Document Type
Conference Paper
Rights
Available under a Creative Commons Attribution Non-Commercial Share Alike 4.0 International Licence
Disciplines
2.1 CIVIL ENGINEERING
Abstract
Over the past century co-operatives have made a significant contribution to alleviating many economic and social crises Irish society has encountered. For example, producer co-operatives have enabled farmers to gain a superior price for their produce rather than dealing with middlemen (Tucker, 1983). In the 1950s the credit union movement enabled thousands of families’ access to affordable credit (Quinn, 1999). Since the 1970s, Ireland has experienced many crises including mass unemployment, emigration and housing shortages. It was also affected by fuel rationing, emanating from our over-reliance on imported fossil fuels combined with the oil crisis of 1973 and 1977. In spite of this, co-operatives as an organisational model have not been embraced by communities and civil society organisations as tools to address the challenges arising from the crises detailed.
Recommended Citation
Doyle, G. (2017). New Epoch for Community Co-Operatives in Ireland: Factors Required For Their Implementation. Paper submitted for International Co-operative Alliance Research Conference, 20-23 June, University of Stirling, Scotland.