Economic impact is a hot topic in the co-op community and sometimes it seems elusive to capture the full picture. George Karaphillis and Alicia Lake, researchers from Cape Breton University will share recent research on the economic impact of co-operatives in Canada which helps illustrate the various metrics that can be assesed. Their project is part of the Measuring the Co-operative Difference Research Network and applies the multiplier effect to assess how co-operative businesses provide a robust contribution to Canadian communities (jobs, taxes, and more).

Participants will be invited to ask questions and contribute comments during the discussion portion of the webinar.  

Speaker information:

George Karaphillis is Director of the MBA in Community Economic Development (CED) program, Director of the CED Institute, and Associate Professor of Management Science at Cape Breton University. Karaphillis has researched and published extensively on the social economy.  

Alicia Lake is a recent graduate of the MBA in CED program at Cape Breton University. Alicia has been involved in several research projects on co-operatives and community development and also is well known in Cape Breton for her organizing around local food and grassroots initiatives.

Fiona Duguid has a PhD from University of Toronto where her thesis looked at member involvement and learning through sustainable energy development using co-operatives. Fiona was a researcher on the recent International Co-operative Alliance co-operative sustainability study and the lead in a World Bank funded research project on women’s co-operatives in Turkey. She is on the board of the Canadian Association for the Study of Co-operation (CASC) and has been the program chair for the last three years, as well as on the management committee of the Canadian Co-operative Research Network and the Measuring the Co-operative Difference Network. She is an instructor with the Saint Mary’s University Co-operative Business Management program.