Capture a moment that showcase how credit unions worldwide offer members from all walks of life much more than financial services, but also provide members the chance to own their own financial institution and help them create opportunities such as starting small businesses, growing farms, building family homes and educating their children! 

Co-op Hot Shots, a photography competition with the 5 competition themes: Co-operation, Self-help, Equality, Mutual Help, Care for Others, is organised by the Singapore National Co-operative Federation (SNCF) in celebrations of the International Year of Co-operatives 2012. Shoot photographs in relations to any of the 5 themes to participate in either of the 2 categories (online or in print). Competition submission starts 1 March 2012 and ends 30 April 2012.

This photography competition is open to both local (Singapore) and International participants. With more than S$20,000 worth of cash prizes waiting to be won, don't hesitate, submit NOW!

Rules and regulations apply. Refer to website http://singapore.2012.coop/hot-shots for more information.

Launched by Singapore’s Minister for Education, Mr Heng Swee Keat, at the launch of the Singapore IYC program on the 4th of December 2011 at Resorts World Sentosa, ‘A Very Big Storm’ is the first of a four-part children’s storybook series that inculcates positive co-operative values in children. These values include co-operation, self-help and mutual-help, and caring for the community.

The books are available for borrowing at local library outlets, and are used for character development at local pre-school centers and kindergartens in Singapore. At Co-opaliciouz, an IYC event on the 9th of June 2012 held at the Marina Barrage, more than 12,000 co-operators and families, including affiliates from the credit sector, will come together to spread co-operatives values to children, via a choral reading of ‘A Very Big Storm’.

For a limited time only, electronic versions of ‘A Very Big Storm’ are available for free download on iPhone, iPad, iPod touch, and Android platforms!

For more information, visit: http://singapore.2012.coop/programs/childrens-storybook-series/

Credit union members in the city of Ayacucho, Peru, put the squeeze on the competition after mounting the world's largest hug on Feb. 14 in honor of the United Nations’ International Year of Cooperatives. Santa María Magdalena Credit Union, a FENACREP member founded nearly 50 years ago, organized the event during which 10,738 people there embraced simultaneously.

In addition to promoting the city of Ayachuco, the event supported the cooperative values represented by the International Year of Cooperatives, which launched on Oct. 31, 2011, to address the effects of globalization, fight poverty and social exclusion and serve as an alternative development model for communities. Participants also promoted the hug as one of humankind’s noblest gestures, a way to not only transmit positive energy, but also instill health and happiness, reaffirming confidence in our own feelings and spreading good will.

Ralph Hanna, the Guinness Book of World Records representative for Latin America, witnessed the event, which was observed by Manuel Rabines Ripalda, CEO of FENACREP and chair of World Council of Credit Unions’ board of directors, Manuel Marino, director of the International Cooperative Alliance – Americas, and other cooperative organizations.

Together in a friendly embrace, the more than 10,000 people ended their hug by shouting "mission accomplished!" This hug was recorded in the Guinness Book of World Records, the best-selling text of all time with sales exceeding 100 million copies in 100 countries and 37 languages.

I invite you to join Credit Union National Association (CUNA) President and CEO Bill Cheney and me as we celebrate 2012 as the United Nations-designated International Year of Cooperatives. Our message in this short video underscores the value of credit unions, recognizing and celebrating your role in the cooperative business model and your support of members on a global basis.

Find more information and post your own videos, photos and comments here at www.woccu.org/iyc2012.

Join us in proudly telling the credit union story!

Brian Branch
President and CEO
World Council of Credit Unions

International Year of Cooperatives 2012 from Rachel Anderson on Vimeo.

The Minnesota Credit Union Network (MnCUN) is joining cooperatives around the country and world in celebrating the International Year of Cooperatives in 2012. With a video message featuring MnCUN President & CEO Mark D. Cummins, MnCUN has kicked-off its year-long initiative to tout the unique characteristics and benefits of cooperatives.

As one of the largest cooperative sectors, Minnesota credit unions understand the value of the cooperative structure and the positive influence they have on local and global economies. Consequently, they enthusiastically join this celebration and effort to inform consumers about the cooperative alternative to traditional businesses. They are excited to highlight the cooperative difference and how they help to reduce poverty, create jobs and promote socio-economic development around the world.

World Council of Credit Unions participated in the two-day launch of the 2012 International Year of Cooperatives (IYC) at United Nations headquarters in New York City Oct. 31-Nov. 1. The year will be dedicated to increasing the public awareness about cooperatives and their contribution to socio-economic development and the achievement of internationally agreed-upon development goals, including the Millennium Development Goals.  IYC will also promote the formation and growth of cooperatives for socio-economic empowerment and to provide an enabling environment through policies, laws and regulations. 

On Oct. 31, we participated in an informal interactive U.N. roundtable discussion along with U.N. member states, observers, cooperatives and non-governmental organizations in consultative status with the Economic and Social Council. We also participated in a plenary session in the General Assembly Hall. Dame Pauline Green, president of the International Cooperative Association, spoke to the General Assembly.  The strength of the cooperative sector was evidenced by the large number of representatives who spoke to the strength and contributions of cooperatives in their own countries. 

World Council serves on the United Nations Advisory Group for the International Year of Cooperatives. On Nov. 1, the advisory group met at the U.N.’s offices. The group’s role is to provide guidance, support and assistance to the Coordinating Committee in implementing the mandate and objectives of IYC, encourage partnerships, and undertake any other activity that will further IYC objectives. Interested parties may download the Advisory Group Action Plan for the Coordinating Committee.

In our first meeting, the advisory committee set out to address two things:

1. food security
2. inclusion (social, financial, gender)
3. education and engagement of youth
4. promotion of cooperatives (data, advocacy, communication)
5. regulation/legislation (creating an enabling environment)
6. diversification of the economy
7. coordination across stakeholders (development agencies, ministries, value chain)

Please send your thoughts on the roles and the challenges to credit unions in these seven key areas to Mike Muckian at mmuckian@woccu.org by Nov. 15. Mike will compile responses and I will share those thoughts with my fellow Advisory Group members. Thank you for your assistance.

“Cooperatives contribute to food security, rural development, and other social services,” said Nassir Abdulaziz Al-Nasser, opening the Assembly’s plenary meeting to launch 2012 as the International Year.

“They are not only provide productive employment opportunities to marginalized groups including women, youth, persons with disabilities, older persons and indigenous people, but also make a valuable contribution through the technical assistance programmes of their human resources development component.”

The Assembly had earlier decided that 2012 will be observed as the International Year of Cooperatives in recognition of their contribution to socio-economic development, particularly with regard to poverty reduction, employment creation and social integration. The theme of the year will be ‘Cooperative enterprises help build a better world.’

Deputy Secretary-General Asha-Rose Migiro pointed out that as the world witnesses growing public discontent as a result of the financial and economic crises, the international community could learn from the cooperative movement, which, she said, balanced both economic viability and social responsibility.

“As self-help organizations, cooperatives are inherently people-centred. They not only meet material needs, but also the human need to participate proactively in improving one’s life.

“Moreover, with democratic decision-making processes and a focus on cultivating member skills and capacities, cooperatives offer a model for harnessing the energies and passions of all,” said Ms. Migiro.

During the year, efforts will be made to expand public awareness of the role of cooperatives – especially in relation to the fulfilment of the internationally-agreed poverty reduction and socio-economic development targets known as the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs). Efforts will also be made to encourage the growth of cooperatives worldwide and strengthen them through policies and legal frameworks that facilitate their growth.

“By virtue of their organizational characteristics, cooperative enterprises are user-owned and community responsive. They continue to aggregate economic power enabling communities to compete successfully in the global economy,” Mr. Al-Nasser added.

At an informal roundtable on the role of cooperatives in sustainable development, Sha Zukang, the Under-Secretary-General for Economic and Social Affairs, pointed out that cooperatives had an important role to play in the transition to a green economy, saying they offered a business model with comparative advantage in creating socially-inclusive and environmentally sound economic practices.

“Cooperatives have also been noteworthy for their contributions to rural development and agricultural productivity across both the developed and developing world,” said Mr. Sha, who is also Secretary-General of next year’s UN Conference on Sustainable Development (Rio+20).

Across Europe, for example, cooperatives account for some 60 per cent of the processing and marketing of agricultural commodities, and they also hold a 50 per cent share in the supply of inputs,” Mr. Sha added.

At a news conference at UN Headquarters, Mr. Sha described cooperatives as “self-help organizations” that generated employment and improved incomes, thus contributing to poverty reduction. “Cooperatives also strengthen local economies and communities by tapping local resources and opportunities,” he said.

In Rome, the UN Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), the UN International Fund for Agriculture Development (IFAD) and the UN World Food Programme (WFP) stressed that smallholder farmers reap benefits from joining agricultural cooperatives through boosting their bargaining power and sharing resources to enhance food security and reduce poverty.

“Ranging from small-scale to multi-million dollar businesses across the globe, cooperatives operate in all sectors of the economy, count over 800 million members and provide 100 million jobs worldwide – 20 per cent more than multinational enterprises,” the three Rome-based agencies said in a statement.

In 2008, the largest 300 cooperatives in the world had an aggregate turnover of $1.1 trillion, comparable to the gross domestic product (GDP) of many large economies, the agencies pointed out.

NEW YORK (11/1/11) — Calling cooperatives a "catalytic force," United Nations General Assembly President Nassir Adbdulaziz Al-Nasser officially launched the 2012 International Year of Cooperatives at special ceremonies in New York Monday. More than 150 CEOs and presidents of cooperatives the attended the events, which continue through today.

Noting the theme, "Cooperatives Building a Better World," Al-Nasser emphasized that people  must be at the center of social and economic development.  No country can develop unless the people are developed.  International Year of Cooperatives marks the first time the UN has awarded a business model an "International Year" designation.

Cooperatives' principles contribute immensely to this, he said, to reduce poverty, create jobs, promote social and economic integration.  And they do so with honesty, social responsibility and caring for others.

"We'll focus on the achievements of cooperatives and support for the objectives to bring people together to resolve societal issues at a grassroots level," he said at Monday's launch.

Cooperatives are a "catalytic force" because they aggregate economic power, create opportunity and enable communities to compete successfully in a global economy, he said, adding they deserve more support and encouragement in order to thrive in their respective countries.

Dr. Asha-Rose Migiro, on behalf of the UN Secretary General, noted that the emphasis of the International Year of Cooperatives is an opportunity to raise public awareness and encourage governments to establish policies conducive to their growth. Co-ops help to reduce poverty, create jobs, empower youth, the elderly, those with disabilities, women, she said.

Dame Pauline Green , president of the International Cooperative Alliance (ICA), highlighted the outcome of a morning panel. Cooperatives reflect the combined  power of economic opportunity and social responsibility, and have taken millions out of poverty with dignity, she said. After the year is over, it is her hope that efforts pivot from IYC to a decade of cooperative growth.

Also speaking was Gordon Brown, former British Prime Minister,  who also addressed The World Council of Credit Unions' annual conference in Edinburgh this year. "Literally a billion of us are part of a movement of men and women who believe in something," he said, adding, "It's monumental. When the strong help the weak it makes us all stronger."

He noted that " We must do more than talk about our interdependence and our moral sense that cooperatives are good.  We must listen to the voices of discontent, the unemployed, the impoverished--listen to these voices and set out a cooperative vision of the future."

Credit Union National Association President/CEO Bill Cheney attended the events. "Today's remarks by these very distinguished speakers on the floor of the UN General Assembly were truly inspiring. They highlighted the value and accomplishments of cooperatives and the great potential cooperatives have to accomplish still more."

Also attending the UN sessions, World Council of Credit Unions President/CEO Brian Branch remarked, "It was striking how many countries--nineteen, including the United States--had their representatives speak to the benefits of cooperatives, including a number of references to the work that credit unions do around the world."

Monday morning CUNA's Cheney attended a round table discussion that focused on the theme of cooperative enterprises--how to help create sustainable development. He will also participate in today's events.

Today's agenda includes:

• Cooperative business;
• Cooperative finance; and
• How businesses use communications to meet objectives.

A quick thank you to Brian Bentley and Integris Credit Union, Prince George, BC, Canada for supporting the IYC Campaign!  Brian learned about the campaign at the World Credit Union Conference, made a donation, and is implementing a local program at the credit union as a follow up!