Type Cooperative Headquarters United States Website cooperationworks.coop | Founded 1999 Key people Deb Trocha, Chair | |
Industry Cooperative development | ||
CooperationWorks! is a network of organizations promoting rural development through the formation of cooperatives in the United States. CooperationWorks! is organized as a cooperative of 21 member development centers. The co-op facilitates the coordination of cooperative development efforts and provides business expertise to its member organizations.
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CooperationWorks! is partnered with the National Cooperative Business Association and the Cooperative Development Foundation.
History
Legislation was signed into law in 1990 authorizing grants to establish a network of rural cooperative development centers throughout the United States. The development centers worked together on an informal basis for nine years. The Madison Principles, a set of standards for cooperative development, were developed in 1995 in Madison, Wisconsin. In February 1999, representatives from nine cooperative development centers on the U.S. met in Denver to found CooperationWorks!
In September 2009, the USDA awarded $2.9 million in grants to 15 members of CooperationWorks! to create jobs and foster economic development in rural communities.