By Nasreen Omar
Nasreen is one of CWCF’s BIPOC board advisors and a founding member of Edmonton’s Multicultural Health Brokers Co-op.
CWCF’s annual Conference “Stronger Together” was held in Quebec City from November 14-16, 2023. Our location in Quebec City was in beautiful surroundings; and the City is home to a number of flourishing workers’ co-operatives. It was one of the best conferences I ever attended. Participants were full of contagious energy; networking by exchanging experiential knowledge with enthusiasm. Often the environment was filled with joy and laughter.
Passion and zeal for co-operative development and the co-operative movement were very evident from the ignite presentations, which reflected the Conference’s theme of “Stronger Together”.
The Conference’s speakers, including Bruno Roelants, Gabrielle Beaulieu, Rebecca Kemble, David Daughton, and Margaret Tusz-King were very motivational and inspiring; they spoke at length about co-operative development, the co-operative movement and the solidarity economy. They shared their perspectives based on their years of co-operative development experience and learnings. Their speeches were a blueprint for the developing cooperatives.
The panel discussion of the documentary of Réseau COOP’s (R)evolution – Work is Human, showcased the worker co-operatives’ galvanizing solutions to existing challenges of cooperative development.
The technical crew and interpreters at the Conference were phenomenal and very professional. The venue Le Monastère des Augustines was unique, and creatively renovated. The atmosphere was serene and peaceful. The food was exquisite and delicious, and the service was five stars.