News & Updates

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Help Forge a New Circle of Collaboration!

We’ve set a date for the first monthly Cooperation Eugene Collaboration Circle meeting and you are invited! Thursday November 14th from 7-8:30pm at Emerald Village Community Room, 25 N. Polk at Railroad Ave (please park on Polk or in the lot across Polk from Emerald Village).

The agenda will include a brief introduction about what the regenerative economy might look like in Eugene and watch a brief video by Ujima, a new economy organization that is making waves in Boston. We will also make space for all comers to share their related project ideas looking for collaboration.

We have a couple exciting new projects that are in the early stages of development which we will discuss in more detail at the meeting as well:

The first is a Micro Grants program to support projects that are aligned with the mission and aims of our organization. How do we make these decisions? What criteria do you recommend? If these funds were available, do you have a project that needs funding?

Also, we are planning an Economic Democracy Summit that will bring regenerative economy thought leaders together with local key stakeholders and community members to forge new approaches to rebuilding the commons based on successful models in place elsewhere.

The vision for the Collaboration Circle is that it will create opportunities for greater community involvement that are well suited to newcomers and those with busier schedules. We’d like for it become a place where existing projects collaborate, new projects form, and people go to find out more about opportunities. We see it as a place where collaborative outreach events get organized, and community experts join us to lend their advice. We are also looking forward to seeing what ideas you have to contribute!

Please join us on Nov 14th!

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Resilience Festival Followup

Over 300 people enjoyed the Community Resilience Festival on Aug 24th! They browsed, tabled, heard about solutions for resilience from speakers, and collaborated on ideas for community action such as a local food system network.

If you weren’t able to make it but are interested in seeing some of what happened you can watch video that has graciously been taken and made available by Todd Boyle. See our own Clare Strawn presenting on creating a regenerative and resilient local economy!

Plenary Talks:
Clare Strawn – “Creating a Regenerative and Resilient Local Economy”
https://youtu.be/YSaLrs7iFjs?t=3377Clare Strawn – “Creating a Regenerative and Resilient Local Economy”
https://youtu.be/YSaLrs7iFjs?t=3377
Jan Spencer – “Towards A Green and Resilient Culture and Economy”
https://youtu.be/YSaLrs7iFjs?t=325
Terry McDonald, Executive Director of St. Vincent de Paul – “St. Vinnies Builds Community Economic Resilience”
https://youtu.be/YSaLrs7iFjs?t=1032
Charlie Tilt and Kate Perle – “Local Food Systems Build Regional Resilience”
https://youtu.be/YSaLrs7iFjs?t=1622

Residential Coops:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F8cjoEIy9v0&t=1449s
Skeeter Duke – East Blair Housing Cooperative
Rob Bolman – Maitreya Eco Village
Tom Atlee – Walnut Street Co-op
Joanne Fox – PDX Commons, Portland

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Community Resilience Festival

We are co-hosting an event on Saturday, August 24, 2019. 10:30 AM to 5 PM at the River Road Recreation Center, 1400 Lake Drive!

The Community Resilience Festival is a day long event that will be fun, educational and timely.  Its all about reducing our ecological footprints and building positive community culture. The event will show and tell projects, actions, allies and assets we have in Eugene and the southern Willamette Valley for creating more green and resilient homes, lifestyles, city and region.

For more complete information check out the event page on the River Road Community Organization Website or see the event page in Facebook.

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Resources In A Local Regenerative Economy

open space discussion circle

We had a great Open Space event on the 8th with group participants coming forward with areas of interest they wanted to discuss. We broke out into groups and had a number of good conversations. It was nice to see new faces in the circle and to benefit from all the perspectives that were shared. Thanks to everyone who participated!

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June 2019 Opportunities Newsletter

Join Us For an Asset-Mapping Open-Space Exercise and Snack Potluck on June 8th

What does a Regenerative Economy ecosystem look like? As we foment new & regenerative economics in Eugene, what assets do we want to know about and connect with? Cooperation Eugene is developing an online directory of resources that are currently in place locally with the intention to help build networks of community. You can check out the initial database here.

Are you a knowledge holder of community activity in a specific area of interest (EG: food systems, permaculture, education, housing, cooperatives, economic development, cultural work, healing, legal and financial expertise, funds)? You are especially invited to contribute to this asset-mapping project! Your participation in this Open Space meeting is valuable and there will be other opportunities to continue working on this project.

After a brief introduction to Cooperation Eugene, and to asset-mapping in this context, the space will be opened to generate clusters of interest. We will then break into groups to talk about the topics that interest us most. Notes will be taken, including assets the groups mention that could be added to the Cooperation Eugene directory.

Where: Eugene Garden Club, 1645 High Street, Eugene. The doors open at noon on Saturday June 8th and the program begins at 12:30pm. We should be done by 3pm.

Bring finger foods or snacks to share. Donations for the space will be accepted and appreciated.

More information on Asset Mapping.

More information on Open Space.

Study Circle Update

The Cooperation Eugene Study Circle reads books and articles, podcasts and videos to explore the theory and practice of systems change for the regenerative economy. We meet monthly, and membership is by drop-in. Members on the study circle list receive an email, but you must RSVP so that our meeting place can accommodate all of the respondents. The discussion will be facilitated – at least in the beginning. Material addresses a solutions orientation on the new economy, and must have at least two people who know it before it becomes accepted for study.

Our next meeting is on June 4th at 7pm, and the first book is Emergent Strategy by Adrienne Maree Brown. It can be ordered from Tsunami Books with a 20% discount.

To get on the mailing list, to RSVP or for more information contact studycircle [at] cooperationeugene [dot] org.

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Free Study Circle: Essential Systems Change and Building a Regenerative Economy

The Cooperation Eugene Study Circle seeks to consider the theory and practice of systems change for the regenerative economy.  We are starting with Emergent Strategy by Adrienne Maree Brown which we will discuss on June 4th. You can also see a video of the author presenting on Emergent Strategy here. 

On May 7th at 7pm we want to present a framework for the study circle and talk about a selection process for future materials.  Location provided to those who RSVP to studycircle@cooperationeugene.org.

Topics for our selections could include:

  • Theory of systems change
  • Real world examples of the regenerative economy
  • Climate change
  • Food systems
  • Housing solutions
  • The Sharing Economy
  • Localism
  • Group process

Regarding the selection of materials, we have a coordinating committee that has been working on these issues and anyone who joins us on May 7 is invited to join this group.
Come with your list.  Hope to see you then!

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April 2019 Announcements

group discussion

What is the New Economy? We know what the problems are. Now let’s get to solutions! Cooperation Eugene invites you to a discussion at The Eugene Garden Club (1645 High Street) on Friday April 26th from 6:30-8:30pm. (free)

Join us as we explore how our most vexing societal issues, such as income inequality and environmental degradation, have their roots in the way our economy works. Then we’ll look at some of the things groups do as they work to transform our economy from a giant world-devouring machine into something more cooperative that holds sustainability in its core along with supporting the needs of humanity and the natural world.null

Our New Resources Directory is Up And Running

We’re working to make it easier to discover what’s going on with the New Economy in Eugene by mapping our assets. Our new directory and project endeavor to connect the dots between related organizatio#ns and resources, to identify gaps and overlaps in the services that are available locally, and to encourage cooperation. We’ve started adding organizations and other resources already, and you can check it out here. If you would like to get involved or if you know of a resource that should be included let us know!

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Presentation to Neo-Humanism Camp at Dharmalaya

presentation at dharmalaya

Cooperation Eugene was invited to share our work at the Neo-Humanism Camp sponsored by Dharmalaya. Clare kicked off the conversation with discussion exploring how we experience the extractive economy in our daily lives.  We then saw how the New Economy movement is part of a larger social change strategy being taken up by communities around the country and world. We wrapped up with a review of the initiatives Cooperation Eugene is launching here. The slideshow is attached below.

If you would like to have a presentation at an event in town let us know!

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Thanks to Everyone Who Joined Us at The Potluck!

potluck

Our recent potluck and time banking discussion went well. First we enjoyed a nice meal and conversation. Then we played a little game that demonstrated how time banking works. Finally we finished up with a discussion of time banking and how it could be implemented here. There was a lot of participation and good ideas shared. Our next public event will be on Saturday the 27th of April. Stay tuned for details!

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Join us For a Community Potluck and Time Banking Discussion!

potluck bowl

We would like to announce our first community potluck, and you’re invited! Join us for this family friendly event at the Eugene Garden Club, 1645 High St, Eugene, on Sunday February 24th from noon to 3pm and bring some food to share. While the venue does have a stocked kitchen, we suggest you bring your own dishes and utensils.

Our plan is to host a potluck like this every-other month as an opportunity to have fun, build community, and give everyone that would like to join in a chance to network and discuss New Economy related ideas.

The discussion theme for this first potluck will be Time Banking. Of all the input we received, most folks who made their opinions known said they’d like to see a Time Bank service-sharing network here in Eugene.

Time Bank Exploration

In a Time Bank everyone’s time is valued equally and skills are traded among members who record hours on a website. For example Ben could spend a couple hours raking leaves for Grace. Then he could turn around and trade those hours to Jill who helps him with her truck when he needs to move his stuff across town. Then Jill could take the hours she earned and trade them for a haircut or Spanish tutoring for her son. It’s a cool concept that is helping people meet their needs outside the traditional economy, and it is being done successfully in a number of other cities around the country.

If this sounds exciting please join us at the potluck! We are working to discover how much genuine interest there is in town. If we are to succeed we’ll need plenty of help with this project from folks like you both before and after we get a system up and running. And, of course, we’ll need a bunch of people who are interested in skill sharing to sign up. So don’t be shy. If you want to see this happen get involved!

In Other News…

We are forming 3 different committees that are pursuing different areas of focus. So if Time Banking doesn’t interest you and you would like to get more involved in this work, we have other options:

  1. The Asset Mapping Committee believes it is important to take an inventory of the New Economy related groups, projects, and other resources in town so we know what is being done, and can more clearly see what still needs to be accomplished. This effort is about networking our local groups and resources, and cataloging information online so it is more available and useful. Networkers, researchers, and technical problem solvers this is your moment!
  2. The Local Investment & Community Development Committee is looking into a myriad of ways we can improve and localize our economy here in Eugene. If you have skills or interest in economic development, finance, banking, law, or buy local campaigns we would love to hear from you. Topics of interest include:
    • Cataloging existing local investment opportunities
    • Creating new local investment opportunities
    • Making it easier for cooperatives and small businesses to get capital when they need it
    • Finding ways to keep money circulating in our local economy rather than being siphoned off by business interests in other parts of the country or world.
  3. And, of course, the Time Bank Exploration Committee is looking into the feasibility and planning of a time bank service-sharing network here in town as described earlier in this article.