UNITE TO EVOLVE!

Sixty years ago, our founders did not have the dimension of the great history they were starting. However, they wrote it based on cooperation, the desire for the common good, and the development of the community as a whole. This is, after all, our great differential.

This seed of cooperativism, cultivated with so much zeal throughout the years, derives from the same seed planted in England, in 1844, when a group of 28 weavers sketched the first cooperative ideas, in the initiative known as "Rochdale Probos Society".

The central idea of this movement is to unite people around a common goal, combining economic development and social welfare.

Cooabriel grew on the roots of cooperativism and even in the face of so many advances and conquests, the cooperative principles remain firm, solid and consistent in the daily practices of the cooperative.

Form of organization

An estimate states that one in every seven people in the world is associated to a cooperative, aware that through this union it is possible to conquer advantages and overcome obstacles, leading to a fairer and more prosperous future.

Cooperativism is a movement, a philosophy of life, and a socioeconomic model. It is governed by seven principles, which guide and outline the main lines of action. These are values based on democratic participation, equity, solidarity, and social justice.

Principles of Cooperativism

In 1995, the so-called "Golden Rules" of cooperativism underwent adaptations during the Congress held to commemorate the Centennial of the International Cooperative Alliance.

Based on the Rochdale Principles, these are the current guidelines that guide the world cooperativism:

I- Voluntary and free membership
II- Democratic management
III- Economic participation of the members
IV- Autonomy and independence
V- Education, formation and information
VI- Intercooperation
VII- Interest in the community

Cooperatives are voluntary organizations, open to all persons able to use their services and assume responsibilities as members, without discrimination on the basis of gender, social, racial, political, or religious beliefs.

Cooperatives are democratic organizations, controlled by their members, who actively participate in formulating their policies and making decisions. Men and women, elected as representatives of the other members, are accountable to the members. In first-degree cooperatives the members have equal voting rights (one member, one vote); in higher-degree cooperatives the organization is also democratic.

o the paid-up capital as a condition of membership. Members devote the surplus to one or more of the following purposes: development of their cooperatives, possibly through the creation of reserves of which at least part shall be indivisible; benefit to members in proportion to their transactions with the cooperative; support of other activities approved by the members.

Cooperatives are autonomous, mutual-aid organizations controlled by their members. If they enter into agreements with other organizations - including public institutions - or resort to external capital, they must do so under conditions that ensure democratic control by their members and maintain the autonomy of the cooperative.

Co-operatives promote the education and training of their members, elected representatives and workers so that they can contribute effectively to the development of the group. They inform the general public, particularly young people and opinion leaders, about the nature and advantages of co-operation.

Cooperatives serve their members more effectively and strengthen the cooperative movement by working together through local, regional, national and international structures. It is about cooperation among cooperatives in the same system, with cooperatives in other systems, and with cooperatives in other branches of cooperativism.

Cooperatives work for the sustained development of their communities through policies approved by the members.