Improving awareness about the relevance of co-operative model with the general public, youth and government is the most important issue for co-ops in the annual survey by The Canadian Centre for the Study of Co-operatives. And the job of raising awareness is up to the co-ops themselves and their provincial and national associations.
Corinne Remple, Executive Director of the Alberta Community Co-op Association, decided that the story of co-ops needed to be told differently, especially to Gen Z and Millennials.
So she collaborated with provincial and national partners to help launch Business NOT as Usual, a campaign that highlights how co-ops are an alternative way of doing business built on shared ownership, sustainability, collective impact and driven by values.
We discuss her new approach to raising awareness of the sector in Part 1 of this show
In Part 2, we speak with Kristen Murray, co-op developer with the Newfoundland and Labrador Federation of Co-ops (NLFC) about how she found her way to co-op sector as a young person just starting out and looking for a way to make a difference in this world. NLFC is a partner in Business NOT As Usual and Kristen spoke at the kickoff event during Co-op Week in 2025.
