked in meaningful ways. Activities will highlight equity, labor, community wealth-building, and care for the earth and ourselves.

Staff and Supporters Present to City Council About Mondragon Tour

On 5/31, Co-op Cincy and supporters presented to the City Council's Healthy Neighborhoods Committee about our tour of the Mondragon cooperative association, one of the largest networks of cooperatives in the world.

We toured Mondragon in Spain at the end of April with a delegation that included civic, business, philanthropic, and faith leaders from Greater Cincinnati and Dayton, as well as worker-owners from our own network of worker cooperatives.

Our goal? Help our region learn from a proven model for equitable economic growth.

During our 5/31 presentation, we discussed how the city can support and fund the growth of worker-owned businesses in Cincinnati.

A big thanks to everyone who spoke!

You can learn more about our trip on our Learning from Mondragon blog post.

Our tour has been covered in a variety of media outlets, from Soapbox to the Cincinnati Business Courier!

Power in Numbers Applications Due Soon

Beginning in the fall, we’re offering another Power in Numbers, our co-op business boot camp for Black-led teams!

The free, 14-week course helps Black-led teams of entrepreneurs work through the process of launching a cooperative business and build wealth for the long term.

As a co-op business incubator, we support participants in the process and offer ongoing technical assistance after they launch their co-op business.

Applications are due by June 31 – apply today! Know someone who might be interested? Share our info!

Victoria Russell, Cooperative Owner, Joins Team

We’re excited to welcome Victoria Russell to our team as our new Office & Project Manager!

Victoria Russell is an entrepreneur and mortgage analyst with over 20 years of experience, most of which is in the mortgage industry. Her diverse professional background has equipped her with valuable skills in organization, communication, attention to detail, and problem-solving. She is a founder and worker-owner of A Touch of TLC Home Health Care. 

Read more about her at coopcincy.org/staff-and-board

Events on Cooperative Ownership

Ellen Vera, our Co-Director, and Mary Wilder, worker-owner of Shine Nurture Center, participated in a recent webinar, "Preserving Your Legacy: How to Sell Your Business to Your Employees," about how owners can sell their businesses to their employees, preserving their legacy and positively impacting the community. You can watch the webinar online!

Mary also joined the webinar “Remaking the Economy: Caring for the Care Economy" organized by Nonprofit Quarterly. Here's one of Mary's quotes from the webinar: “Childcare workers are not in the same conversation [with] regular teachers…. We’re an afterthought, so we have to fight harder for funding than normal schools—and there is funding out there, but you just have to dig for it and find it. But those are the things that we are seeing in childcare that workers need: they need higher wages, they need healthcare, they need more benefits." Watch the webinar online!

And Flequer Vera of Sustainergy spoke at an international webinar on June 7 organized by CICOPA Americas (the International Organisation of Industrial and Service Cooperatives) called "Contribution From Worker Cooperatives on Environmental Sustainability, Territorial Development, and Decent Work."

Movement

  • ICYMI, last month the U.N. General Assembly adopted its first resolution on the social and solidarity economy and spotlighted the role of cooperatives!

Learning From Mondragon

Co-op Cincy and Delegation Members to Present to City Council

At the end of last month, we got back from visiting the Mondragon cooperative association in Spain.

Mondragon has always been our North Star, and we were thrilled to tour the association with a delegation of civic, business, philanthropic, and faith leaders from Greater Cincinnati and Dayton, as well as worker-owners from our own network of worker cooperatives.

Since being launched in 1956, Mondragon's network of cooperatives has been an engine for economic growth while giving the Basque region the lowest levels of poverty and economic inequality in Spain.

Today Mondragon employs 70,000 people in an association of 80 cooperatives, which range from a grocery chain to engineering and logistics firms. It's the 10th largest corporation in Spain, with sales in 150 countries.

So, what did we do during our visit? Besides enjoying some delicious food and wine, we

  • toured cooperatives in Mondragon's network

  • spoke with business and solidarity economy leaders

  • visited a campus of Mondragon University

Among the cooperatives we toured were Fagor Electronica, a semiconductor supplier, and Grupo Ausolan, an industrial catering company.

The business leaders we met with included Josean Yela, managing director of Eroski, a Spanish grocery chain with over 1,600 stores. We also heard from the dynamic Armin Isasti, founder of Saiolan (Mondragon's co-op incubator), and co-writer of an extraordinary book on one of Mondragon's founders, Jose Maria Ormaetxea. 

Our tour was covered in the Cincinnati Business Courier, Movers & Makers, The Cincinnati Herald print edition, and other outlets.

In this 2 minute video, delegates reflect on the tour of the Mondragon cooperative association.

Key Takeaways

 

1. The cooperative model has the power to transform Cincinnati’s economy


The cooperative model may be unfamiliar to some in the U.S., but Mondragon demonstrates what’s possible when we embrace worker-ownership. Mondragon has transformed the Basque region, which has a similar population size as Greater Cincinnati. In addition, the conditions at Mondragon's founding (such as widespread polarization and inequality) are similar to conditions here.
 

2. We can build wealth by balancing the needs of people and business


In the Mondragon association, there’s an emphasis on balancing community needs (jobs, people) and business competitiveness (profits). Ten percent of each cooperative's profits goes toward the community.
 

3. Work is changing because of tech – and we can intentionally build our future economy


We can cultivate an economy of shared ownership and decision-making. We are on our way. In Greater Cincinnati, there are currently about 5,000 workers employed in businesses with 100% employee-owned ESOPS (employee stock ownership plans).
 

Next Steps


On Wed. May 31 at 12:30 pm, we (Co-op Cincy and members of the delegation) will give a presentation to the City Council in Council Chambers (Room 300) of City Hall about our visit to Mondragon.

We'll discuss how the city can support and fund the growth of worker-owned businesses in Cincinnati. We encourage you to join us and show your support! 

Since 2011, Co-op Cincy has worked to nurture a network of worker-owned businesses through training, ongoing coaching, and loan access. Our network now includes 16 worker-owned businesses ranging from an energy efficiency and solar power business to an urban farm.

As a nonprofit, we are funded through grants and donations. You can donate today to help us support worker-owned businesses!

2023 Co-op Fest Scheduled for June 24

On Saturday June 24 from 4-6 pm, come celebrate with us at our annual Co-op Fest! You’ll meet our co-op teams, learn about their products, and connect with other people interested in the cooperative movement!

We’ll listen to music, eat delicious food, and hang out on Our Harvest's beautiful urban farm in College Hill. The farm address is 969 W. North Bend Road Cincinnati, OH 45224.

The food (and popsicles!) will be free. Register now so we can get an idea of attendance!

Join Us at 2023 Union Co-op Symposium 

From Dream to Action: The Transformative Power of Co-ops, Labor, and Community

Our 6th biennial Union Co-op Symposium, From Dream to Action: The Transformative Power of Co-ops, Labor, and Community, will take place in-person on Oct 20 and Oct 21 in Cincinnati, Ohio.

The Symposium will focus on combining the best of the co-op and union movements to forge a new economy rooted in connection. The event will be dynamic and inspiring, waking us up to the possibilities of being networked in meaningful ways. Activities will highlight equity, labor, community wealth-building, and care for the earth and ourselves.

Sustainergy Wins Impact Award

Congrats to Sustainergy for winning the IMPACT Award from the Midwest Regional Sustainability Summit!

The award recognizes significant and measurable sustainability impact that increases natural resource conservation with/for diverse audiences.

Cincy Cleaning Co-op Featured in UK Media

Cincy Cleaning Co-op was featured in the article "More than a paycheque: How can co-ops offer a better future of work?" in Co-op News.

Araceli Ortiz, a founding member, explained that the co-op's team of women worker-owners have been able to “find more stability by coming together as a collective."

Queen City Commons Brainstorms with Michigan Grad Students

Queen City Commons met with a group of MBA students from the University of Michigan.

The students  are offering research-based insights to businesses as part of their graduate work. 

Business Legacy Fund Presents to Multiple Chambers of Commerce

Chris Bennett, Acquisitions Manager for the Business Legacy Fund, presented "Leave an Enduring Legacy: The Benefits of Selling Your Business to Your Employees" to members of 6 Cincinnati-area Chambers of Commerce on 5/17.

After 2 successful acquisitions in 2022, the BLF is looking to acquire 3-4 businesses in 2023. The BLF helps business owners sell their companies to their workers.

Movement

From Cincinnati to Mondragon

Getting Ready to Tour Influential Co-op Association in Spain

We're gearing up for a transatlantic trip! From April 23-27, we're leading a delegation of civic leaders from Greater Cincinnati on a tour of the Mondragon cooperative business association in Spain.

A group of 40 will tour Mondragon, our North Star, an international benchmark for cooperation, and the largest industrial association of cooperatives in the world. Mondragon has transformed a region with a similar population size as Greater Cincinnati, reducing economic inequality while fostering long-term growth.

The diverse delegation includes business, philanthropic, and faith leaders; worker-owners from Co-op Cincy’s network of cooperatives; and representatives from Co-op Cincy’s sister organization in Dayton, Co-op Dayton.

We initially planned to take this trip before the pandemic; we're thrilled it's finally happening.

For more on why this trip is important, check out this 1-minute video. If you want to donate to help a group of 6 worker-owners join the trip, you can do so here.

We'll keep you posted on how everything goes! 

2023 Union Co-op Symposium Registration Opens

From Dream to Action: The Transformative Power of Co-ops, Labor, and Community

We're excited to announce our 6th biennial Union Co-op Symposium, From Dream to Action: The Transformative Power of Co-ops, Labor, and Community, which will take place in-person on Oct 20 and Oct 21 in Cincinnati, Ohio.

The Symposium will focus on combining the best of the co-op and union movements to forge a new economy rooted in connection. The event will be dynamic and inspiring, waking us up to the possibilities of being networked in meaningful ways. Activities will highlight equity, labor, community wealth-building, and care for the earth and ourselves.

Property Management Co-op Joins Network

E Team became our newest co-op last month after Martin Eisen (one of 3 co-op members) signed the articles of incorporation last month! 👏👏👏

E Team is a property management and repair company that emerged from our Construction Co-op U. Stay tuned for more news on them!

Queen Mother's Market Included in Congressional Funding Request

Queen Mother’s Market was one of the 15 local projects that Congressman Greg Landsman put forward for federal funding! 

Landsman's request was for $2 million of the expected $5 million cost for QMM's co-op grocery store. From his description: “The Queen Mother’s Market Establishment project would establish a brick-and-mortar grocery store in Walnut Hills. The new grocery store would primarily benefit seniors and vulnerable community members who have lacked nearby access to quality food options since 2017.”

Watch a short video of the announcement on Instagram.

Sustainergy Offers Free Assessments

Sustainergy, the 2nd oldest co-op in our network, is offering a free residential energy assessment: "Considering the 30% federal solar tax credit, as well as brand new rebates and incentives for insulation, there has never been a better time to explore improving your home energy performance!" Contact Sustainergy at 513-667-6900 or www.sustainergy.coop.

Queen City Commons Nears Half A Million Pounds of Compost

In a few months, Queen City Commons will hit a half a million pounds of scraps diverted for composting since starting operation in 2020! Check out their newest community drop-off bin at Cincinnati Recycling & Reuse Hub in Lower Price Hill.

Co-ops and Boot Camp Featured in Spectrum News

Spectrum News Ohio highlighted some of the worker co-ops in our network, along with our co-op business boot camp! 💜💜💜

A Touch of TLC Home Care and Queen City Commons were both interviewed for the article, as was our Co-Director Ellen Vera.

“We want to build an economy that’s equitable and inclusive — an economy that works for all,” Vera said.

Business Legacy Fund Builds Off Success

After 2 successful acquisitions in 2022, the Business Legacy Fund is looking to acquire 3-4 businesses in 2023!

Chris Bennet, the BLF Acquisitions Manager, will be presenting "Leave an Enduring Legacy: The Benefits of Selling Your Business to Your Employees" at Maple Knoll Auditorium on the campus of Maple Knoll Village from 11 am-1 pm on Wed 5/17.

Board Convenes for Retreat

We had a great time at our board retreat last month! 💫

We visited 3 of the worker-owned businesses in our network: Our Harvest, Sustainergy, and Shine Nurture Center. We also deepened connections while conducting strategic planning. Thanks to our board members for making it so special and for helping us launch and support worker-owned businesses!

Movement

  • Rutgers School of Management and Labor Relations has developed a free online program to help minority and female business owners learn about employee ownership strategies for business succession planning. The program will help business owners assess the relevance of establishing an ESOP or worker co-op.

  • An article in Next City highlights the efforts to build community wealth through worker ownership on both sides of the Atlantic. The article spotlight’s Cleveland’s Evergreen Cooperatives, Colorado’s Center for Community Wealth Building, and the UK’s Centre for Local Economic Strategies.

  • Some news from the wave of unionizations happening around the country: “by an overwhelming majority vote, workers at REI, Inc. in Beachwood, Ohio, a suburb of Cleveland and the only REI location in the greater metropolitan area, have voted to join the RWDSU, making this the third unionized REI store in the nation.” 

  • WePower is hiring a Vice President of Community Wealth Building.

  • Belén Marco and Tori Kuper of the New Economy Coalition reflected on the cooperative and economic democracy movements from Barcelona in Nonprofit Quarterly.

Uplifting women

Did you know that 66% of the individuals in our co-op network are women? So are 62% of our staff members, including both our co-directors. At Co-op Cincy, we strive to build an economy that’s equitable and inclusive – an economy that works for all. 

As worker-owner Julia Marchese of Queen City Commons said in our 2022 blog post for Women's History Month, this month offers an opportunity for women in business to “be recognized and appreciated and just seen as legitimate actors in the field.”

Here are some local women-led co-ops in our network that you can support during and after Women's History Month:

Long-Standing Supporter and Board Member Passes

With a heavy heart, we inform you that Don Barker, a long-standing Co-op Cincy supporter and the father of Co-Founder Kristen Barker, passed away on March 1.

Here's a message from Co-Founder Ellen Vera about Don's impact and life:

Don was an amazing individual. Not only did he raise a phenomenal daughter—our fearless, compassionate, and visionary Kristen—but he was intricately involved in the success of our co-op network. He served on the Board from our inception (2011) until he first became sick in 2019 as our Fundraising Chair and provided countless hours of mentorship, outreach, and financial support to our non-profit and several of our initial co-ops. In his roles with Co-op Cincy, Don was a steadfast supporter; a team player; a business-savvy mentor that provided clear, helpful advice (especially when we needed it most); and an eternal optimist though he never hesitated to point out hard truths. He will be sorely missed by all. 

You can read Don's obituary in the Cincinnati Enquirer. A few lines from the obit: "He was inordinately kind and very funny. He was a man who never knew a stranger and could relate to anyone.... In lieu of flowers, he would be thrilled to have you contribute, in his memory, to Co-op Cincy, where he served on the fundraising committee."

Virtual Co-op Business Boot Camp Starts 3/21

Benefit From Mentorship and Training

Starting on 3/21, we're offering our Co-op U, a 14-week boot camp that helps teams develop and launch a worker-owned business! 

Are you a team of 2 or more who are interested in starting a business? Apply now!

Know a team who might be interested? Forward this email!

Participants will develop a successful business plan of their own, benefit from hands-on training by professionals, and more!

We're offering Co-op U in partnership with Co-op Dayton and Cleveland Owns! 

Cooperative Management Certificate Course Pushed Back to 3/15

Applications are still open for our Cooperative Management Certificate.

The 12-week, virtual course explores the power of cooperative structures to make our businesses profoundly accountable to workers, environments, and communities! It's offered in partnership with Xavier University.

Participants acquire a detailed understanding of how to structure and run businesses that implement cooperative and democratic organizational models, from worker cooperatives to companies with Employee Stock Ownership Plans (ESOPs).

Apply by 3/14!

1st Co-op Tour of 2023 is March 10

The free tours are part of our efforts to spread awareness about the co-op business model and how it’s taking off in Cincinnati. 

Our first tour of the year is Friday March 10 from 10 am to noon. We'll meet at Sustainergy Cooperative and go from there!

We'll be offering tours monthly through October.

Black Co-op 101 Recording Available

A recording of our 1st-ever Black Co-op History 101 is now available on YouTube.

In the course, Cynthia Pinchback-Hines, our Racial Justice Educator & Co-op Developer, discussed the history of Black cooperativism. 

Co-op Members Raising Money for Mondragon Trip

A group of 6 co-op business owners in our network is still raising money to tour the Mondragon Cooperative Corporation in Spain next month and learn from a proven economic model. Can you contribute or share? 

Here's a video from Trisha Webster, worker-owner of Shine Nurture Center, explaining why she wants to visit Mondragon. 

If you can support Trisha and the 5 other worker-owners, please do!

Movement

  • Seed Commons is hiring a Development Director

  • Yessica Holguin and Jason Wiener highlight lessons from Colorado's bold support for employee ownership in Nonprofit Quarterly

  • The Invest Appalachia Fund has launched with $19 million for community-first impact investment in central Appalachia

  • Registration is open for the 2023 National Conference on Black Cooperative Agenda

  • From Cleveland's The Land: “Evergreen Cooperative Laundry, an employee-owned company, is planning a $1 million, 6,500 square foot expansion of its Glenville laundry facility in order to serve growing demand for its commercial laundry services.”

  • In Medium, Ra Criscitiello, Deputy Director of Research at SEIU UHW, discusses how "cooperatives have the ability to strengthen unionized workplaces by furnishing additional tools for organizing and building power."

  • From Nonprofit Quarterly: “After seven years of kitchen-table and Zoom organizing, a multi-stakeholder, cooperative, community-owned grocery store is taking shape in Louisville, KY."

Events

Black Co-op Success: Stories of Progress and Despair

A message from Cynthia Pinchback-Hines, Racial Justice Educator & Co-op Developer for Co-op Cincy, to mark Black History Month

Three amendments to the U.S. Constitution paved the way for collective cooperation in the African American community during Reconstruction, the period following the abolishment of slavery. The 13th Amendment, ratified by Congress in 1865, abolished slavery. The 14th Amendment, ratified by Congress in 1868, granted citizenship rights to all individuals born and naturalized in the United States. Finally, the 15th Amendment, ratified by Congress in 1870, gave Black men the right to vote and accelerated progress and wealth in the Black community. 

Zebulon Elijah (1836 or 1838 to 1910) became a state legislator and government official in Florida after having been enslaved. He was born in Santa Rosa County, Florida.

During Reconstruction, 16 African Americans served in the U.S. Congress, more than 600 more were elected to the state legislatures, and hundreds more held local offices across the South. Political power provided space for Blacks to plant seeds of prosperity. Black communities practiced collective cooperation, which helped them to make a modest living. 

From a historical perspective, Black collective cooperation has gone through cycles of prosperity and despair, and each cycle has coincided with a significant era: Reconstruction, the Civil Rights Movement, and the post-Obama presidency. Whenever African Americans made progress and contributed to a hopeful historical narrative, there was a subsequent regression, creating a counternarrative of despair.

Reconstruction

Enslaved Africans arrived on the shores of Virginia in the 1600s, and many possessed knowledge, skills, and customs that they relied on for survival. Whether raising livestock, cultivating rice fields, introducing a cooking style, or smelting iron, enslaved Africans were forced to work for free, which generated wealth throughout the South for slave owners. After the Emancipation Proclamation (1865), many Blacks chose to remain in effective servitude to their owners because they were afraid of losing the means to take care of their basic needs. Others left their slave masters and chose to “labor faithfully for reasonable wages.”

A sharecropper in Montgomery County, Alabama in 1937.

After 1865, Blacks seeking work did not need a résumé. They had proven their worth picking cotton, harvesting tobacco and sugar cane, planting and harvesting rice, building railroads, driving coaches, weaving, butchering, preserving, cooking, etc. White business owners welcomed hiring a skilled Black workforce for low wages, but this led to a discontented poor white population that was fearful of losing their livelihood to freed Blacks. Fear turned into anger and anger into terrorism and violence targeting Black men and women. The Ku Klux Klan became the first official terrorist group to attack Black people and their businesses as punishment for creating a white underclass.

A grocery store in Washington D.C. owned by a Mr. J. Benjamin on a Saturday afternoon in 1942.

Other freed Blacks chose a different path for survival. Instead of being at the mercy of white business owners, they banded together to form Black-owned mutual aid societies, grocery stores, and other businesses. Collective cooperation was key to owning land, buildings, and houses. Each day of working together brought Black businesses closer to realizing the American dream. However, they too encountered violence from angry whites who destroyed whole communities and struck fear in Black people. Forced to rely on white business owners, thousands of Blacks turned to sharecropping and menial jobs to get by.

A hotel after the 1921 Tulsa massacre.

The plunder and destruction hit the Black community of Greenwood in Tulsa, Oklahoma, particularly hard. On June 1, 1921, "Black Wall Street", one of the wealthiest Black communities, was attacked. Thirty-five blocks were looted and burned, destroying 190 businesses and leaving 10,000 people homeless. What triggered the attack was a white woman accusing a Black man of touching her shoulder when he tripped and fell in the elevator.

Jim Crow laws were put in place to squelch any progress for Blacks. Their political power had diminished, their personal freedoms had declined, and their protections had disappeared or were not enforced. At the time, lynchings were commonplace throughout the South.

The Civil Rights Movement

The 1963 March on Washington.

The Civil Rights movement ushered in an era of pride in the Black community. Attempts to quiet the cries of “freedom and justice” failed. The 1963 March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom spotlighted injustices, and President Johnson signed the Civil Rights Act of 1964, outlawing racial segregation in public accommodations, including hotels, restaurants, theaters, and stores, and making employment discrimination illegal. The Civil Rights Act, along with the Voting Rights Act of 1965, opened doors to economic opportunities for African Americans. Affirmative action policies designed to “even the playing field” were enforced, increasing diversity in the workplace at all levels. As a result, the number of Black-owned businesses grew exponentially. A devastating blow to the progress was the tragic loss of four beacons of hope, all within a span of five years: President John F. Kennedy, Malcolm X, Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., and Robert Kennedy. Striking down each of these icons in the prime of life sent shockwaves throughout the nation and produced stagnation within the African American business community.

Post-Obama

President Barack Obama in 2010.

Barack Hussein Obama was the first United States president to hold a national briefing on cooperatives at the White House. Vernon Oakes, former President of the National Association of Housing Cooperatives (NAHC) and recent graduate of Co-op Cincy’s Power in Numbers: Black Co-op U, attended the briefing and reported, “I felt that they heard us and they will do what they can. The responsibility for promoting the cooperative business is ours. We have to create our own database and promote with and through them. I met some new friends in the co-op world.” Vernon is co-founder of Everything Co-op, a weekly radio broadcast that promotes African American cooperatives.

The team behind Hopes Fulfilled Farm 2 Table Co-op.

President Obama also signed the Global Food Security Act, which was intended to help cooperatives like Hopes Fulfilled, Queen Mother’s Market, and Growing Black Power end food insecurity in marginalized communities in Cincinnati and across the world.

Sadly, forces that systematically seek to deny economic justice to African Americans will continue, creating discouraging counternarratives. The good news is that African Americans are successfully pressing forward, creating hopeful narratives of progress. 

A Visionary Lays the Foundation for Black Cooperation

A post from Cynthia Pinchback-Hines, Co-op Cincy’s Racial Justice Educator & Co-op Developer, to honor Black History Month

W.E.B. DuBois, one of the most celebrated Black cooperators and outspoken scholars of the 20th Century, devoted much of his life to promoting economic cooperation. In fact, he claimed that economic cooperation was among his most important post World War I activities. He argued “that cooperatives would provide economic opportunities denied to African Americans and would allow Blacks to serve the common good rather than be slaves to market forces,” according to Jessica Gordon Nembhard’s Collective Courage.

Furthermore, DuBois asserted that Blacks were a consumer class which necessitated a plan for creating racial economic cooperatives, starting with neighborhood groups buying wholesale from white-owned factories until they could “form their own large-scale wholesale and manufacturing organizations.” This would involve local Black-owned stores stocking food, clothing, and household goods. Stores would raise money by selling stocks at low cost, and each shareholding member would have one vote, guaranteeing fixed interest on shares and returns from profits on the amount of purchases. 

“W.E.B. Dubois argued ‘that cooperatives would provide economic opportunities denied to African Americans and would allow Blacks to serve the common good rather than be slaves to market forces.’ ”
— Collective Courage by Jessica Gordon Nembhard

Cynthia Pinchback-Hines, Racial Justice Educator and Co-op Developer for Co-op Cincy

During his life, DuBois advocated for various active cooperatives, including for church denominations, educational purposes, and mutual aid societies, to name a few.  After the stock market crash of 1929, DuBois imagined African Americans at the forefront of the country’s new economic structure. Instead, the African American community remains locked in today’s consumer economy.  Black wealth is an elusive proposition, with the average white family having eight times the wealth of the average Black family and five times the wealth of the typical Latino family, according to the Federal Reserve.

Mona Jenkins, co-founder of Queen Mother’s Market (QMM), has taken a giant step toward reversing the fortunes of African Americans. Mona is seeking solutions to dire situations affecting her community, with food insecurity being one of her greatest concerns.   

Mona’s neighborhood of Walnut Hills lost its only grocery store in 2017, leaving many residents with limited access to healthy, nutritious, and affordable food. In the wake of the grocery store’s closure, residents participated in a survey and community engagement sessions, exploring solutions to their food dilemma. They decided on the short-term solution of a food delivery service with ride shares. For a long-term solution, they wanted to create a food cooperative. This led to the creation of QMM, which was founded by three Black women: Mona Jenkins, Theresa Martin, and Krista Greenlee.

The team behind Queen Mothers’ Market

According to Mona, QMM “will operate an 11,700 square-foot, full-service grocery store that will provide healthy and affordable staples and perishable food to Walnut Hills, the other nearby underserved and food insecure communities of Avondale and Evanston, and surrounding Cincinnati neighborhoods. [It] will be easily accessible by public transit and walkable for many low-income residents who lack vehicles currently needed to drive to the next nearest grocery store.”

No doubt, DuBois would have commended the founders of QMM for addressing a need in their own neighborhood through cooperative means. Local, Black-led businesses like A Touch of TLC, Hopes Fulfilled, Body by Bodji, and Heritage Hill have learned lessons from the DuBois playbook of promoting economic freedom and joined the ranks of cooperative worker-owners who are building community and, as Heritage Hill would say, “making their ancestors proud.”

Co-op Cincy plays an important role in developing and supporting Black-led co-ops through training, coaching, fundraising, and other wrap-around services.  Aligned with DuBois’s views on economic cooperation, Co-op Cincy’s mission is “creating an economy that works for all.”

Looking forward and backward: an update at the start of 2023

A Message from Co-Director Kristen Barker

The experiment of Co-op Cincy has now lasted 11 years. We have learned from successes and setbacks in developing a network of worker-owned businesses, and we have distilled structures that increase our co-ops’ chances of success. We bring these insights into this moment as we continue to learn and grow. 

We have a foundation to build on. Since our founding, our network has grown to 13 co-ops employing more than 100 people, of which 75% are people of color and 66% are women. This last year, Cincinnati was ranked #4 in the country among the top 25 cities for employee ownership by Certified EO! In Greater Cincinnati, there are currently about 5,000 workers employed in businesses with 100% employee-owned ESOPS (employee stock ownership plans).

Co-op Cincy continued our work of building community wealth in 2022. In the area of affordable housing, network member Renting Partnerships made big strides. Renting Partnerships is pioneering an exciting renting model to combat gentrification while providing opportunities for low-income households to build wealth through participation in affordable, community-owned housing. At the end of 2022, Renting Partnerships closed on a new duplex and expanded their staff to identify new properties. As 2023 begins, they are looking for mission aligned partners. One possible avenue is to partner with congregations in transition. 


At Co-op Cincy, we are determined to collectively create an economy that works for all, especially for those who have been historically excluded. We envision having 80,000 worker-owned jobs in this region in 50 years. We imagine thriving communities where everyone has access to affordable housing. We picture people creating the world we all want to see, a world based on solidarity that recognizes in our bones what Rev Dr. Martin Luther King Jr says so beautifully: “We are caught in an inescapable network of mutuality tied in a single garment of destiny.” 

How can this come to be? What gives us hope and a blueprint for action? Several things:

Mondragon serves as a guiding light and a proven example of what is possible, showing us how an interconnected community of worker-owned co-ops can truly move the needle on poverty, unemployment, and inequality. This was highlighted in a recent Bloomberg article and podcast titled, "How a Worker-Owned Business Model in Spain Is Keeping Inequality in Check."

U.S. history points to what is doable, to how cooperatives can solve significant problems and scale! Rural electric cooperatives, owned by rural residents, electrified 75% of the United States! Member-owned credit unions, which offer affordable financial services, have more than 110 million members! They have specialized in making affordable financial services available to all income levels, with a particular focus on those with low incomes. 

Additionally, there is a remarkable, centuries-old history of collective and cooperative mutual aid efforts among African Americans, one detailed by Jessica Gordon-Nembhard in her book Collective Courage. This history has led to important opportunities for people who have been excluded, enabling them to create structures for participation, problem-solving, education, training, and wealth-building. 

Collective action is alive and well. Movements for civil rights, labor, environmental, and social justice are helping to remove structural barriers and open up new possibilities. Here are two articles about just a few of the victories from 2022. This one focuses on climate victories.

At the moment, Co-op Cincy has 4 strategies to move the needle on poverty and inequality, broaden ownership, and create thriving communities:

1. Help business owners sell their businesses to their workers

Around 2/3 of all private businesses are owned by baby boomers, many of whom are in the process of retiring or are nearing retirement. As a result of this wave of retirements, 80 percent of these businesses are at risk of shutting down. This could be a significant opportunity to transfer wealth and broaden ownership.

Through our Business Legacy Fund, we have partnered with Seed Commons, a national network of non-extractive loan funds, to create a multimillion-dollar fund for small- and mid-sized businesses. In 2022 we transitioned 2 companies: Shine Nurture Center, whose owner was ready to move on to their next adventure while preserving their legacy, and Heritage Hill, a Black apparel company whose founder wanted to expand ownership while continuing to work in the business. In 2023, we expect to transition many more businesses. 

How you can help: Do you know any business owners retiring who would like to receive fair-market value for their company while selling to their employees and preserving their legacy? Or business owners who would like to continue working but also to expand ownership and further distribute responsibilities and rewards while receiving a fair price for the business? More info on our Business Legacy Fund here.

2. Support start-up co-ops

Over the years, we have upped our game in helping start-ups verify their assumptions while defining viable business models and shared ownership structures. Last year, several new co-ops came into existence or restructured themselves in impactful ways as a result of our 14-week Co-op U experience. This year we will be releasing our Co-op U Manual as a resource. We will also be working with 10-20 new teams of people who are seeking to bring a co-op business to life. 

How you can help: Do you have a desire to think creatively and problem-solve? To give feedback and mentor new co-ops, helping them become the most impactful and feasible version of themselves? Connect with us if this sounds interesting to you! You can email kristen@coopcincy.org.

3. Support our existing co-op network

Worker-ownership can grow with the co-ops in our network. We provide support for culture building, financial literacy, business analysis, and business planning for the 13 worker-owned co-ops in our network. We also help worker-owned co-ops solve challenges, access financing, and grow. In addition, we offer them training via our Cooperative Management Certificate, which is provided in partnership with Xavier University’s Leadership Center. 

How you can help: We have so many innovative co-ops confronting a variety of challenges. Do you want to help two BIPOC-led co-ops solve food distribution to underserved areas experiencing food insecurity? Do you want to support new worker-owners in building their tech skills? Do you like to document systems? There are an infinite number of volunteer opportunities with our existing co-ops! 

Consider how your purchases can support an inclusive economy where everyone shares in ownership. Consider patronizing our co-ops. You can find them via our Co-op Overview page, which includes a Co-op Directory. A helpful guide to local Black-owned businesses can be found here. 

4. Supporting policy, network, & social movements

Policy can enable a more inclusive and equitable economy–or thwart it. Legislation led to the flourishing of rural electric co-ops and credit unions. Climate-smart, democracy-enhancing legislation for shared ownership and equity can make a difference.

Similarly, participation with networks of co-ops of all kinds–and to social movements, including labor–synergistically multiply our efforts. 

How you can help: Do you have a passion for policy? Do you enjoy serving as a bridge between different movements and efforts? Do you like to organize convenings that break down silos and deepen connection and collective power? Reach out and connect with us! You can email kristen@coopcincy.org.

To move the needle on poverty and wealth inequality in Cincinnati, we need your help! Collectively we are powerful!

10 Teams Successfully Complete Power in Numbers and Co-op U

Congrats to Growing Black Power, an emerging farming and food supply co-op whose business plan took 1st place during the Pitch Night for our 3rd Power in Numbers!


Congrats also to the other co-op business teams who participated and made it such an exciting program: Everything Co-op, PVD (Providence) Flowers, and Local Farm Cooperative.

Power in Numbers is a course that supports Black-led teams of entrepreneurs as they develop and launch co-op businesses. The 4 teams who participated pitched their co-op business plans at our final meeting this month.

Special thanks to our Pitch Night judges: Mike Strode of Kola Nut Collaborative, Emmy Allison of LIFT Economy, Jill McCauley of the Greater Cincinnati-Northern Kentucky African American Chamber of Commerce, and Brian Griffin of the Cincinnati AFL-CIO Labor Council (and a board member of Co-op Cincy).

We're planning to offer another Power in Numbers later this year. You can learn more at coopcincy.org/power-in-numbers.

Congrats to Third Ward Cooperative Community Builders, an emerging shared services co-op whose business plan took 1st place during the recent Pitch Night for our Construction Co-op U!


Congrats also to the Carpenters and Drywall Co-op, which took 2nd place, and to our other teams, who put together exciting co-op business plans: Co-op Dayton Sustainergy Expansion, Junction Economic Transformation Center, Arizmendi Repair Services Cooperative, and Cincinnati Property Management Cooperative.

Our Construction Co-op U is an intensive, 14-week co-op business boot camp that helps teams develop a worker-owned business in a construction-related field. The 6 teams who participated pitched their co-op business plans at our final meeting last month.

Special thanks to our Pitch Night judges: Austin Williams of Sustainergy, Co-op Cincy Board Member & Treasurer Tyree L. Fields, and Rob McLane of TSF Solar.

Co-op U and Cooperative Management Certificate Courses Start in March

Starting March 21, we're offering a general Co-op U in partnership with Co-op Dayton and Cleveland Owns. 

Our Co-op U is an online training and support program that helps teams develop a worker-owned business.

Applications are also open for our Cooperative Management Certificate, which explores the power of cooperative structures to make our businesses profoundly accountable to workers, environments, and communities!

The 12-week, virtual course starts 3/1 and is offered in partnership with Xavier University.

Participants acquire a detailed understanding of how to structure and run businesses that implement cooperative and democratic organizational models, from worker cooperatives to companies with Employee Stock Ownership Plans (ESOPs).

Staff and Supporters Meet with Newly Elected Congressman Landsman

We had a great time meeting with newly elected Congressman Greg Landsman yesterday about bolstering co-op development at the local and national levels!

Said Congressman Landsman: “I’m a BIG fan of worker-owned businesses. Great for workers, highly effective business practice, and amazing for the economy.”

Thanks for meeting with us, Congressman Landsman!

Forthcoming Book Features Chapter by Co-op Cincy Founders

Humanity @ Work & Life, which will be published later this year, explores how Mondragon-inspired cooperative ecosystems transform “humanity at work” both globally and locally.  

Our very own Co-Directors Kristen Barker and Ellen Vera contributed a chapter about Co-op Cincy's efforts to bring Mondragon's model of interconnected, worker-owned businesses to Greater Cincinnati.

You can preorder the book here.

Co-op Business Owners Organize GoFundMe to Visit Mondragon

A group of co-op business owners in our network has organized a GoFundMe campaign to join the tour of Mondragon. Their goal: learn from the largest industrial cooperative in the world. Can you contribute to their campaign? Or share? 

Here’s their GoFundMe.

The group of 8 is trying to raise $20,000 in total. They’ve already secured $6,400 from the Haile Foundation. They hope to take home lessons from the democratic, resilient economic model developed by Mondragon. 

If you can support them, please do!

New Team Members

We're excited to welcome a new staff member and a new member of our Board of Directors. 📣🎉💫

Zachary Dutton brings over 15 years of experience with groups and organizations in strategic planning, team building, and organizational change. 

Ashley Schleicher completed her MBA concentrating in Human Resources and Organizational Leadership and Change at Northern Kentucky University in December 2022 and is currently the Executive Assistant and Office Manager at the Cincinnati AFL-CIO Labor Council.

Co-op Directory Now Online

Co-op Tour Dates Announced

Curious about our co-ops? We are gearing up for another round of co-op tours this spring, with the 1st on Fri 3/10 from 10 am to noon.

The tours are free (though donations are appreciated)! Get your spot now! See coopcincy.org/events.

The tours are part of our efforts to spread awareness about the co-op business model and how it’s taking off in Cincinnati.

Participants will tour some of the co-ops in our network, which includes more than 10 businesses ranging from an energy-efficiency and solar power company to an urban farm.

Renting Partnerships Closes on Duplex 🏡

At the end of 2022, Renting Partnerships purchased a new 2-unit home in the College Hill neighborhood with the help of Seed Commons!


As with their housing in the Avondale neighborhood, Renting Partnerships will use a renting model designed to fight gentrification and help tenants build long-term wealth.

The units will be leased to low-income residents at below-market rates, and tenants will earn financial credits while participating in the maintenance of the building.

Renting Partnerships is seeking to expand. If you are a nonprofit, business, religious organization, or individual wanting to sell or help Renting Partnerships acquire property, email contact@rentingpartnerships.org!

If you are a prospective resident, you can attend an informational meeting at noon on January 21, February 18, or March 18 at CAIN (4230 Hamilton Ave 45223).

 

The new Renting Partnerships property 

 

Our Harvest Celebrates 10 years 🚜

Our Harvest, the first co-op in our network, celebrated their 10th anniversary at Bahr Farm in 2022!


During the year, they deepened their outreach in the community, working with volunteers from City Gospel Mission and students from Aiken High School and Cincinnati State.

Also in 2022, Cardinal Land Trust got to work repairing infrastructure and bringing the old farm up to date!

Our Harvest's 10-year anniversary celebration 

1st Transitions to Worker-Ownership 🛠️

At the start of the year, we completed our very 1st transitions of traditional businesses to the worker-owned model!


Shine Nurture Center, a nature-focused childcare center, became worker-owned in Januaryafter we helped the departing owner sell the business to 4 of her employees, all women.

Then, in February, Heritage Hill, an apparel company focused on Black culture, also adopted the worker-owned business model. The founder, Brandon Z. Hoff, expanded ownership to a team of 3, all of whom are Black. He was looking for a way to "participate in capitalism without being predatory."

More recently, Heritage Hill’s ‘I’m Bout Making My Ancestors Proud’ pan-African sweatshirt made an appearance on the NPR Tiny Desk Concert for Lion King the musical.

Curious about our transitions program? See becomeworkerowned.org.

Other Co-ops Grow 🌱

  • Sustainergy, the 2nd oldest co-op in our network, grew 30% and made substantial strides in expanding their solar arm. They also welcomed 3 new worker-owners. Sustainergy currently provides family-sustaining jobs to 11 full-time workers.

  • A Touch of TLC Home Care is logging more hours after being approved for Ohio's PASSPORT Medicaid waiver program, which helps Medicaid-eligible older Ohioans get the long-term services and support they need. They also secured a $40K line of credit. 

  • Queen City Commons continued to grow in 2022, collecting 235,789 pounds of food scraps during the year! They now have 180+ drop-off members and 20+ Cincy orgs and businesses who compost.

  • Cincy Cleaning Co-op now has a team of 5 who are working 6 days a week.

  • Massage for the People is now using the Dillard Center for appointments. They formed a Board of Directors. They also had a bodywork workshop in September.

  • Queen Mother's Market has continued to fundraise to launch a brick-and-mortar co-op grocery store in the Walnut Hills neighborhood. Meanwhile, their buyer's club has been providing access to healthy, affordable foods, including to seniors. Said customer Betty Cooper: "Please continue this program! We like the good quality of the fruit and vegetables! And it’s especially nice in the winter to get produce delivery here so us seniors don’t have to fight the snow."

Movement

  • Help make Cincinnati more sustainable by taking a look at the 2023 Green Cincinnati Plan and offering your comments! You can see the draft plan at greencincinnatiplan.org. Public comment is open from 1/17-2/8.

  • Attorneys, organizational leaders, accountants, and others gathered at the 3rd Biennial Ohio Cooperative Law Conference in Columbus on Jan 24 & 25. Co-op Cincy Co-Director Kristen Barker was a panelist, as were Margery Spinney and Carol Smith of Renting Partnerships.

  • The U.S. Congress has passed legislation that would give $50 million in funding for employee ownership! Woohoo!

  • Workers at an electric vehicle battery plant in Ohio voted to unionize!

  • A worker-owned masa co-op that launched in Philadelphia about a year ago is looking to test its concept on a larger scale in 2023.

Events

The new world can't wait. Help us build an economy that works for all!

Building Community Wealth by Supporting Worker-Ownership

During the past year, we have accelerated our efforts to help businesses adopt the worker-owned model. This is a model that broadens wealth and supports family-sustaining jobs.

We are so grateful for the generosity of our donors who make this work possible.

Please consider making a tax-deductible donation to empower more worker-owners in the coming year.

Preserving a Childcare Center:
A Worker-Owner Story

Mary Wilder, a worker-owner at Shine Nurture Center, cares for one of the children enrolled in the childcare center.

Mary Wilder and other worker-owners participate in a coaching session with Ellen Vera, the Director of Co-op Organizing at Co-op Cincy.

“I like the democratic idea of a co-op. I love that we all get to make decisions about our everyday work life.”
— Mary Wilder, worker-owner at Shine Nurture Center

When the founder of Shine Nurture Center initiated the process of selling the business to her employees, Mary Wilder knew nothing about the worker co-op model. The idea of shared ownership appealed to her.

"I never wanted to own a daycare by myself," Mary explained. "Then the opportunity with worker-ownership came along with Shine. And it wasn’t just me."

Shine now has 4 worker-owners, including Mary, who run the business together. Co-op Cincy supported them as they took ownership of Shine in February of 2022, helping finance their purchase of the business and assisting them in ongoing management through our coaching program.

"There were so many things we didn’t know about being a business owner. Ms. Ellen was like, 'I’m going to help you guys. I’m going to train you guys and give you the resources you need,'" Mary said, referring to Ellen Vera, our Director of Co-op Organizing, who helps run our program to transition businesses to the worker-owned model.

Shine's workers celebrate the transition to the shared ownership model in February with Ellen Vera, Director of Co-op Organizing at Co-op Cincy.

With Co-op Cincy's ongoing support, Shine has flourished. The worker-owners purchased the building in October of this year.

"I like the democratic idea of a co-op," said Mary. "I love that we all get to make decisions about our everyday work life."

Why did Mary decide to become a worker-owner?

"I made this decision for my kids," she said. "I want to be able to leave them something.

Please consider making a donation to empower more worker-owners like Mary.

Family-Sustaining Jobs

Worker-ownership increases the wealth of working families. Overall, worker-owners have a 33% higher median income, according to one study. Lower-wage workers who become worker-owners have a 17% higher median household net worth, while worker-owners of color have a 79% higher median household net worth.

As you plan your year-end giving, please donate to help us empower more worker-owners, building a more equitable and resilient local economy here in Greater Cincinnati! 

If you become a new monthly donor of at least $15, we'll give you a Co-op Cincy t-shirt as a thank-you! We'll also send you a t-shirt if you've been an existing monthly donor of at least $15 for one year!

The t-shirts, which were printed by a union worker-co-op, are available in white and purple.

 
 

Please consider making your donation recurring

Thank you, and have a safe and happy new year!

We had an amazing time at our annual event & fundraiser!

We had a wonderful time at last month's dinner and fundraiser! 💜💜💜

We were grateful to have so many partners and supporters present, including representatives from the City of Cincinnati, the Greater Cincinnati Foundation, and other local organizations!

Here are some photos:

Special thanks to our awardees, who we recognized for their outstanding support:

  • Cincinnati Vice-Mayor Jan-Michele Kearney and Cincinnati Council Member Greg Landsman for their leadership in successfully advocating for City funding to strengthen the co-op movement in Cincinnati.

  • Ellen M. Katz, Robert Killins, Jr., Rasheda Cromwell, & Rosie Polter of Greater Cincinnati Foundation for long-term, game-changing grants and partnership, especially for using their convening power to strengthen the co-op movement in Cincinnati.

  • Advisory Board Member Robert LaMothe for going above and beyond to strengthen our Business Legacy Fund, which transitions existing businesses to worker-ownership.

Also, thanks to our sponsors!

More good news: we reached our $10K goal for our October-November donation drive!

After our annual event, we have $5K left to reach our last-quarter goal of $30K!

Thank you to the people who gave during our October-November donation drive. We exceeded our goal of $10,000!

After our annual event, we have only $5,000 left to reach our last-quarter goal of $30,000!

If you would like to help us meet our last-quarter goal, you can donate at coopcincy.org/give.

Donations fund our work, enabling us to provide training, technical assistance, and loans to businesses owned by people from historically marginalized groups!

If you become a new monthly donor of at least $15, we'll give you a Co-op Cincy t-shirt as a thank-you! We'll also send you a t-shirt if you've been an existing monthly donor of at least $15 for one year!

The t-shirts are available in white (pictured) and with a purple background and white logo/lettering.

Special trip to tour Mondragon in Spain

We're excited to announce a special trip to tour the Mondragon Cooperative Corporation in Spain from April 23-28 of 2023!

Since being established in 1956, Mondragon has become a network of 100 worker-owned businesses employing more than 80,000 people worldwide.

We are leading a delegation of Cincinnatians to see firsthand how worker co-ops can be a powerful strategy for economic transformation.

Participants will tour a variety of co-ops, meet with leaders of the Mondragon network, and see how these worker-owned businesses can create a more resilient and equitable economy.

The trip will be an in-depth learning experience. It should also be a lot of fun.

Pricing starts at $2,600.

For more info, or to reserve your spot, contact Ellen Vera at ellen@coopcincy.org or 513.807.3898.

Co-op Cincy happenings

Here's what else we've been up to!

Power in Numbers

Our 3rd Power in Numbers (our co-op development course for Black-led teams) is wrapping up. We have 5 teams participating. They’re developing businesses ranging from a farming and food supply co-op to an electrical vehicle charging co-op. We invite you to attend the virtual Pitch Night, which is from 6-8 pm on Jan 10.

Construction Co-op U

Our 1st Construction Co-op U (our co-op development course for construction-related businesses) is also nearing completion. Six teams are participating. We invite you to attend the virtual Pitch Night, which is from 6-8 pm on Dec 21.

Business Legacy Fund


We recently finished a campaign to find businesses to transition to the worker-owned business model through our Business Legacy Fund. Businesses who are interested can still contact us.

Ohio Worker Ownership Network


We had an energizing meeting of the Ohio Worker Ownership Network at Gem City Market in Dayton. Co-ops and co-op developers gathered from around the state to connect and build skills.

New staff member


And we're in the final stages of bringing on a full-time Office & Project Manager to help our growing network thrive.

Co-op updates

Sustainergy 'brings inclusive capitalism'

Sustainergy was profiled in the Cincinnati Business Courier!

From the article: “Beyond its focus on saving energy, Sustainergy is building wealth among its employees. The company is a worker cooperative, a business model built on the idea of inclusive capitalism, which allows every worker to become an owner. The company provides fair compensation, health insurance, a collective bargaining agreement, bonuses, short-term loans with no interest and vacation time.”

Sustainergy was featured as one of the winners of the 2022 CLIMB (Cincinnati Lifts Inclusion and Minority Business) Awards from the Courier and the Cincinnati USA Regional Chamber!

A Touch of TLC Home Care is hiring

A Touch of TLC Home Care is looking for a Home Health Aide. The position is part-time, with the possibility of full-time. To learn more, phone 513-601-8455 or email atouchoftlchealthcare@gmail.com.

Movement news

Events

What we're thankful for this holiday season

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