It’s AGM time again! Looking forward to connecting with our membership at the upcoming virtual annual general meeting – AGM 2021 – set for June 4th. To provide some greater insight, we have prepared an impact report for your review – see below. Please note this meeting will be held virtually using Zoom. You will … Continued
BCCA Seeks Board Members… Are you passionate about the co-operative movement? Do you have ideas and experience that could help lead BCCA forward to its greatest potential? BCCA seeks board members… qualified individuals to serve on its board of directors -BCCA seeks board members… Do you have ideas and experience that could help lead BCCA … Continued
BC Co-op Meetups are an opportunity and platform for co-ops to come together and share their knowledge and insight, spark new ideas, and help each other grow and flourish. Our members are a diverse group. Subsequently, each sector they represent, at times, is faced with unique challenges that would benefit from a connection with like-minded … Continued
The support gap has narrowed for co-operatives and nonprofits seeking social and corporately-aligned legal support in BC and Alberta, thanks to the establishment of the Community and Co‑operative Counsel (CCC). The Community and Co‑operative Counsel teamed together in 2020 to provide legal and consulting services tailored to the specific and unique needs of the co-operative … Continued
With the arrival of COVID-19 last March, so did the need to innovate and adapt quickly. In 2020, a ministerial order granted electronic meetings to occur as an accepted format under the Cooperative Association Act. Last month, the Ministerial Order was extended. This extension will allow fully electronic meetings to continue under the Cooperative Association … Continued
While the world is facing an unprecedented health and economic crisis, co-operatives in industry and services are reorganizing themselves, finding strength in the people and communities they serve. It’s not surprising to social-economic strategists that COVID-19 spurred Canada’s co-operative sector to step up and respond to the needs of communities immediately. In many cases, co-ops … Continued
COVID-19 has led to dramatic shifts in consumer behaviour. To meet ever-evolving customer experience requirements, co-ops will have to remain flexible, relevant, and responsive. And as people-centred businesses, co-ops should be strategic and invested in sharing how they are there for their members and their communities. At the fall 2020 CIU Strategic Foresight Virtual Conference, … Continued
During our MEC Townhall on October 15th, we all watched this video about the story of La Siembra, a co-op that came very close to losing their co-operative identity to a sale, much like MEC. This video tells the story of how instead, the La Siembra community leaned into the co-operative principles and values and … Continued
As part of our Annual General Meeting on October 15th, BCCA hosted a public townhall dialogue around the sale of MEC and what BCCA and the co-operative community as a whole can do moving forward. We were joined by organizers Kevin Harding and Yuill Herbert from SaveMEC to speak about the valiant organizing work that … Continued
BC’s co-op and credit union sector is still reeling from the news that Mountain Equipment Co-op (MEC), a beloved retail brand in this country for nearly 50 years, is intended to be sold to a foreign private investor, U.S.-based Kingswood Capital Management. As has been widely reported, the members of MEC were not consulted and learned … Continued