CWCF is pleased to feature Júlia Martins Rodrigues, Ph.D., as a speaker on the keynote panel at its upcoming Conference. She is a researcher and professor at the International Centre for Co-operative Management, Saint Mary’s University. She will speak about the Namasté Solar Multi-stakeholder Network in the U.S. renewable energy industry, joined on the panel by Frédéric Plante of Réseau COOP on the Parcours COOP; Russ Christianson on CWCF’s Worker Co-op Academy; and Mario Cimet of Solid State Community Industries on worker co-op creation, and food justice.
Dr. Martins Rodrigues’s interest in worker co-ops dates back to her time as a Human Rights attorney in Brazil, which led her to conclude that the way to safeguard these rights is through a shift in the economic system. This inspired her curiosity about alternative economic models and led to her research on multi-stakeholder co-operative networks, which she’ll focus on in her presentation. She currently serves on the Colorado Office of Employee Ownership as a governor-appointed commissioner, in which she works to support the creation of public policies for worker co-ops and other employee-owned businesses.
Dr. Martins Rodrigues is drawn to worker co-ops by the role they can play in broadening democracy within society, noting that while democracy is widely accepted as the preferred form of government, this seldom applies to the workplace.
“Our economy still largely operates within traditional business structures that are far from democratic, particularly in non-cooperative organizations, where top-down hierarchies dominate,” she explains. “Worker co-ops represent a pathway to bringing democracy closer to people’s everyday lives, especially in the workplace, where we spend a significant portion of our time.”
Recognizing the economic, environmental, and political crises worker co-ops are facing, Júlia believes intercooperation between worker cooperatives and values-aligned partners is key, and that this ties into the Conference theme of Unleashing Worker Co-ops for Success.
“The success of worker co-operatives and co-operatives in general is through intercooperation,” she says. “When worker co-operatives collaborate instead of operating in silos, uniting with other co-ops in their market, they create powerful networks of mutual support. A worker co-op doesn’t have to function in isolation—it can tap into a broader infrastructure that helps them reduce costs, engage in advocacy and training, and build a safety net through partnerships with other co-operatives in their ecosystem.”