Project Summary:
Coop4EDU is an EU project within Erasmus + action 2 dedicated to developing material for training on the management of cooperatives and entrepreneurial initiatives in cooperatives and also to carrying out a state of the art on the regulations and culture on cooperatives and entrepreneurship in the following countries: Spain, Greece, United Kingdom, France, Luxembourg and Belgium. The following institutions have participated in this Project:
| 4 Universities |
3 Cooperatives |
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The project has been running for 26 months and, despite the health crisis we have been able to carry out the different activities although the multiplier events have had to been done on line.
During this period, the IO 1 was developed in a first phase, which consisted of developing a training course to help better understand what a cooperative is and to train how to undertake an activity under the model of a cooperative. This IO 1 has been structured in the following units:
MODULE 1: What is cooperative entrepreneurship?
Module 1.A: Definition and principles of cooperatives entrepreneurship
Module 1.B: History of cooperative entrepreneurship
MODULE 2: Cooperative business
Module 2.A: Business Model / Design Thinking
Module 2.B: Project Management: Methods and tools
MODULE 3: Cooperation in practice
Module 3.A: Active cooperation in a team
Module 3.B: Cooperation is going digital
The material for all the units the material has been produced, as well as the activities needed to evaluate the knowledge acquired or to apply what has been learned. All units can be used as self-learning or with a trainer for which support material has been also developed. The course is available on:
www.oercommons.org/search?f.search=coop4edu
https://congresosalcala.fgua.es/coop4edu
It has been prepared by university institutions, as well as by cooperative associations or cooperatives that take part in the project. This has made it possible to introduce the transnational component, as well as the theoretical-practical union or the university-cooperative union.
This course has been pilot tested at Coop in Manchester with students from all 3 university institutions. Likewise, some units have been used in Degree introductory courses and those units have experienced a great welcome. They seem to be a good way to introduce knowledge of cooperatives in training, an aspect that generally does not appear in the current study plans in different countries.
During the second phase of the project, the IO4 has been developed as well as the document “Guidelines on implementation of the cooperative approach in higher education”. The document contains an introduction on cooperative entrepreneurship and education, an analysis of the legislation on cooperativism and entrepreneurship at the national and European level, good practices of entrepreneurship and cooperative and some recommendations. Each institution has contributed to the national vision and has contributed on how to broaden that national vision.
Finally, 2 work and dissemination meetings have been held with more than 80 participants each of them, where it has been possible to discuss with experts the experiences and the working documents prepared by the participants.
During all these debates, it has been brought to light that a culture of cooperative entrepreneurship is lacking and that a great effort is needed. In recent years, much progress has been made at the national and European level in the culture of entrepreneurship, but now it is necessary to take another step and to incorporate also cooperativism. One way to promote this culture is through education and training, and some subject or units should be incorporated within subjects on cooperativism. The EU and the States should be asked to regulate in a more favorable and homogeneous way the matter of cooperative entrepreneurship. It has also been seen that the students who have participated in the pilot course and those who have taken part in the meetings have highly appreciated this training and consider that it was lacking.
