ILO’s message for the “Sowing the Seeds: Platform Cooperativism for Asia” Conference in Hong Kong

ILO has sent a video message to the first conference seeking to explore ways in which cooperatives can join the digital economy in Asia.

News | 28 September 2018
From 28-29 September, a platform cooperativism conference “Sowing the Seeds: Platform Cooperativism for Asia” is being organized in Hong Kong by Chinese University Hong Kong and the Platform Cooperativism Consortium at The New School in New York City. The conference proceedings can be viewed here. Platform cooperativism is a concept that was coined to address labour-related issues in the digital economy through digital platforms owned and managed by workers in cooperatives. Here is an interview with Professor Scholz from the ILO on this initiative.
Participants of the conference

ILO has sent a video message to the conference. “We need to create an enabling environment for these new seeds [of platform cooperatives] so they have enough sun and water to grow – namely conducive laws and supportive institutions. New regulation that provides the legal support for start-up and growth of new types of cooperatives needs to be developed and adopted with an eye for protection of the rights of workers, members and users of cooperatives”, said ILO Cooperatives Unit Manager Ms Simel Esim.

Recently ILO Cooperatives Unit has collaborated with The New School on a platform cooperative development project in identifying organizations to support (refugees in Germany, waste pickers in Brazil, SEWA Cooperative Federation in India, and home-care workers in the US).