Blog

Mapping International Cooperative Development Programs: New Online Cooperative Data Platform

Cooperatives play a major role in creating an inclusive and sustainable economy around the world.  To demonstrate the impact of Cooperative Development Organizations (CDOs) in international cooperative development, the U.S. Overseas Cooperative Development Council (OCDC) and the International Cooperative Alliance (ICA) join forces to create an online global data platform displaying international development projects run Read More

Paul Hazen to be Inducted into the 2022 Cooperative Hall of Fame!

Announcing the 2022 Cooperative Hall of Fame inductees and introducing Unsung Cooperative Heroes. On October 6, 2022, four outstanding cooperative leaders will receive the cooperative community’s most prestigious honor, when they are inducted into the Cooperative Hall of Fame at the National Press Club in Washington, DC. The inductees are: Paul Hazen, Executive Director, U.S. Read More

Announcing The OCDC International Cooperative Champion Award and Innovation Award Recipients!

The international cooperative community is full of people who inspire us through innovation, advocacy, leadership and the relentless spirit to affect positive change. Through the OCDC International Champion and Innovation awards we honor and recognize those leaders.  This year we are pleased to present the International Cooperative Champion Award to Paul Clark and the International Read More

In Celebration of Co-Op Month the ICRG Presents 4 Member Portraits Throughout October

While celebrating October Co-op Month of Cooperatives, the ICRG is delighted to present another video featuring a member of cooperative whose life was positively impacted by membership. These profiles were developed as part of What Difference Do Cooperatives Make 4-country study giving members themselves an opportunity to tell their story. Meet Dolores – corn farmer from the Read More

Women’s Economic Empowerment in Sub-Saharan Africa: Cooperatives as a Vehicle to Economic Opportunity

If you have not yet had a chance to read OCDC’s introductory blog post on the Women’s Economic Empowerment in Sub-Saharan Africa (WEE-SSA) research initiative, listing key research partners, do check it out! This blog, the second in the WEE-SSA series, will draw a few key findings from the scoping study and discuss how cooperatives Read More

International Cooperative Innovation Award

The International Cooperative Innovation Award. There is nothing cookie-cutter about creating a more equitable and sustainable world. It takes new ideas, new strategies, new approaches — and the courage to put them into action. The U.S. Overseas Cooperative Development Council (OCDC) seeks to identify, recognize, and celebrate those international cooperative development innovators who continue to Read More

International Cooperative Champion Award: Created by The US OCDC

The U.S. Overseas Cooperative Development Council (OCDC) has created the OCDC International Cooperative Champion Award to recognize a member that has made outstanding contributions through championing, promoting and advocating for effective, sustainable international cooperative development, particularly in low income and emerging economies. This prestigious annual award can go to an individual or individuals. Nominees must Read More

Collaborative Research for Cooperative Resilience: CR2

In the wake of the pandemic-impacted global economic decline, with serious impacts on livelihoods, particularly in low- and middle-income countries, the ICRG launched a call for proposals in June 2020 for collaborative research to investigate the business resilience of cooperatives during supply chain disruptions and other shocks, across geographies and value chains. The CR2 projects Read More

Virtual Events in 2020-2021 – increasing international inclusion, decreasing carbon footprints.

WFP Side Event. OCDC’s ICRG contributed to the 2020 World Food Prize Side Events by hosting a webinar, “Cooperatives Support Resilient Food Systems, Tackling the Challenges of COVID 19 and Climate Change.” This engaging panel highlighted the role of cooperatives in promoting resilience in communities and food systems, responding to the challenges of COVID 19 and Read More

Virtual Learning – scaling capacity of international teams to close skill gaps and better coordinate over remote platforms.

Annual Learning Event. OCDC’s International Cooperative Research Group (ICRG) adapted its in-person Annual Learning Event to a three-day virtual conference. The 2020 Learning Event aimed to strengthen the OCDC CDO community while providing a space for participants to collaborate in small groups on critical topics related to the success of cooperatives, including gender and business Read More