Findlay, I. M. ; Popham, J. ; Ince, P. ; Takahashi, S. (2013). Through the Eyes of  Women: What a Co-operative Can Mean in Supporting Women During Confinement and Integration. Saskatoon, SK: Centre for the Study of Co-operatives, University of Saskatchewan.

This research study considers criminalized women’s lived experiences while in custody and upon release. The study pays particular attention to women’s perceptions of institutional programming with the purpose of outlining service and other gaps and clarifying how co-operative initiatives might fill these gaps.

It explores how participation in a co-operative can impact the capacity of provincially sentenced women to negotiate incarceration and successfully reintegrate into the community upon release from custody. The study provides women the opportunity to voice their needs and hopes, their stories and experience of imprisonment, and their capacity for social, economic, cultural, and civic integration. It explores how living under conditions of confinement may structure women’s choices, their social, cultural, and civic identities, and shape their mental well-being and their capacity to manage their lives upon release — and what participating in a co-operative might mean for their capacities and choices.

Download the full report here.

Look at our complete annotated index to Social Economy reports here.

The following is a list of final reports that have been published in the past year. We hope that the information in these reports will assist individuals, organizations, communities, and policy makers in helping their own communities to thrive and flourish.

• Building a Federal Policy Framework and Program in Support of Community Economic Development by Kirsten Bernas and Brendan Reimer (CL5-27-MB) | Final Report (pdf)
  • The report provides an overview and analysis of Manitoba’s CED Policy Framework and Neighbourhoods Alive! program. The report concludes by recommending how a CED Policy Framework and accompanying Neighbourhood Revitalization Program might be developed and implemented at the federal government level.
• Building Community: Creating Social and Economic Well-Being: A Conference Reflecting on Co-operative Strategies and Experiences, 2010. Mark McCulloch | Final Report (pdf)
  • On May 19, 2010, the Centre for the Study of Co-operatives hosted representatives from leading co-operative organisations in Canada’s retail, finance, health-care, and insurance sectors. The conference focussed on how co-operatives help establish vibrant communities.
• Community-Based Regional Food Distribution Initiatives: A Cross-Case Analysis by Colin Ray Anderson and Stéphane Marc McLachlan (CL1-24-MB) |Final Report (pdf)
  • Community-based food distribution initiatives are difficult yet rewarding. In this study we explored the strategies used by CRFIs in their efforts to upscale both the social and economic impact of localized alternative food networks. The research involved interviews, video documentation, site visits and four comparative case studies.
• Community Conversations about the Good Food Junction Co-operative by Emily Hurd (CL5-20-SK) | Final Report (pdf)
  • The primary goal of this project was to provide CHEP, the Good Food Junction Co-operative board, and the Station 20 West Development Corporation board of directors with insight on where Core community members were shopping and present and to ascertain the likelihood of them making the switch to the Good Food Junction Co-operative grocery store.
• Culture, Creativity, and the Arts: Achieving Community Resilience and Sustainability Through the Arts in Sault Ste. Marie by Jude Ortiz and Gail Broad (CL5-01-NO) | Final Report (pdf)
  • This research values the economic impact of the arts in Sault Ste. Marie and makes recommendations as to how more economic activity might be generated through strategic development of the arts, providing the City with a competitive advantage in attracting new businesses, retaining skilled labour and investment and providing wide-spread community benefits.
• An Economic Analysis of Microcredit Lending by Haotao Wu (CL2-03) | Final Report (pdf)
  • This study explores a number of the issues around the provision of micro-loans by credit unions and the agencies with which they work. It also examines the advantages and disadvantages of investor-owned firm such as chartered banks versus credit unions in providing microcredit.
• The Economic Impact of Credit Unions on Rural Communities by Fortunate Mavenga (CL4-11) | Final Report (pdf)
  • This study contributes to the growing literature on the role of social economy enterprises on rural vitality, by examining the relationship between credit union activity and community population growth in rural Canada.
• Empowerment through Co-operation: Disability Inclusion via Multistakeholder Co-operative Development by Kama Soles (CL1-21) | Final Report (pdf)
  • This report explores the potential of multi-stakeholder co-operatives to provide new opportunities for empowerment and community development for those in the disability community, helping them to overcome disadvantage and marginalization. The research will help shape policies needed to foster social inclusion to empower people with disabilities and build disability solidarity through co-operative development.
• Enabling Policy Environments for Co-operative Development: A Comparative Experience by Monica Juarez Adler (CL5-05-MB) | Final Report (pdf)
  • This study aims to identify policies, structures, and financing mechanisms that can inform the development of appropriate models for Manitoba as well as support sector-controlled and self-sustaining co-operative development organizations. The enabling environments for co-op development in Spain, Italy, and Quebec are critically analyzed.
• Individualized Funding: A Framework for Effective Implementation by M. Dozar, D. Gallant, J. Hannah, E. Hurd, J. Newberry, K. Pike, and B. Salisbury (CL5-21-SK) | Final Report (pdf)
  • This research will help families, government and people with disabilities understand what Individualized Funding is, why it is important, and what needs to be done to make it work.
• The Management of Co-operatives: Developing a Postsecondary Course by Leezann Freed-Lobchuk, Vera Goussaert, Michal Benarroch, Monica Juarez Adler (CL1-27-MB) | Final Report (pdf)
  • This research presents a course outline, syllabus, and reading package for a course in the Management of Co-operatives for the University of Winnipeg’s Faculty of Business and Economics. The course was offered for the first time at the University of Winnipeg in January 2011.
• Mapping Social Capital in a  Network of Community Development Organizations by Jason Heit (CL4-05-SK)|Final Report (pdf)
  • This research has highlighted a number of recommendations for policy makers, community economic developers/practitioners, and researchers.
• Participatory Action Research: Challenges, Complications, and Opportunities by Patricia W. Elliott (CL1-05-SK) |Final Report (pdf)
  • This paper presents some of the basic history and principles of participatory action research (PAR), including common challenges and complications.
• A Place to Learn, Work, and Heal : An Evaluation of Crocus Co-operative by Julia Bidonde and Catherine Leviten-Reid (CL4-07-SK) | Final Report (pdf)
  • This report presents and evaluation of Crocus Co-operative, a nonprofit organization for individuals with mental health disabilities located in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan. The purpose of the evaluation is to explore whether the organization supports the mental health of its members and to assess whether Crocus’s programs, services, activities, and structures could be improved.
• South Bay Park Rangers Employment Project For Persons Living with a Disability: A Case Study in Individual Empowerment and Community Interdependence by Isobel M. Findlay, Julia Bidonde, Maria Basulado, and Alyssa McMurtry (CL5-15-SK) | Final Report (pdf)
  • This case study tells the story of the South Bay Park Rangers employment program for people with disabilities in the Northern Saskatchewan Village of Île-à-la-Crosse. This report discusses the situation in Canada for people with disabilities, issues facing Aboriginal people with disabilities, and particular issues in the North. The report aims to help people understand the impacts of the Park Rangers program on the people involved, their families, caregivers, and their community. It also suggests ways to build on the program’s strengths to make it more effective and a model for other communities.
• Understanding and Promoting Effective Partnerships for CED: A Case Study of SEED Winnipeg’s Partnerships by Gaelene Askeland and Kirit Patel (CL3-06-MB) | Final Report (pdf)
  • The results of this research report may be helpful to a variety of organizations that are considering entering into a partnership or assessing the partnerships they currently have. This research shows that success results from good planning, appropriate due diligence prior to engaging in partnerships, making good choices in partners, and putting in the effort and resources required to make the relationships work well.

View the complete list of final reports here.

You might find the annotated subject guide to projects helpful.

There will be more final reports completed in 2013 and they will be announced here when we are able to make them available.

Understanding and Promoting Effective Partnerships for CED
A Case Study of SEED Winnipeg’s Partnerships

by Gaelene Askeland and Kirit Patel

Please see the Final Report (pdf) for this project (CL3-06-MB).

A bit about the research project:

SEED Winnipeg makes concerted, deliberate efforts to be a good partner to other organizations, and according to SEED and its partners, the vast majority of these relationships are, indeed, successful. This research shows that success results from good planning, appropriate due diligence prior to engaging in partnership with an organization, making good choices in partners, and putting in the effort and resources required to make the relationships work well.

The results of this research project may be helpful to a variety of organizations that are considering entering into a partnership or assessing the partnerships they currently have.

See the final report for more information.

Please see the complete list of final Linking, Learning, and Leveraging project reports here.

The Management of Co-operatives: Developing a Postsecondary Course

Leezann Freed-Lobchuk, Vera Goussaert, Michael Benarroch, Monica Juarez Adeler

Please see the Final Report (PDF) for this project (CL1-27-MB)

A bit about the research project:

The co-operative community in Manitoba has identified co-operative management education as a priority need. This research addressed that need by designing a complete class curriculum that is the first of its kind in Manitoba at the postsecondary level and the first of its kind in Canada at an undergraduate level. The course was offered for the first time at the University of Winnipeg beginning in January 2011. The project is intended to contribute to co-operative development within the social economy for many years to come.

See the final report for more information.

Please see the complete list of final Linking, Learning, and Leveraging project reports here.

Community Resilience, Adaptation, and Innovation:
The Case of Social Economy in La Ronge

by Kimberly Brown, Isobel M. Findlay, and Robert Dobrohocziki

Please see the Final Report (pdf) for this project (CL4-03-SK).

A bit about the research project:

It is important to understand the similarities, differences, and contributions of the social economy in urban, rural, and northern contexts so that communities across Saskatchewan can take full advantage of the social economy’s unique ability to address critical economic, social, and cultural issues.  However, because development is often framed as either urban or rural, there remains too little understanding of the social economy—including co-operatives, mutuals, not-for-profits, and voluntary sector organizations associated with alternative development models, people before profits, and democratic participation—in the northern context.  This case study on the social economy in the northern Saskatchewan community of La Ronge has three key objectives: to identify social economy actors in La Ronge; to document the economic, social, and cultural contributions of the social economy to the community; and to highlight the opportunities and challenges facing the social economy in La Ronge.

This study found that the social economy in La Ronge has made significant contributions to the economic, social, and cultural health of the community by mitigating the effects of economic leakage, skills shortages, as well as race, class, and gender divisions. The community has achieved this through individual organizational action or through the development of partnerships with other social economy organizations and/or the public and private sectors. Nevertheless, social economy organizations in La Ronge face a number of challenges that frustrate their efforts to do more, including administrative and jurisdictional boundaries; poor communication between or among organizations; a misunderstanding of the social economy among politicians, policy-makers, and the public; and a lack of financial and human resources. Despite these challenges, the social economy in La Ronge has been, and continues to be, a source of community resilience and innovation in a community faced with both incredible opportunities and hardships. Social economy organizations survive because of their relevance to the community and their capacity to meet real economic, social, and cultural needs.

See the final report for more information.

Please see the complete list of final Linking, Learning, and Leveraging project reports here.

Enhancing and Linking Ethnocultural Organizations and Communities in Rural Manitoba: A Focus on Brandon and Steinbach

by Jill Bucklaschuk and Monika Sormova

Please see the Final Report (pdf) for this project (CL4-13-MB).

A bit about the research project:

Immigration to rural areas is a significant element of Manitoba’s overall immigration experience, and thus shifting attention from Winnipeg to other communities is needed to better understand immigration in the province. Rural communities receiving immigrants struggle to ensure adequate service provision, partly because there are few pre-established institutions or organizations in these areas to assist newcomers. An important factor in immigrant attraction, settlement, and retention is the role of ethnocultural organizations and communities. In rural communities without large immigrant populations, however, these organizations may not be well established or exist at all. Ethnocultural organizations are vital to meeting the needs of newcomers and ensuring a vibrant, diverse community.

This project is part of a larger research initiative designed to understand the scope of immigration to Brandon and southwestern Manitoba, with a particular focus on how communities can become more welcoming.

The final report elaborates on several recommendations and includes several appendices, including one that describes a Language Co-operative that has been initiated in Brandon as a grassroots response to the ever-growing need in Brandon for interpretation and translation services.

See the final report for more information.

Please see the complete list of final Linking, Learning, and Leveraging project reports here.

Mining and the Social Economy in Baker Lake, Nunavut

by Warren Bernauer (CL5-22)

Please see the Final Report (pdf) for this project.

A bit about the research findings:

The Inuit of Baker Lake rely heavily upon the local social economy for their material, social, and cultural well-being. The most prominent “institution” in the local social economy of Baker Lake is the mixed economy — household reliance upon a combination of harvesting, household clothing and tool production, and money from a variety of sources including government transfers, simple commodity production, and wage labour. The various components of the mixed economy have relationships with one another that are in some ways mutually supportive and in others, contradictory. This is perhaps most apparent in the relationship between harvesting and wage labour, especially when nonrenewable resource extraction is a substantial source of employment.

Due to the contradictions between these two activities and the continued and arguably irreplaceable role harvesting plays in community well-being, it is necessary to take a balanced and cautious approach to industrial activity. In the context of Baker Lake, the existing Meadowbank Gold Mine is a project not entirely irreconcilable with notions of balanced economic development and has thus far, with a few important exceptions, played a primarily positive role in the community. The proposed Kiggavik uranium mine, however, — if it becomes a reality — would represent a departure from a logic of balanced economic development and may have substantial negative implications for the local social economy, and more generally, the Inuit of Baker Lake.

See the final report for more information.

Please see the complete list of final Linking, Learning, and Leveraging project reports here.

Centre for the Study of Co-operatives Seminar Series 2010/11

Building Respectful Relations:
Community-University Research Partnerships in the Social Economy

Gayle Broad
Community Economic and Social Development
Algoma University College

Thursday, January 20, 2011
3:00 – 5:00 pm
1E80 Agriculture Building

Hammond Ketilson (2005:3) suggests that in the conduct of social economy research there can be “… no single template for productive [community university] research partnerships. Each requires new approaches to collaboration, new ways of honouring identities and building relationships, new ways of inhabiting institutional and other spaces … ”

This presentation will examine five community-university research partnerships in the social economy for learnings that can assist researchers in meeting the challenge of developing respectful relations between communities and universities. It concludes that researchers themselves can be the pivotal point of relationship-building.

Hannah Wittman, Annette Aurélie Desmarais and Nettie Wiebe (eds.)

When: December 1st, 2010, 7:30 pm – 9:30 pm
Where: Estevan Room – Hilton Garden Inn / 90 – 22nd St East / Saskatoon, SK

__________

Advocating a practical, radical change to the way much of our food system currently operates, this book argues that food sovereignty is the means to achieving a system that will provide for the food needs of all people while respecting the principles of environmental sustainability, local empowerment and agrarian citizenship. The current high input, industrialized, market-driven food system fails on all these counts. The UN-endorsed goal of food security is becoming increasingly distant as indicated by the growing levels of hunger in the world, especially among marginalized populations in both the North and South. The authors of this book describe the recent emergence and the parameters of an alternative system, food sovereignty, that puts the levers of food control in the hands of those who are both hungry and produce the world’s food – peasants and family farmers, not corporate executives. As the authors show in both conceptual and case study terms, food sovereignty promises not only increased production of food, but also food that is safe, food that reaches those who are in the most need, and agricultural practises that respect the earth.

Learn more about the book, its contents, and the authors, see the Brunswick Books (formerly Fernwood Books) website.

Value: $3,000

Eligibility: Offered annually to a student entering or continuing studies in a masters or doctoral program who is conducting research on co-operatives. Student must have contributed to the development of his/her community as it relates to the study of co-operatives, which may include but is not limited to, working in developing countries, working with Habitat for Humanity, tutoring refugees and new Canadians, peer counselling, and projects that may contribute to peace in the world.

Application procedure: A letter of application outlining experience with co-operatives and community development, accompanied by a copy of university transcripts, and one reference letter.
Submit applications to:

Centre for the Study of Co-operatives
101 Diefenbaker Place
University of Saskatchewan
Saskatoon, SK, S7N 5B8;

Phone: (306) 966–8509
Fax: (306) 966–8517
Email: coop.studies@usask.ca

Deadline: November  30, 2010