Introduction to Worker Cooperatives: Food & Farm Edition
Last week, we were thrilled to partner with our friend Mai Nguyen to host the workshop Introduction to Worker Cooperatives: Food & Farm Edition. Thanks to all participants for spending the day with us to discuss worker cooperatives and how we can build a culture that supports cooperative economies.
Mai (they/them) is a farmer, grain grower, activist, co-op developer, parent, and most recently, a 2024 James Beard Foundation award finalist. They specialize in growing heirloom crops using organic, drought-tolerant, and soil-enriching methods. Throughout their farming, activism, and cooperative development work, Mai draws deeply on their experiences connected to diaspora communities and displaced peoples, including their own family, who were refugees.
Democratically-run businesses where the workers are the owners give us the chance to radically change our economy, ecologies, and relationships for a more equal society. The workshop provided a basic understanding of the structure and start-up needs for a worker cooperative business, and seeded dialogue around the transformative collective work that is needed to build a culture that supports cooperative economies.
Do worker cooperatives and cooperative economies excite you? Cooperation and solidarity are essential to cultivating a food system that belongs to all. These themes will be elevated at this fall’s 4th Annual Gathering for San Diego County Food Vision 2030.
Workshop recording
You can now watch the full workshop recording on the Alliance’s YouTube channel.
Our next workshop: Introduction to Producer Cooperatives on May 23, 2024
Our next workshop on cooperatives is Introduction to Producer Cooperatives: Food & Farm Edition on Thursday, May 23, from 9am to 3pm. This workshop will focus specifically on producer cooperatives, and is also designed for small-scale farmers, ranchers, fishermen, and food business owners.
About the Local Food Economy Lab
The Introduction to Worker Cooperatives workshop was designed for small-scale farmers, ranchers, fishermen, and food business owners, and offered through the Alliance's Local Food Economy Lab.
The Local Food Economy Lab is a program of the San Diego Food System Alliance that centers equity and community ownership, and works to support the viability of small-scale farmers, ranchers, fishermen, food business owners, and the communities they serve in San Diego County. The Lab serves small-scale farmers, ranchers, fishermen, and food business owners at all stages, especially those in our community for whom traditional business development services have been out of reach.
We focus on businesses led by Indigenous and people of color, immigrants, women, LGBTQ+, youth, seniors, individuals with low income, and those advancing community ownership and collaborative models. The Lab serves for-profit and nonprofit businesses through peer-to-peer collaboration and learning opportunities, tailored business planning and coaching programs, resource directories, policy advocacy, access to land, capital, markets, and more.
Thank you!
Thanks to all participants, and to Mai for sharing their knowledge and experience. Thank you to Cafe X for providing a community-rooted space for us to gather and learn together, and to Super Cocina for feeding us!
