World Cooperative Congress 2021

Delegates gathered on the morning of the final day of Congress to discuss Living the Co-operative Identity Within the Social and Solidarity Economy

On the final day of the World Cooperative Congress delegates in a parallel session heard about affordable housing and energy. The session started by stating that the world was facing a global climate crisis and we were close to the tipping point. This had already hugely disrupted our society and could in the near future threaten all human life. The seventh cooperative principle of care for our community calls on us to tackle the climate, energy and housing crisis together. 

Introducing a session on living the cooperative identity through integrated health and social care, Dr Carlos Zarco, President of the IHCO and Director of Fundacion Espriu, Spain, said the pandemic had highlighted people’s worries over healthcare. “Patients want to get the best health care at the lowest cost. And cooperatives allow patients to work together to work with health providers, and even become the owners of the health resources.”