>Date: Tue, 28 Mar 2000 10:14:26 -0400 (AST) >To: Friends of Tompkins Institute and CED >From: Greg MacLeod >Date: 28 March 2000 >Re: Festival of Community Economic Development, 2000 > > >Attached is an overview of the programmes for the Second Annual Festival of >Community Economics, to be held at University College of Cape Breton, >Sydney, Nova Scotia. > >Please reserve the dates of the Festival -- 29 June/1 July -- in your >personal >calendar. > >More detailed information on the Festival will be sent to you at a later >date, but do contact us as soon as possible to reserve a placing. > >We would be very grateful if you would pass along this information to other >interested parties. > >Sincerely, > > >Greg MacLeod, Ph.D. >Director, Tompkins Institute > > >902.563.1266 (t); 902.563.1366 (f); e-mail: [EMAIL PROTECTED] > > >******************************************************************************* > >SECOND ANNUAL FESTIVAL OF COMMUNITY ECONOMICS IN THREE PARTS: >INTERNATIONAL -- LOCAL -- ACADEMIC > >THEME: COMMUNITY-BASED JOB CREATION -- WHAT HAVE COMMUNITIES DONE AND WHAT >CAN THEY DO TO CREATE JOBS IN AREAS OF HIGH UNEMPLOYMENT? THE FOCUS WILL BE >ON REAL WORLD CASES. > >PURPOSE: The 2000 Festival will build on the experience of the 1999 >Festival which examined community investment. Ongoing projects discussed in >1999 will be reported on: Cultural Vacations Co-operative, Community >Investment Funds, Regional Development Co-operatives. > > The 2000 Festival aims to focus on economic development and >job-creation >initiated by community-based groups. There is a great deal of interest in >local economic development but few concrete examples and models. These >conferences are designed to examine hands-on experience. Individuals with >successful track records will lead the discussions. We wish to encourage >community business enterprises, especially the co-operative variety, to join >together to become stronger economic engines in job creation. At present >there is a terrible fragmentation in the sector of community based business. > We think that Mondragon and Valencia are excellent models which illustrate >how integration and joint venturing can increase the impact of community >businesses. > > Unemployed workers in places such as Cape Breton, Northeast New >Brunswick, >and the Gaspe have expressed interest in the notion of new business creation >and investment by workers. However, such groups do not have concrete >models. This kind of conference is important for the promotion of new >initiatives. > > >PART I -- INTERNATIONAL >29-30 June 2000 > >Mondragon, Spain, is the best example of worker ownership in the world. >40,000 workers are shareholders in this $12 billion business, producing a >wide range of products from refrigerators, auto parts, furniture to machine >tools. It was chosen by the United Nations as one of the top 50 >social-economic innovations in the world. (See From Mondragon to America, >by Greg MacLeod, UCCB Press, 1997, and www.mondragon.mcc.es) > > This will be an international conference with resource people from >Mondragon and Valencia in Spain, as well as from the United States. > > >PART II -- LOCAL (www.uccb.ns.ca/bca) >Annual Workshop (Atelier) -- Atlantic Federation of Community Development >Co-operatives/Corporations >1 July 2000 (am) > >A network of community co-operatives/corporations exists -- New Dawn, BCA, >and DIMA in Cape Breton; HRDA in Halifax; GNP in Newfoundland; Evangeline in >PEI; SIMA in New Brunswick; and Ralliement Gaspesien in Quebec -- with a >variety of Investment Co-operatives. It is important that these groups >share experiences in job-creation. Each group has its own particular >experience from which the whole assembly can benefit. > > >PART III -- ACADEMIC >1 July 2000 (pm) > >More and more Academics are becoming interested in applied research in areas >such as unemployment and local economic development. This will be an >opportunity for academics to review research in such fields and to exchange >ideas. > > >Contact below for more information: > >902.563.1266 (t); 902.563.1366 (f); e-mail: [EMAIL PROTECTED] > > >Tompkins Institute >University College of Cape Breton >Sydney, Nova Scotia >B1P 6L2 >Dominion of Canada >
