(October 25, 2011 Albuquerque, NM) USDA Rural Development State Director Terry Brunner announced today that this year's Co-Op month will focus on the services provided by various types of co-operatives across the State of New Mexico.
The celebration sponsored by the Southwest Cooperative Development Center will be held on Friday, October 28th beginning at 8:00 AM with a special presentation at 12 noon in Albuquerque at the Indian Pueblo Cultural Center located at 2401 12th Street NW.
Co-cooperatives from around the state will meet to share information and successes on their strategies for assisting the public to obtain goods and services.
In making the invitation to attend the celebration, Brunner said, "Cooperatives have been a major factor in our economy for many years and we want to honor the services they provide here in New Mexico. I personally invite the public to attend this symposium and learn how co-operatives have helped the community with various services and goods."ݼ/p>
The event, begins with a coffee and networking hour, followed by informative presentations by the cooperatives and a luncheon, and concludes with field trips to cooperatives in the afternoon. The presentations will underscore the diversity of some of the many groups that have chosen to organize as cooperatives such as: banks, grass-fed beef producers, credit unions, housing groups, banks, and commercial retail organizations, such as REI.
During the luncheon, two co-operatives will be honored by Brunner with a certificate of obligation for funds they will receive from USDA Rural Development. The Center for South West Culture will receive a $191,000 Rural Cooperative Development Grant (RCDG) that will be used to provide technical assistance in organic farming methods, developing business opportunities that make use of existing natural resources, and developing a strategy for housing preservation in traditional cooperative communities in northern New Mexico.
The second award will be made to Capacity Builders, Inc. based in Farmington, New Mexico. Capacity Builders will also receive an RCDG grant. The $225,000 grant will be used to develop a National Center for Rural and Tribal Cooperative Development, and to provide technical assistance to entrepreneurs and groups of entrepreneurs to establish cooperatives or mutual businesses.
The symposium will be held on October 28th at the Indian Pueblo Cultural Center, 2401 12th Street, NW, Albuquerque, NM 87104. The cost for the day's events, including lunch, is $20. For more information or to RSVP, contact 505.761.4953 or email kim.giang@nm.usda.gov .