WP 48 | 13 Mutualism and peer monitoring in Italian BCCs

This paper seeks, first, to measure the intensity of member relationships that connotes BCCs, highlighting their differences at the territorial and size levels and identifying their main determinants. Second, it aims to assess the role of peer monitoring on credit quality by empirically testing the effect of the degree of mutualism on the main indicators of riskiness. Read More

WP 47 | 13 Pan-European cooperative law: Where do we stand?

This paper aims to provide a brief general overview of the present state of European Union (EU) cooperative law from the perspective of harmonization of cooperative law in Europe. It also presents the author’s point of view on the possible future of both EU cooperative law and the harmonization of European national cooperative laws. Read More

WP 46 | 13 Cooperative’s concern for the community: from members towards local communities’ interest

This article discusses the relationship between cooperatives and their communities, one of the standard ways in which the "cooperative difference" is explained. What are the origins of this special relationship? Why and how did it receive so much attention in the 1990s, when the international cooperative movement undertook a major and sustained effort to articulate its core values and principles? Read More

WP 45 | 12 Cooperative finance and cooperative identity

The question addressed in this paper is whether the financial structure of cooperatives constitutes a badge of identity that differentiates cooperatives from other corporate legal forms such as capital-based companies. To this end, it examines features of their financial structure that are considered typical of cooperatives in a number of documents published by international organizations. Read More

WP 43 | 12 Do cooperative enterprises create social trust?

This paper contributes to the literature by carrying out the first empirical investigation into the role of different types of enterprises in the creation of social trust. Drawing on a unique dataset collected through the administration of a questionnaire to a representative sample of the population of the Italian Province of Trento in March 2011, we find that cooperatives are the only type of enterprise where the work environment fosters the social trust of workers. Read More

WP 42 | 12 Social enterprise projects as urban regeneration strategies: spaces and methods for social innovation

Among the various expressions of social innovation, the regeneration of community assets by social purpose enterprises is assuming increasing prominence.The paper aims to explore this topic in depth, analyzing the main critical junctures of regeneration processes and highlighting the convergence at the scholarly level between the definitions of social enterprise and public policy. Read More

WP 41 | 12 Co-operation as a remedy in times of crisis: agricultural co-operatives in the world

Changing framework conditions and the changing environment bring challenges that more affluent people can face more easily than poorer ones. At these stages, cooperation with others facing similar problems may prove to be a remedy. However, pooling resources presupposes that individuals who decide to cooperate have at least small potentials and means that they can pool to build a common force. Read More

WP 39 | 12 Mondragón: how to combine economic success and cooperative values

This paper shows how the Mondragón Corporación Cooperativa (MCC) group has managed to reconcile cooperative goals, the relationship with the local community and the necessary requirements of efficiency and competitiveness by adopting a peculiar organizational structure, in which cooperatives are grouped into sectoral divisions and coordinated by central bodies composed of the members themselves. Read More