International Cooperative Alliance

21/10/2026

Three days of intensive work in Rome have led to the launch of the first international Community of Practice on Cooperative AI at the Cooperative AI Bootcamp: Shaping the Future Together.

Last week, participants created a common understanding, common ground and move towards common benefits for : this is just the beginning!

Thanks to everyone who took part in the Bootcamp and helped shape this next phase of Cooperative AI:

- Justin Hammons, The Principle 6 Cooperative
- David Beauchemin, Ph.D., Baseline
- Ronald Nyamukuwa, TechUnity Service Cooperative Zimbabwe
- Nicolás Dimarco, FAROX / Patio
- Dorleta Urrutia Oñate, ASETT
- Naska Yankova, Camplight / PATIO
- Akkanut Wantanasombut, Tamsang-Tamsong
- Luca Guandalini, Euricse
- Simon Chapman, Agile Collective
- Cate Broussard, We Effect
- Anna Karlberg, WeEffect
- Dimo Dimitriev, Central Cooperative Union Bulgaria
- Bogdan Marinski, Central Cooperative Union Bulgaria
- Felix Weth, CosyAI
- Allan N., Shiftnex.ai
- Nilton Araruna, OCB System
- Mary Rose G., NATCCO
- Jungsik Jung, NACF
- Ayushman Madhwal, ICA Asia and Pacific
- María José Elizondo Solís, Cooperatives of the Americas
- Marc Noel, ICA
- Shaun Fensom, dot.coop
- Federico Zacchia, Fondazione PICO
- Francesca Ottolenghi, Legacoop Nazionale
- Claudia Colabella, Legacoop Nazionale
- Piero Ingrosso, Fondazione PICO
- Francesca Martinelli, PhD, Ph.D., Fondazione PICO
- Damiano Avellino, Fondazione PICO
- Elisabetta Miraglio, Ph.D., AlmaVicoo

The Bootcamp is organised by the ICA, LegacoopNazionale and Fondazione PICO.

Photo credit: Fondazione PICO

20/10/2026

As we continue celebrating the UNESCO's International Day of the Intangible Cultural Heritage, we are delighted to share these photos of the certificate presentation to the Holy Land Handicraft Cooperative in , recognised on the ICA Cooperative Cultural Heritage List 🌍

🙏 Our thanks to Akram Altaher, General Director of the Economic & Social Development Centre of (ESDC), for presenting the certificate on behalf of the ICA.

The Cooperative Cultural Heritage List celebrates the richness and diversity of our cooperative heritage, recognising the places, traditions and communities that keep it alive, foster peace and pass it on to future generations.

Discover more about the ICA Cooperative Cultural Heritage programme at https://www.culturalheritage.coop/

This initiative is part of the ICA-EU Partnership (2024–2028), 🌍, which works to strengthen the ICA network and position cooperatives as key development actors within the European Union Development Agenda. European Commission

19/10/2026

A podcast to start the week 🎧

In the latest ICA Legal Interview Series, p. santosh kumar speaks with Aicha E.rrifaai, Director General of Morocco’s Office du Développement de la Coopération (ODCO), about how the country’s cooperative movement and legal framework have evolved.

The conversation covers Morocco’s cooperative law, governance and access to finance, while also looking at opportunities around youth, women, digitalisation, climate resilience and stronger cooperation across Africa.

It also touches on Morocco’s engagement with ICA and the Cooperative Cultural Heritage Programme.

🎙️ Listen to this full episode of Further Together via the link in the comments.

Produced under the ICA-EU Partnership 🌍.

17/10/2026

Today we celebrate the International Day of the Intangible Cultural Heritage, recognising the richness of our living heritage and the importance of safeguarding the traditions, knowledge and practices passed down through generations 🌍

Cooperatives play a vital role in keeping this heritage alive. By bringing people together, sustaining cultural practices, supporting community livelihoods and connecting generations, we help ensure that living heritage continues to thrive and evolve.

To mark this special day, the ICA and its working group on Cooperative Cultural Heritage will host the global webinar “Cooperatives in the International Decade of Culture for Sustainable Development” on 30 October.

ℹ️ More info: https://ica.coop/en/events/webinar-cooperatives-international-decade-culture-sustainable-development
👉 Register here: https://us06web.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_APC-NNE7ScuR_dFAIkLnGw #/registration

Join us to explore how cooperatives can contribute to safeguarding living heritage! Interpretation will be available in 🇬🇧 🇪🇸 🇫🇷 🇵🇹

The webinar has been selected by UNESCO as an event “in support of the International Day of Intangible Cultural Heritage”.

Discover more about the ICA Cooperative Cultural Heritage programme: https://www.culturalheritage.coop/

This initiative is part of the ICA-EU Partnership (2024–2028), 🌍, which works to strengthen the ICA network and position cooperatives as key development actors within the European Union Development Agenda. European Commission

16/10/2026

📸 The photo albums are now on Flickr.

From sessions and side events to speakers, delegates and the moments in between, you can now look back through our photos from the week in Panama.

And if you have photos you would like to add to the collection, send them to media@icacoop.

Check us out on Flickr. Search for International Cooperative Alliance. Or check the comments.

16/10/2026

What role can cooperative law play in helping cooperatives adapt without losing what makes them cooperative?

That question ran through the IX Continental Congress on Cooperative Law and II International Symposium on Cooperative Law, held alongside .

The discussions moved across digitalisation, taxation, regional integration, member participation, legal innovation, intergenerational continuity and peace, with contributions from cooperative lawyers and scholars across different regions and legal traditions.

The article also looks at the renewed ICA Legal Framework Analysis, supported through the ICA–EU partnership, and the launch of Amicus, a new shared space for cooperative law, policy, jurisprudence and comparative knowledge.

Read the full reflection on how cooperative law is evolving, and the questions Panama leaves open for the movement.

Full story here: https://ica.coop/en/newsroom/news/building-bridges-through-cooperative-law-reflections-panama

As part of the ICA Global Cooperative Conference in Panama in September, legal experts and other interested parties gathered for the IX Continental Congress on Cooperative Law and II International Symposium on Cooperative Law.

15/10/2026

The 20th anniversary celebration of Cooperatives Europe is now underway in Brussels, with two days of dialogue at the EESC - European Economic and Social Committee looking back at two decades of cooperation, and ahead to what comes next for economic democracy in Europe.

The day featured contributions from giuseppe guerini, President of Cooperatives Europe; Antje Gerstein, President of the EESC Section for the Single Market, Production and Consumption; and Agnès Mathis, Director of Cooperatives Europe, among others. The programme also included a panel discussion on “What has European-level cooperation actually changed for cooperatives in practice?” and the presentation of the first Cooperatives Europe Anniversary Awards.

A common thread ran through the opening: in a period of disruption, cooperatives offer democratic ownership, participation and a stronger sense of belonging and cohesion.

The programme continues with discussions between cooperatives, EU policymakers and partners.

Congratulations to Cooperatives Europe on 20 years! 🎂

15/10/2026

Today is International Credit Union Day, and the latest figures from the World Council of Credit Unions (WOCCU) give a useful picture of the scale and direction of the movement.

At the end of 2025, around 61,838 credit unions and financial cooperatives across 93 countries served nearly 420 million members and managed US$3.98 trillion in assets.

The report also points to some of the issues shaping what comes next: regulation, digital competition, digital transformation, artificial intelligence and governance. It also includes new data on leadership, with women holding around 28% of board seats across the sample reviewed.

In a new Co-op News piece, WOCCU President and CEO Paul Treinen reflects on trust, purposeful innovation, governance, member engagement and the continued importance of the cooperative model.

🔗 Link to the full WOCCU report in the comments
📰 Link to the Co-op News article in the comments

📩 An overview is also featured in the October edition of Cooperative Insider

14/10/2026

What could Cooperative AI mean in practice, and what would it take for the cooperative movement to shape it together?

That is the work underway at the first Cooperative AI Bootcamp, where representatives from the international cooperative movement, spanning 18 countries and five continents, are meeting in Rome.

Co-organised by the International Cooperative Alliance, LegacoopNazionale and Fondazione PICO, the Bootcamp builds on the Cooperative AI Programme launched at and is structured around three connected areas that participants are co-creating:
•⁠ ⁠Common ground — mapping the Cooperative AI ecosystem and understanding where cooperatives already sit within the wider AI landscape.
•⁠ ⁠Common understanding — working towards a shared definition of Cooperative AI and the principles, roles and priorities that should shape it.
•⁠ ⁠Common benefits — building the Community of Practice, roadmap and next steps that can turn this shared work into something useful for cooperatives beyond the Bootcamp.

The group brings together cooperative organisations, technology initiatives, researchers and ICA regional and global representatives.

The process moves from understanding where we are, to defining where we want to go, and then working out how to move forward together.