Rob Brown, director of Business Ownership Solutions at CDI, was among ten finalists chosen to do short presentations on their innovative economic and community development ideas at the Friends of Midcoast Maine annual meeting. His presentation showed how converting existing
CDI to the United Nations: Sustainable Development through Cooperative Development
Can cooperatives help achieve sustainability and peace in the world? We think so! The United Nations is no stranger to cooperatives. 2012 was declared the International Year of Cooperatives, and the Secretary General Ban Ki-Moon noted that co-ops “are a
Wardtown Mobile Home Cooperative becomes the 6th Resident Owned Community in Maine
For Immediate Release – Freeport, May, 2015 The residents of Wardtown Mobile Home Park in Freeport recently secured funding support from the Genesis Community Loan Fund in Damariscotta, and Maine State Housing Authority (Maine Housing) in Augusta, to become the
Why We Must Support Maine’s Cooperative Development Legislation
CDI staff members Rob Brown and Jonah Fertig recently testified before the Maine legislature on the importance of a bill that would improve the state’s support for co-op and employee-owned businesses. Below, Rob shares his thoughts on why this is
Co-op Cathy: What are residency requirements for joining a co-op in the US?
Meet Cathy, the Cooperative Development Institute’s new answerwoman! She can take on any co-op questions you might have, big or small. Today we address the submitted question: “What are residency requirements, if any, for joining a co-op in the U.S.?”
Ask Co-op Cathy: How can I find listings for housing co-ops and shared living spaces open to new members?
Meet Cathy, the Cooperative Development Institute’s new answerwoman! She can take on any co-op questions you might have, big or small. Today we address the submitted question: “How can I find listings for housing co-ops and shared living spaces open
New Case Studies in Worker Cooperative Conversions: CDI’s Collaboration Featured
A new report by Project Equity has been released that features a dozen case studies on worker co-op conversions, and CDI is proud to have our work on the Island Employee Cooperative in Maine featured alongside so many other amazing projects
“Celebrating Collective Courage” Brings Together Practitioners and Educators
Saturday, March 7, the day before International Women’s Day and on the cusp between Black History Month and Women’s History Month, CDI took the opportunity to celebrate the impressive history and contemporary vitality of Black women’s leadership in cooperative thought
CDI’s Rob Brown Selected for the Democracy at Work Institute’s “Cooperative Developer Fellowship”
Our own Rob Brown, founder and director of the Business Ownership Solutions program at CDI, has been selected as one of 10 Fellows in the first cohort of Democracy at Work Institute Cooperative Developer Fellowships. We’re tremendously proud and honored!
Big Achievements: The Year of Cooperative Transitions
In 2014, CDI worked with big and small cooperatives throughout the Northeast, as well as across a wide range of sectors: housing, worker, consumer, producer, and more. But perhaps some of our biggest achievements came not from starting new cooperatives,