The European federation of co-ops in industry and services, CECOP, invites members of CoTech to the COODING event | 29-30 September 2023| Bologna (Italy)
CECOP invites you to the conference: COODING - discussing & enhancing cooperation around the use of digital and new technologies in cooperatives.
COODING aims to encourage the cooperative movement to take a stand on the implication of the use of technology and learn how to use it on its own favour. Cooperation among cooperatives is part of our DNA, for this reason the event will explore how digital and tech cooperatives could help other cooperatives to digitalize.
COODING wants to give cooperators the chance to discuss about new technologies with their fellow cooperators and learn from experts in the field, but also to engage into B2B or mentorship activities. Theultimate goal is to improve the cooperatives movement’s ability to seize the opportunities it offers.
If you are interested in joining us in Bologna and take part in this unique opportunity for intercooperation: don’t hesitate and click on the button below to register and learn more !
The page about this event on the European confederation of industrial and service cooperatives (CECOP) site has a link for registration and more details:
The program is in this PDF:
It would be good to have someone from CoTech there as there is a “Meeting of digital cooperators from tech coops” on the second day.
@Sion do you know if there is any funding available for travel to Italy?
That sounds like a good plan, however the rail fare is not cheap, plus there would be accommodation, would it be asking too much to ask for up to £1,000 for two people for travel by rail and accommodation?
Flights seem to be £150-250 return (out 28th back Sun 1st) and we could pay a 100% carbon negative offset of about £15. I think we’d have to have a panel to decide which two get them rather than 1st come 1st served though, or maybe part-subsidise 3 or 4 people, and they’d have to be SF members?
I would suggest that Solidfund not give money to offsetting companies – as well as whatever political critiques we might have, they keep being found to be scientifically bogus (most recently in March this year)
As a funder Solidfund has not - as far as I’m aware - previously sought to set constraints on the detail of how its support is subsequently disbursed by any grantee. Anyone travelling to this event from the UK has little choice but to fly there or be prepared for a very long train journey. The key thing to my mind, from a Solidfund perspective, is the nature of the benefit in terms of the win for worker cooperation. That’s not at all clear to me, other than that the event appears to supported by CECOP/CICOPA. The programme is currently very vague, and Sion’s briefing note above talks only in general terms about the cooperative movement.
I’ve no doubt that it will be a great event and I’m sorely tempted to go myself. I can probably just about afford to pay for myself, perhaps with a little help from one the cooperatives that I’m involved with.
So I’d ask: is there actually a demand here? And if so, what’s the benefit to worker cooperation of this proposed £1000 investment?
I suggested upto £1,000 on the assumption that a return rail ticket from the UK would be around £400 and two people might be prepared to attend however @knoflook has a better suggestion, while InterRail tickets are not available for UK residents due to Brexit, 4 days travel in one month Eurail tickets are, so the cost would be more like £250 per person for travel by rail from the UK to Bologna.
what’s the benefit to worker cooperation
It probably isn’t possible to fully answer that in advance I would expect the outcome to depend on who attends… if everyone in tech co-ops in Europe thinks it lacks demands and is too vague to bother attending then I’d expect it to be a flop.
Personally I think it would be worth trying to get some CoTech members to attend as it might turn out to be the first step towards better tech co-op co-operation in Europe and that is something that I think we could benefit from.
I’d favour say 2 people up to £500 each on receipted travel/accommodation costs, using this opener to ask for expressions of interest (why they want to go, what they feel they can contribute to/learn from the event, and how they will report back (to Solidfund/CoTech/workers.coop since they would be going with workers.coop’s CICOPA membership imprimatur!); then the formal proposal with two people namned in the proposal?
So, who, other than me, is interested in attending?
Personally I’m interested in attending to meet and network with workers in other European tech co-ops as I think there are things that have been learned from the establishment and on-going existance of CoTech and workers.coop that others at the event might be interested in especially at the “meeting of digital cooperators from tech coops” session on the 30th September and I’m keen to see some on-going European tech co-op gatherings and if I attend I’d like to report back to the planned CoTech gathering on 24th October and the workers.coop event that follows.
There is a proposal up on Solidfund to reimburse up to £1,500 (say 3 people x £500) to go to this event, open to anyone who’s a member of both SF and workers.coop - check it out!
A funding proposal above has been agreed by Solidfund members in their decision thread on Loomio, which is where people who want to be supported to go need to put their <100 word pitch. It’s open to anyone who is a member of both workers.coop and Solidfund. Anyone who thinks they are a Solidfund member but who hasn’t yet joined the Loomio group, and thinks they should go, shout here!
Update 1 September:
" We are excited to announce that the programme has been updated to offer even more opportunities and value! The event is organised by the CECOP, Fondazione PICO , Fondazione Centro Studi Doc and AlmaVicoo, and now offers additional benefits for participants. COODING will offer cooperators the opportunity to discuss and improve cooperation on the use of digital and new technologies in line with cooperative principles and values.
What to expect:
Conference with expert speakers
Thematic workshops to improve your digital skills
A cooperative trade fair to explore the latest innovations
The opportunity to engage with expert mentors
The event is aimed at all members of the cooperative movement, from cooperatives to cooperative representative organisations, key stakeholders in the Italian, European and global cooperative movement, academics and policy makers.
Don’t miss this extraordinary opportunity for growth and learning in the world of cooperatives in digital. Would you like to participate?
Here is more information on the programme and how to register: CECOP
Join us and together we will advance the future of cooperatives in digital!"
Thanks for the update @Sion, looking at the program the most interesting change I noticed is that our friends from patio.coop are supporting the second day, 30th September 2023:
10.00 AM - 01.00 PM
Meeting among cooperators from tech cooperatives supported by Patio
