On December 5, 2008, advocates, organizers and community agencies came together at the Brecht Forum in New York City for the 4th annual Sister Geraldine Symposium hosted by Center for Family Life. This annual event is part of our efforts to increase awareness of issues that impact urban immigrants and share best practices with other agencies working in immigrant communities. This year's symposium, "Fair Work: A Look at the Solidarity Economy and the Growth of Immigrant Worker-Owned Cooperative Businesses," offered an opportunity for attendees to learn about cooperative organizing and the potential of worker cooperatives in revitalizing communities.

The Symposium opened with a keynote presentation by Ethan Miller, founding member of the U.S. Solidarity Network, introducing the concept of the 'solidarity economy' and the role of worker cooperatives in the movement for economic justice. Later, attendees chose from four different workshops to discuss and learn about various aspects of cooperative organizing and the Center's work with immigrant workers in the Sunset Park community.

In one workshop, Sunset Park cooperative members and Autumn Brown of the Rock Dove Collective discussed consensus-based decision-making, an important element of cooperative management. In the second workshop, cooperative members and legal experts from the Urban Justice Center explored the benefits and challenges of participating in worker cooperatives and the issues of governance. In another workshop, representatives of ReBuilders' Source Cooperative, a green retail store in New York City specializing in salvaged home improvement items, introduced the work of cooperatives engaged in the environmental justice movement. The fourth workshop, led by CFL Co-Director Julia Jean-Francois, provided an introduction to the role of a community-based organization as a cooperative incubator and shared the Center's experience in supporting the growth of immigrant cooperatives.

The Symposium closed with a panel discussion, "Cooperatives and Immigration Concerns," led by legal experts of the Community Development project of the Urban Justice Center, outlining how immigration and labor regulations affect the organization of cooperative businesses.

For more information, please visit the following websites:

We Can Do It! Women's Cooperative
www.wecandoit.coop

We Can Fix It! Cooperative
www.wecanfixit.coop

Beyond Care Cooperative
www.beyondcare.coop

ReBuilders' Source
www.rebuilderssource.coop

Urban Justice Center Community Development Project
www.urbanjustic.org

U.S. Solidarity Network
www.ussen.org

We thank our presenters and partners for contributing to the success of the event, including Mr. Miller, Ms. Brown, the Urban Justice Center, ReBuilders' Source and the worker-owners of Sunset Park's three cooperative businesses – We Can Do It!, We Can Fix It!, and Beyond Care.