January 2025

In the face of global headlines dominated by US president Donald Trump’s far right agenda against the Global South, we’re taking a moment to shine a light on 2025 as a special year for Black Cooperatives. This year marks the convergence of two United Nations declarations, the International Year of Cooperatives and the second International Decade for People of African Descent. In other words, this is the year of Black co-ops, and we intend to make the most of it.

Keep scrolling for the newest news and resources across the global Black solidarity economy, and the latest on what we’re up to at Collective Diaspora.

Like what you’re reading? Help us to keep producing it with a donation.

Maroon Dispatches

News from across the global Black solidarity economy

Black Cooperatives at Intersection of Global Policy with 2025 Int’l Year of Cooperatives and 2nd Int’l Decade for People of African Descent (Global))

The United Nations has kicked off 2025 with two landmark designations. It has designated 2025 as the International Year of Cooperatives and the years 2025 to 2034 as the Second International Decade for People of African Descent. The UN uses declarations of international years and decades to draw global attention to significant issues and to encourage coordinated international action to address them.

The declaration of the Second International Decade for People of African Descent builds on the momentum of the first decade (2015-2024), which focused on recognition, justice, and development. In calling for a second international decade on the heels of the first, the UN recognized the entrenched nature of systemic racism and how it continues to deprive people of African descent of basic human rights in education, healthcare, housing, economic opportunities, environmental protection, political representation, and more.

Simultaneously, the declaration of 2025 as the International Year of Cooperatives shines a global spotlight on the cooperative model as a solution to challenges caused by a capitalist economic system that prioritizes profit over people and the planet. Through the year’s theme “Cooperatives Build a Better World”, the UN recognizes that cooperatives are uniquely positioned to empower communities by prioritizing the needs of people over profits, fostering economic resilience, promoting participatory governance, and advancing sustainable development, poverty eradication, and social cohesion.

This year’s international focus on both people of African descent and cooperatives provides an opportunity for Black co-op organizing as it highlights the strategic importance of cooperative models for addressing issues disproportionately affecting people of African descent, such as economic inequality and limited access to resources. This is an opportunity for governments, academia, funders, and media to be brought to task to support Black cooperatives of all types.

Beat the Drum

Calls for Support

  • (Call for Volunteers & Doners)  -  Los Angeles Fire Support - Community Aid Dena has been directing people to donate directly to the 867 Black families that have lost their homes in the Altadena and Pasadena fires. You can donate through the Displaced Black Families GoFundMe Directory set up for local Black families and businesses that were also damaged by the fires to receive support. Movement for Black Lives has also put out a call for volunteers to help catalogue the losses of Black families in the LA fires and to document their experiences. This includes inventorying damaged belongings, and connecting them to other resources. Sign up to volunteer here if interested.
  • (Call for Presenters) - The Network for Developing Conscious Communities is recruiting presenters for its 2025 Black CoopNomics Academy in Washington DC, and Baltimore, MD. The course explores strategies for building wealth, equity, and resilience through cooperative models. For more info or to sign up as a presenter, email makichapman@gmail.com
  • (Call for Applications) - The Cooperative Leaders and Scholars (CLS) program of the Cooperative Development Foundation offers an 8-month leadership development course for 18-35 year old emerging cooperators. Deadline for applications is Feb 3rd. Click HERE for more information.
  • (Call for Doners) - Support Mandela Grocery CooperativeMandela Grocery Cooperative is a worker cooperative that’s been providing fresh food to the West Oakland community in California for over 16 years. They need to raise $20,000 to meet new mandates for refrigeration equipment. Donate to Help Mandela Grocery Meet Urgent Refrigeration Needs.
  •  

Collective Diaspora News

Collective Diaspora Intro Video

Here’s a short little description of us that we made for you to share with friends.

Resource Library: Podcasts & Videos

Digging Deeper

Books, Journal Articles, Reports, and Other Resources

  • Defunding Dissent (Report)

    Foundations have quietly withdrawn funding from grassroots groups that spoke out for Gaza, imperiling a broad range of social justice movements.

  • The Land, Food and Freedom Journal (Journal)

    The National Black Food & Justice Alliance has just launched this interdisciplinary publication that curates conversations at the intersections of Black food sovereignty, land justice, academia, and art. This peer-reviewed journal amplifies the voices of Black land stewards, scholars, activists, and culture bearers who are advancing the movement for liberation through innovative land and food strategies and bold visions for the future. Published under the guidance of Blackademics, the research arm of NBFJA, and supported by The Agroecology Center, the journal serves as both an archive of Black agrarian knowledge and a living document to inspire ongoing strategies for community resilience and self-determination.

Funding

Jobs

No Movement Without Art

Songs, Film, Murals, and Paintings

Upcoming Events

On climate change in Senegal and the broader West African region, and what its implications are for the people of the region and the world. This event will be hosted by Kali Akuno of Cooperation Jackson and is sponsored by the Institute on Social Ecology.

Join this 8-week Community Transformation Academy designed for emerging leaders who are passionate about building a stronger, more sustainable local food network

The Commission for Social Development is the advisory body responsible for the social development pillar of the UN's 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development.

In this session, we will build on Austin's Black co-op history to connect with the active and growing National Black Cooperative Movement. Guest speaker Assata Richards will explore an example from our neighbors in Houston, where We Are The Ones cooperative is transforming what economic development means for Third Ward, a historically Black neighborhood threatened by economic and social forces including gentrification.

This hybrid academy offers a unique opportunity to collaborate, learn, and share insights with like-minded practitioners and leaders who are passionate about fostering economic empowerment and social equity through cooperatives.

This hybrid academy offers a unique opportunity to collaborate, learn, and share insights with like-minded practitioners and leaders who are passionate about fostering economic empowerment and social equity through cooperatives.

The Resist and Build process bridges the gap between resistance movements and initiatives to build a transformed system, recognizing that resistance without a clear vision risks mere reform, while building alternatives without roots in resistance risks exclusion and co-optation.

  • May 30 - Jun 1 - 2nd bi-annual National Black Radical Organizing Conference (Indianapolis, US)

  • Late Nov - 2025 Repaired Nations Black Solidarity Conference Tour (Tanzania)

    Repaired Nations is offering transformative cultural exchange experiences providing opportunities to learn more about cooperatives, connect with global resources, engage in nation-building, and reconnect with sacred indigenous roots.