Recap: Closing the Gender Wealth Gap Forum – Exploring Models of Shared Wealth
In this month’s Closing the Gender Wealth Gap Forum, we talked about how cooperatives, or co-ops, can help communities build wealth together and improve economic security. Our panelists talked about the challenges co-ops face in getting funding and technical support and the need for policies to help with these issues. They also highlighted the role of women and other marginalized communities in starting and leading co-ops.
“In cooperatives, a lot of workers that we’re working with are either having a hard time finding jobs or even coming from cases of wage theft, harassment, or they are many times survivors of domestic violence. So, a lot of the time, when they come together to form a business, the cooperative has been the business model that provides that container for these communities to come together and build community wealth. We’re trying to be included in the economy.” -Ana Martina Rivas
This event was moderated by Mo Manklang, Policy Director, U.S. Federation of Worker Cooperatives. Featured panelists:
- Terrell Cannon, MHS – Director of Training, Home Care Associates
- Ana Martina Rivas – Co-Founder and Worker-Owner Member, Colmenar Cooperative Consulting
- Corey Reidy – Co-op Developer, Philadelphia Area Cooperative Alliance
This event was made possible thanks to support from our event sponsor: Ballard Spahr LLP.
Resources
Download our community resource document here!
