I have an empathy for the philosophy of co-operatives and have enjoyed working with the boards and management of co-operatives over the years.

For regulatory and prudential reasons they have transformed from non-profit to not-for-profit and there is ongoing pressure to demutualise.

Unfortunately The Australian Centre for Co-operative Research and Development (ACCORD) lost its funding last year but I note that Centre for Australian Community Organisations & Management has taken over ACCORD’s papers and the co-operative challenge.

The Co-operative Federation of Victoria Ltd also looks to be very active.