From mlarosamorin at earthlink.net  Sat Feb  6 10:29:29 2010
From: mlarosamorin at earthlink.net (Mike Morin)
Date: Sat, 06 Feb 2010 18:29:29 -0000
Subject: [CEAP-D] A Local/Regional Initiative
Message-ID: <34A0F969E7C94E5A9744C2384E0C8FF5@MikeMorin>

Hi Folks,

I am trying to solicit interest in forming a Local/Regional Social Forum in the Eugene-Springfield and Vicinity Region/Willamette Valley Watershed that would be consistent with the philosophy and activities of the World Social Forum (Another World is Possible) and the United States Social Forum (Another US is Necessary)  - http://www,ussf2010.org

We have begun in a 3,000 member plus Facebook USSF 2010 Group to try making the activities of such an ongoing progression. It is not good enough to meet, educate, feel solidarity, and then go back to our relative isolations. Plus, it is not feasible for many, like us, to travel to Detroit for the conference. One member of the Group suggested that it would be very important and advantageous to form local/regional Social Forum Organizations.

Perhaps we could form a discussion group on Facebook, or some other facility, and meet regularly and/or on an ad hoc basis to envision, discuss, refine, educate, and organize relative to an alternative (Another Eugene-Springfield & Vicinity is Inevitable) economy.

Let me know if you are interested.

Let's Work Together!


In Peace, Friendship, Community, Cooperation, and Solidarity,

Mike Morin


P.S. The following is for your edification, consideration, and response:


(The Mondragon Cooperative Corporation (MCC) has been getting a (very) little bit of attention in the media due to a relatively recent signing of a letter of intent to cooperate between MCC and the United Steelworkers (USW)).


The Mondragon model is an excellent one.  It was actually established based on the basic principles of the International Cooperative Alliance (ICA), which evolved from the early cooperative communitarian/socialist and mutualist theorists and organizers who have been proposing and campaigning and yes fighting back (against Institutionalized Violence and Oppression) for centuries.

In its more recent history, Mondragon has strayed somewhat from some of its ideals due to its need to integrate into a larger Capitalist economy, which eschews externalities (social and environmental values, goals, and concerns). However, it's conception, early success, and its peaceful and productive response to historical antagonisms are instructive and exemplary.

I concur with Ivan that the active promotion of artisanry would be an important part of all economic development initiatives and folks following the Mondragon Operating Guidelines of Person Centered, Cooperation, Continual Improvement, and Community Commitment would help ascertain that such would occur.

Reading the article and assessing the economic realities brings to mind issues of economic paralysis associated with the inflated costs of doing business (the inflated costs of real and capital assets) and the difficulties associated with replicating the Mondragon success in today's very different economic environment.

One of the keys to the community wide success of Mondragon was the Community Commitment Principle which states that among the mission of the Organization is "to create jobs and create community wealth (equity) are the irrevocable requirement of our community vocation". They did this by earmarking a percentage of revenues from successful workers' cooperatives to the start-up of new workers' cooperatives.

So where and how do we find and create the successful workers cooperatives willing to share in a like manner?
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