Buried deep in the news are stories of small co-operative projects. Writing about large group profits and growth you can easily forget that co-operation is about small collective actions that don't want to get too big. Whilst capitalism promotes one against all under the guise of individual self-help, co-operation is about mutual self-help. Recent stories:- local people in the small town of Tenbury Wells, Worcestershire want to save their Art Deco Cinema . They want to form a co-operative to run it. Let's hope it happens. Link.Not in the news, but in a weblog I've been following is Hedgerow's attempt to set up a food co-operative - Piddling Food Junction in an area where choice is only a supermarket offer.
The tiny Mikron Theatre Company are to receive sponsorship from the Co-operative Group for a 2008 tour with a musical play about co-operation. I saw them perform "Pedal Power" a couple of years ago - the story of Clarion Cycling. It was really good, well paced, funny and dramatic. If anyone is going to justice to the values of co-operation, and bring live theatre to informal venues and non-theatre going audiences it's them. Positive news. Small has always been beautiful.
