A Case Study on The Warana Wired Village Project: Cooperatives Empowers Youth

Warana Warana, a small district of Maharashtra state in India is a well-developed rural area. Much of Warana's success is due to the presence of a strong co-operative movement. About 50,000 farmers live in 100 villages spread in the 25,000-kilometer2 area covered by the scores of cooperatives. The main economic activity is sugar cane growing and processing. Emerging from the cooperative movement, The Warananagar Cooperative Complex in India has become famous as a precursor of successful integrated rural development, youth using technology. Since 1956, The Warana Sugar Cooperative has led the movement, resulting in the formation of more than 25 successful cooperative societies in the region that generated great social economy in India. Co-operatives in Warana The sugar cane factory, which produces 110,000 tons of sugar per year, employs 8,000 wor

kers and collects sugar cane from about 35,000 farmers, is the main source of income for the Warana community. Warana Cooperative Complex is hub of economic activities such as a dairy unit, a food-processing unit, a chain of department stores, poultry farming, and a series of women's co-operatives. The dairy employs 1,200 workers and collects 280,000 litres of milk per day from the 125 milk societies belonging to the dairy co-operative. The dairy cooperative, in turn, provides a series of services to its members; from veterinary aid to cattle shed design, from insemination to subsidy on animal purchases. A central poultry unit provides layer birds, feed, veterinary facilities, and marketing of eggs for about 500 small units producing 13 million eggs each year for an income of $90 million. An export-oriented food-processing unit (the Warana Agricultural Goods Processing Society) employs 400 workers, and produces fruit pulp and purees from fruit purchased from Warana (bananas) or from other parts of India (mangoes). The chain of department stores (the Warana Bazaar) has 350 employees working in 2 stores and 30 retail outlets in and around Warana. Finally, several co-operatives wholly controlled and managed by women are active in the production of snacks and baked goods, school uniforms, containers and labels for dairy products, and employ hundreds of women. The total turnover of these societies runs in millions. Warana Nagar has an electronic telephone exchange, connecting nearly 50 villages, which has permitted dial-up connections from village kiosks to the servers, located at Warana Nagar. There are many infrastructure facilities in and around Warana Nagar. About 80% of the population is agriculturebased and an independent agricultural development department has been established by the cooperative society. The region is considered to be one of the most agriculturally prosperous in India.

Potential - Young community

The region is substantially rural comprised of farming community. One third of the population is youth; the cooperative leaders visualize great potential in youth. The villagers are more literate compared to other region of the state, but if youth has been given technological knowledge and tools, they can be change agent for sustainable development agent. The cooperative leaders thought that Information and Communications Technology (ICT) could be used as an effective tool for rural development. Using ICT to streamline the operations connected with sugar cane growing and harvesting. This is benefiting small farmers, both in terms of transparency and time saved on administrative transactions, as well as the cooperative, in terms of monetary gains. ICT was brought as collaboration between the National Informatics Centre (NIC), the Government of Maharashtra, the Education Department and the Warana Cooperative Complex. The right conditions to bring ICT to Warana exist both in terms of human development and of infrastructure. Empowering Youth Finding people with the right mix of skills and motivations is a necessary condition for any project to succeed in bringing ICT to rural communities. In the case of Warana, young operators at the information kiosks generally come from the grassroots, and have a great faith in the potential of ICT to improve the standard of living of their community, especially of the rural youth. They feel that the Internet will allow young people to find information about educational and job opportunities, and they see IT as the best sector where to find stable and well-paid employment. Many operators have the capability of teaching computer skills and software to children and youth, and would be willing to provide training if given the necessary incentives. Furthermore, some of the operators have good programming skills; in the village of Tope, for instance, an operator has developed a database to manage the local store's orders and purchases. Some of these young operators have had job experiences in the city and decided to return to the Warana for the strong attachment to their community. If they are given the necessary incentives, these grassroots operators can become champions for ICT in their villages, easing access to information for farmers, providing training to children, and creating new economic opportunities through software development. Goals of the Project

The Warana "Wired Village" project was initiated in 1998 by the Prime Minister's Office Information Technology (IT) Task Force. The stated goal of the project is not only to increase the efficiency and productivity of the sugar cane co-operative, but also to provide a wide range of information and services to 70 villages around Warana. The project aims in fact at giving villagers access to information in local language about crops and agricultural

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market prices, employment schemes from the government of Maharashtra, and educational opportunities. The project is likely to start distance learning at IT centers, the digitalization of land records, and the connection of all of the cooperative's "business centers." Information on sugar cane growing and agricultural prices lies unutilized and has not been updated since 1998; this information was centrally provided by NIC, and local staff was unable to update it independently.

How it operates
There are fifty-four functioning village information kiosks that are facilitating the sugar cane production process at three stages: first, during the yearly registration for plantation when changes to property are recorded; second, with the issuance of harvesting permits; and third, with payments information. Farmers can go to the village information kiosks to receive payment slips. The sugar co-operative pays them for their crops in four installments that are credited directly to their bank accounts. The co-operative publishes payment dates on a local paper, so farmers know

when it is their turn to go to the kiosks. Moreover, farmers can purchase fertilizer at deposits located next to the kiosks in cash or by using credit. If they buy using credit, they get a receipt for their purchase at the kiosk. Money spent on transport of the crop to the sugar factory is also entered in the system. Village information kiosks have operators who feed the data into the computers, and are generally open between daytime. Depending on the size of the village served by a kiosk, between 30 and 100 farmers visit the kiosk daily. Village kiosks have a PC with a printer and most are connected to the sugar administrative building via wireless telephony. Some of them though, are now saving information on floppy disks and bringing the disks to the sugar administrative building because they cannot afford big telephone bills. Kiosks also have email and Internet access, although connections are often very slow. Some kiosks are bypassing the sugar factory computer center and connect to the Internet through private providers. Warana's village booths supports supply chain management through coordinating the growth and harvesting of sugarcane for the local sugar cooperative. Additional transactional services include email services, digital photography, and astrology. Informational services are accessed through the Internet and include agricultural best practices, market rates, local news and political developments, employment news, and information on children's education. The village booths offer few eGovernance services, though they are widely demanded.
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Information on cultivation practices and crop disease control e-Governance Health information, government programs, services and contact information, land records, licenses, birth and death certificates, submission of government forms online and emails to government officials about grievances.

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Utilizing IT to increase the efficiency and productivity of co-operatives by setting up a state-of-the art computer network, providing agricultural, medical and educational information to the villagers at facilitation booths in their villages; Providing communication facilities at the booths to link villages to the Warana cooperative complex, bringing the world's knowledge to the villagers' doorsteps through the Internet via the National Informatics Centre Network (NICNET), and establishing a geographical information system (GIS) of the surrounding 70 villages, leading to greater transparency in administration especially in matters related to land. Employment and agricultural schemes and government procedures; Automated assistance in completing applications for government documents such as ration cards and birth and death certificates; Crop information; bus and railway timetables; medical facilities; and water supply details. From the booths villagers can interact with the Warana management to register grievances and seek redress. Agricultural marketing information is available from the Warana web-server, giving market arrival and the daily prices of various regulated commodities. It is also possible for students to access educational and vocational information from the booths.

Other applications include the management information system for sugarcane cultivation developed by the National Informatics Centre (NIC), which leads to speedy and accurate data exchanges between the factory and the farmers, using the village facilitation booths. This information is essential to the farmers. The land records application permits villagers to view and print extracts using data from a land database stored on a compact disc, or from the website of the taluk to which they belong, right at their village booth (a taluk is a sub-division of a district concerned with tax revenues). A Geographical Information System (GIS) has also been developed. It includes a base map of the 70 villages involved in the project, socio-economic information, e.g. about schools, population, land under cultivation and linking cadastral maps in local language. ICT has act as catalyst in development of the rural area and making happy and rich farmer community. Thanks to Cooperative leadership, whose faith in youth has resulted into sustainable development. Details of the Wired Warana Village Project

Source: Enabling ICT for Rural India, Asia-Pacific Research Center, Stanford University Reference: Information and Communication Technology in Agricultural Development, by Shaik. N. Meera, Anita Jhamtani, and D.U.M. Rao Warana: The Case of an Indian Rural Community Adopting ICT, by Simone Cecchini, Monica Raina

Featured Co-operatives Syinurayi Collective Farming Co-operative

Cashel Valley, Manicaland Province, Zimbabwe

Membership: The co-operative has 24 members and is situated in a community of just less than 100 people. Activity: The objectives of the co-operative are:
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to develop agricultural inputs in the area, improving the living standards of the members, to become self reliant, processing farm produce to finished goods.

Organisational Form: The Syinurayi Co-operative operates on a one-member one-vote system, with an equal share of decision-making power held by each member. For the purposes of practical management the co-operative elects a management committee of seven people each year at a general meeting of the co-operative. All major decisions regarding the co-operatives future would likewise be decided by the collective at a general meeting. Date Formed: Registered on the 30 th of November 1982 .

A rea Served: The small Syinurayi Co-operative has replaced the former commercial farm. Located 88 km south of Mutare in the Manicaland Province . Structure: All the money the co-operative earns is divided equally between members. There are no wages for members. The monthly family income hovers around $100. The co-operative has set aside a small amount of savings, but has no assets, nor debts, as all infrastructure and equipment is owned by the state.

The Alma Mater Society Bicycle Cooperative

University of British Columbia, Vancouver, Canada Membership: The AMS Bicycle Co-operative consists of almost 500 members of the University of British Columbia 's undergraduate and graduate student population as well as the university's staff, faculty, and other community members. Activity: The Bike Co-op is dedicated to making the University of British Columbia (UBC) campus a better place for cyclists and their bikes through improving the cycling environment. This is accomplished through providing public bikes, operating a bicycle shop, educating people about bicycling issues and advocating upgrades to bicycle planning and policy. Organisational Form: The AMS Bicycle Co-op was incorporated as a student club through the Alma Mater Society (AMS) at the University of British Columbia , (UBC) Vancouver , BC in May, 1998. Date Formed: May 1998. Structure: The Co-op is a student-run club of the Alma Mater Society of UBC, and is thus primarily responsible to its "parent" organization. As a result, the current executive structure has a President, Vice-President and Treasurer, in addition to up to seven Directors-atlarge. Even with this framework, the co-op's actual practice is to use consensus among members present for decision-making and to share responsibility for the various projects and activities. Most of the daily Bike Co-op administration and co-ordination takes place at the Hub where they employ one full-time and four part-time workers. Some Board members do take paid positions, depending on the available. Autumn 2001, the fleet had increased to a total of 230 bicycles. In a university community that has a population of 37,000 undergrad and graduate students, it is clear that cycling is, for many people, the most sensible mode of transportation to, from and around the campus. Fees UBC Student Member External Member $20 $15 $10

Full Year (Sept 1 - Aug $10 31) 2/3 Year (Jan 1 - Aug 31) $7 Summer (May 1 - Aug $5 31)

There are no shares in the AMS Bicycle Co-op. Rather, the Bicycle Co-op charges an annual membership fee that costs twice as much for other members as it does for registered UBC students. Additionally, members who wish to have access to the fleet of Purple and Yellow public bikes are asked to contribute at least three volunteer hours learning

International Co-operative Alliance

The International Co-operative Alliance is an independent, non-governmental association which unites, represents and serves co-operatives worldwide. The ICA was founded in London in 1895. Its members are national and international cooperative organizations in all sectors of activity including agriculture, banking, energy, industry, insurance, fisheries, housing, tourism and consumer co-operatives. ICA has more than 230 member organizations from over 100 countries, representing more than 760 million individuals worldwide. In 1946, the ICA was one of the first non-governmental organizations to be accorded United Nations Consultative Status. Today it is holds the highest level of consultative status (General Category) with the United Nations Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC).

Aims
The major objective of the ICA is to promote and strengthen autonomous co-operatives throughout the world. Through actions taken at the international, regional

and national levels, the ICA also seeks to

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promote and protect co-operative values and principles; facilitate the development of economic and other mutually beneficial relations between its member organizations; further the economic and social progress of its members and their communities.

In order to achieve its aims, the ICA organises international, regional and sectorial meetings, thus serving as a forum for the exchange of experience and information among its vast membership.

Methods
Information on all facets of co-operative development, resources and statistics are also collected by the ICA and provided to members and other organizations involved with co-operatives. The ICA has a documentation centre and produces publications on specialised topics, as well as periodicals, including the ICA's official journal, the Review of International Co-operation. Through its Headquarters and Regional Offices, the ICA also provides technical assistance for co-operative development in Africa, Asia, Latin America, and Eastern and Central Europe. Sectoral organizations and thematic committees are also created by the ICA to address technical issues in specific economic and social sectors. The ICA collaborates with the United Nations and its specialised agencies, and nongovernmental organizations with similar aims.

Starting a Co-operative
According to the Canadian Co-operative Association (CCA), the national voice for co-operatives in English-speaking Canada, the seven steps in forming a co-operative are:

PHASE I - DEVELOP THE COOPERATIVE BUSINESS IDEA

Step 1: Assemble a group of interested people Step 2: Conduct a feasibility study

PHASE II - CO-ORDINATE THE PRE COOPERATIVE'S ACTIVITIES

Step 3: Hold an organizing meeting Step 4: Conduct a viability study

PHASE III - ORGANIZE AND START UP THE CO-OPERATIVE

Step 5: Organize the association Step 6: Organize the enterprise Step 7: Hold the initial general meeting

Youth: The Future of Co-operation

The youth of today are finding a natural home in the values and principles of co-operatives and credit unions - the same values and principles espoused by our ancestors in building the cooperative movement. Support for youth in the co-operative movement can be found around the world. The story of how a group of young Canadian mountaineers, stormbound on Mount Baker in the spring of 1970, conceived of and then implemented a co-operative for quality outdoor gear, is legendary. Today, Mountain Equipment Co-op has nearly two million members and is Canada's largest supplier of outdoor equipment. A large part of MEC's success has been the coop's ability to tap into issues that resonate with today's young people. These issues - concern for community, democratic member control and ownership, autonomy and independence, and cooperation - are the very foundation of Canada's co-operatives and credit unions.

. Youth: The Future of Co-operation

The youth of today are finding a natural home in the values and principles of co-operatives and credit unions - the same values and principles espoused by our ancestors in building the cooperative movement. Support for youth in the co-operative movement can be found around the world. The story of how a group of young Canadian mountaineers, stormbound on Mount Baker in the spring of 1970, conceived of and then implemented a co-operative for quality outdoor gear, is legendary. Today, Mountain Equipment Co-op has nearly two million members and is Canada's largest supplier of outdoor equipment. A large part of MEC's success has been the coop's ability to tap into issues that resonate with today's young people. These issues - concern for community, democratic member control and ownership, autonomy and independence, and cooperation - are the very foundation of Canada's co-operatives and credit unions. In the small News Brunswick community of Rexton, the local credit union and high school teamed up to encourage current leaders to get involved with youth in a meaningful way. The result was the Rexton "Bengal" Credit Union, located in the high school. It didn't take much convincing for students to realize that getting involved in their high school credit union was right for them. Recruitment of membership was immediate and students campaigned to gain votes to be elected to the new Board of Directors. Through this initiative, the credit union and community are creating a generation of youth who are empowered by the co-operative principles and possess the experiences and skills required to take their place as future community leaders. The Co-operative Retailing System in western Canada comprises nearly 300 autonomous retail co-operatives; they are owners of Federated Co-operatives Ltd (FCL). At the system's fall conferences, each region invites young people to attend under either the Future Leaders Program or the Young Persons Program. The goal of these programs is to get young people involved, interested in their retails, and serving on local boards of directors. FCL and its retail members also offer a Student Development Program that provides students of post-secondary institutions with summer employment as well as the first step in training for a management career in the system. Many Ontario young people are learning about careers in the co-op sector through the Cooperative Internship Program. A partnership between the Ontario Co-operative Association and Human Resources Development Canada, the internship is a wage subsidy program providing co-operatives and credit unions with interns while building the skills and knowledge of a new generation of leaders.

The Co-operators Group Ltd is a strong advocate for leadership development and education, and supports youth-serving agencies and initiatives through financial and in-kind contributions including donations, sponsorships, scholarships and bursaries, employment, and mentoring opportunities. Partnering with the Canadian Co-operative Association and the various cooperative affiliates also provides a link with youth focused activities. With support from local, regional and national co-operatives and credit unions, provincial and regional co-operative associations offer a variety of programs and activities aimed at young people. For three-quarters of a century, these innovative programs have been helping youth strengthen their self-esteem, solve problems, learn teamwork, leadership, and communication skills, as well as receive encouragement to become active members in community and co-operative organizations. The Co-operative Housing Federation of Canada (CHF Canada) has developed a youth action plan to recruit young adults to housing co-ops and to develop a new generation of leaders. Each year a Youth Forum is held as part of CHF Canada's annual meeting. It includes workshops, discussion groups, social activities, and a representation to the plenary. In 2004, Credit Union Central of Canada launched an award recognizing an individual who has demonstrated leadership competencies, including management of a major credit union initiative and participation in community initiatives. The National Young Leader Award is presented each May. The annual Building Co-operative Futures conference provides young people from around the world with an opportunity for youth to learn about co-operative ideals and to provide the tools necessary to think of co-operatives as an alternative business model. Youth sit on co-op boards, join credit unions, support local retail co-ops, are employed by coops,t participate in co-op activities, study co-ops and find innovate ways to create new co-ops. The youth of today are active participants Canada's co-operatives and credit unions, and will lead the co-operative movement into the future

Training Featured Training Programs

Internship Program: The North American Students of Cooperation The Cooperative Internship Network places talented student cooperators in jobs with cooperatives and cooperative organizations. Each spring, the Network seeks to bring together student applicants with Internship sponsors for summer employment in a wide range of cooperatives and cooperative organizations. Past internships have included: a summer internship with a low-income credit union in Appalachia; an internship with the National Cooperative Business Association; and an internship with the member services department of an optical cooperative in Detroit. Most internships are paid and some include room and board as well. NASCO works with internship sponsors to identify qualified applicants, assists in setting up interviews, and provides assistance throughout the hiring process. Why Should You Participate Experiential Learning - Put knowledge into action and complement your academic studies and co-op background with practical work experience. Skill Development - Develop professional skills that are crucial in todays job market and essential for making a difference in your community. Career Options - Discover new and interesting career opportunities accessible to you in the cooperative sector. Network Development - Build a valuable network of mentors, potential future employers and colleagues in cooperative industry. Awareness and Education - Learn about cooperative values and principles and gain exposure to various types of co-op organizations. How does the Internship Network work? Send your application with your resume and three references to the NASCO Internship Network indicating your field of interest. Once the deadline for submission has passed, we will begin forwarding your information to suitable hosts within your areas of interest. The host organizations will then contact you about interviewing and hiring. What Could You Be Doing? The job descriptions of the internship are as diverse as the host organizations but here's a sample of what you could be doing:

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Setting up an accounting system in a small food co-op Developing marketing materials for a retail co-op Designing a newsletter and other publications for a housing co-op Preparing curriculum and acting as facilitator for a youth co-op leadership camp Creating a web page for a co-op umbrella organization

Compensation Compensation for internships varies widely. It is determined by the host organization although, at a minimum, we require that adequate compensation be provided to cover the living costs of the intern. Internship Application Form The application process is easy. Mail the completed application to NASCO, along with:
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Cover letter and resume for each internship to which you are applying List of three references with contact information

NASCO will send confirmation that the application has been received and will contact you regarding available internships.

Building Co-op Futures...in a Carbon Neutral World

The BC Institute for Co-operative Studies and the British Columbia Co-operative Association would like to thank all of the presenters, technicians, regional forum organizers, sponsors and the participants in Vancouver and around the world who helped make this years Building Cooperative Futures conference such a success.

Would you like to organize the Building Cooperative Futures conference for 2009? Are you interesting in hosting a regiona forum? Are you interested in sponsoring a forum? Check out the write-up below to see how we did things this year and to find out what is involved.

June 2nd and 3rd, 2008 The annual Building Co-op Futures youth conference is back again and this time it's going Carbon Neutral AND going live around the world! Through regional forums, live video conferencing and webstreaming, youth from around the world will have the opportunity to participate in the Building Co-op Futures conference through forums in their own region or on the internet. Quick links: Live Webstream * BC Forum * Karachi Forum * Buenos Aires * Ontario Forum * Saskatchewan Forum

Taking on sustainability. With daily reports of glacial ice and permafrost melting beyond the most extreme predictions of leading climatologists and graphs showing that Peak Oil was reached in 2006, the shape of our future is on the verge of changes on a scale beyond anything we have seen before. Few can argue that young people face a future entirely different than the world we live in today. People around the world are asking: What kind of a world will this be? What do we want it to be? How will we work together? And most importantly, how can we build a sustainable co-operative future? These questions cannot be taken lightly. While youth involvement in the co-op movement today is significant, we all know the future of the co-operative movement will be in the hands of todays young people. Yet is the way in which the co-operative movement organizes itself rooted in a petroleum-based economy that itself is on the verge of collapse? Is the success of the cooperative movement reliant on this economy? Previous youth conferences have emphasized sustainability and Fair Trade as the way of the future. This year we want to ask:
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How can we, as young people, further sustainability in our communities and our cooperatives? How can we organize ourselves and adapt our methodology to align with these goals of sustainability? What are young people around the world doing to create sustainable communities through co-operation? What do we need in order to further this work?

International video conference The online video conference will be a live interactive conference with participants and presenters ocated in regional forums around the world: Buenos Aires, Vancouver, Pakistan, Ontario, Saskatoon. The video conference will consist of 1 four-hour session with time before and after for activities organized at the regional level. Each regional forum is organized to meet the needs of youth in that region's co-op movement. During the conference, participants will be able to view the presenters from the other regions via video projection, ask questions in real time and present best practices in their region. The co-ordinating regional forum or bridging will take place in Vancouver. Regional Community Forums The regional forums may be as large or small or as short or long as the local organizing committee desires. For example, the forum may be a 3-day forum with 60 people or a 1-day forum with 15 people. The video conference/plenary portion of the forum will be 6 hours, split into 2 sessions. Due to time zone limitations, some regions may choose to participate in only one of these sessions. The timing will ensure that all regions will be able to attend at least one of the sessions during daytime hours. Regional forum organizers are encouraged to compliment these

plenary sessions with interactive discussions, local co-op mentors, workshops and/or tours of local co-operatives.

Consumer
Co-operatives on Hornby Island Susan Ritchie Hornby Island is a community steeped in volunteer and co-operative traditions. Members of the Island's community, from the 1800s to the present day, have known that co-operation is an important aspect of living in such a small, isolated community. This focus has led to the establishment of many co-operative ventures, including a credit union, a consumer co-operative store, community... Kootenay Country Store Co-operative Colleen Shepherd Kristen Sinats Date of Incorporation: 1975 Lake Cowichan Consumers' Co-operative Society Lloy Wylie Date of Incorporation: 1950 Vanderhoof Co-operative Association Lloy Wylie East End Food Co-operative Nicole Chaland Date of Incorporation: March 3, 1975 Membership: 3294 (year end 1999) Activity: East End Food Co-operative is a consumer owned, natural food and grocery store Location: Commercial Drive area, East End Dawson Co-operative Union Nicole Chaland Date of Incorporation: May 28, 1921 Membership: approximately 10 000 Activities: Consumer-owned groceries, hardware, clothing, lumber, agro and petroleum products Area Served: Dawson Creek, BC