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Student
Co-op Club a First for UVic
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UVic
has a well-earned reputation as a haven for political activism,
and the first stated purpose of UVic Student's Society's is "to
organize students on a democratic, cooperative basis in advancing
students' interests, and advancing the interests of the students'
community." However, BC's most "left coast" campus lags behind other
Canadian Universities in co-operative presence. No student co-op
housing as yet exists at UVic, and none of the businesses on campus,
save a second hand clothing store and a food-buying collective in
the process of incorporating as a co-op, operate according to co-operative
principles. However, this may soon change. On Club's Day this September
UVic saw, in addition to the regular complement of political and
hobby clubs, a new face- The UVic Students for Co-operation (USFC).
The USFC, possibly the Nation's first university co-op club, was
initiated in September by Ryan George, who holds a B.A. in Economics
and currently a fourth year history student. The club's initial
membership of six dedicated students has grown to a solid dozen.
The purpose of USFC is to foster the development of co-ops by students
and to encourage students to become members of co-ops.
Earlier this year USFC hosted a series of three lectures on co-operativism.
The first was given by Dr. MacPherson, director of BCICS, the second
by Lynne Markle of the Community Development Corporation of Victoria
(CEDCO), and the third by John Restakis of the Canadian Co-operative
Association of BC (CCA-BC). The club is planning to give another
lecture series in the new year, as well as offering workshops in
forming a co-op. It has also been asked to assist in the organisation
of the conference "Co-ops Mean Business" scheduled for early June.
Despite the lack of a co-op presence at the University, by being
a club sanctioned by the University and consisting of a dedicated
core of students and others, the USFC is well-placed to play a pivotal
role in presenting co-operativism as a practical and viable method
of fulfilling the Students' Society mandate. |
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