Join Us at the 2019 Principle 6 Conference!
Members of the Cooperative Maine Business Alliance (CMBA) work together to engage and train Maine’s cooperative workforce and membership, strengthen co-op operations and management capacity and connect to resources and partnerships that will help Maine’s solidarity economy thrive.
The Principle Six conference is CMBA’s hallmark annual event which brings Maine cooperatives and co-op supporters together to explore ways that we can learn from one another and strengthen our cooperative economy. This conference was founded by Cooperative Maine six years ago and as the number of co-ops in Maine increases, the event continues to strengthen and grow.
This year’s conference is being coordinated by the CMBA along with support from the Cooperative Development Institute. The 2019 theme is Cooperatives Build a Better Maine: Building Skills, Connections, and a Movement. Together as consumer food co-ops, housing co-ops, worker co-ops, resident-owned communities, and others, we will explore topics ranging from financial literacy to member engagement and equity and inclusion. We will have educational and participatory workshops, a keynote speaker, lunch, and ample opportunity to network and learn from each other.
We hope you will join us to share your experience, skills, and stories. Follow the event and RSVP on Facebook!
Principle Six will be held in the Lewiston-Auburn campus of the University of Southern Maine, from 9 am to 4 pm, on Saturday, April 6th. Following the conference, there will be a reception from 4 pm to 6 pm.
Members of the Cooperative Maine Business Alliance receive 50% off registration with the code CMBAMember.
Sponsors of the event receive tiered benefits including free registrations. To become an event sponsor, please complete this form.
For more information about this event, contact Bri Bowman, Network Coordinator.
Creating a Member Engagement Plan
This resource from the Democracy at Work Institute will support your co-op to increase input, communication, discussion, and “sense of ownership” among members.
This practical guide offers tips for sparking behavioral change by examining member motivation, ability, and cues for action.
Welcome, Fedco Seeds!
CMBA is excited to welcome FedCo Seeds, our newest member, and P6 Sponsor! Fedco Seeds is a worker and consumer multi-stakeholder cooperative started in 1978. They currently employ over 50 people and are one of the largest suppliers of trees, seeds, bulbs, tubers and garden supplies to farmers and gardeners in Maine. Their catalog is available online and the 2019 Fedco Tree Sale will take place on Friday & Saturday, May 3-4, in Clinton, ME.
Co-Op Power: Making our voice heard in Augusta!
Over the next few months, cooperatives and their allies can help advance legislation in Maine that would incentivize the sale of business assets to cooperative or employee-owned enterprises, and reduce the cost of financing the sale, create a Maine Employee Ownership Center and create a publicly funded match for Family Development Accounts (FDAs).
Uprooting Racism in the Food System
Thursday, February 28th • 5:30 PM – 7:30 PM
USM Hannaford Hall, 88 Bedford St., Portland, ME 04101
Principle 6 Conference: Building Skills, Connections, and a Movement
April 6, 2019• 9:00 AM – 4:00 PM, reception 4:00 PM – 6:00 PM
USM Lewiston-Auburn, 51 Westminster St, Lewiston, ME 04240
2019 Fedco Tree Sale
May 3-4th, 2019
213 Hinckley Rd., Clinton, ME