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A second Summit in 2014

In 2012, as part of the International Year of Co-operatives, the Federation of Funeral Cooperatives of Québec invited all funeral cooperatives and mutual enterprises to the First International Summit of Funeral Cooperatives. At that meeting, representatives of funeral cooperatives from six countries, researchers with an interest in the subject and participants from other cooperative sectors adopted the first Declaration of Funeral Cooperatives and Mutual Enterprises, shared some tools, and created a committee in charge of organizing a second meeting in 2014.

We would like to take this opportunity to invite you to the Second International Summit of Funeral Cooperatives and Mutuals, which will be held in Quebec City, Canada from October 4 to 6 of this year. Lectures, panels and round tables will give you a better idea and grasp of the issues relevant to funeral cooperatives all over the globe.

Following a tour of the facilities of a Quebec funeral cooperative and a talk on the challenges involved in collaborating with Catholic cemeteries, representatives of the International Co-operative Alliance will explain to us the place that is made available to funeral cooperatives within their organization, a paper will describe the scope of the global network, and there will be discussions on marketing, use of the Web, and the issues of tomorrow.

Whether you are volunteers or managers at a funeral cooperative, working in some other cooperative sector, researchers, funders, or simply curious about the cooperative system, you can take part by registering on the site dedicated to the Summit.

 

THE GLOBAL NETWORK

The World Network of Funeral Cooperatives and Mutuals was created following the First International Meeting of Funeral Cooperatives and Mutual Enterprises. This meeting took place in October 2012 at the International Summit of Cooperatives - Quebec 2012.

Our orientations, values and actions are rooted in the Declaration of Intent adopted unanimously at that meeting.

OUR VALUES

We affirm the importance of developing and promoting the funeral cooperative and mutualist movement the world over, so as to ensure that every human being is treated with dignity upon his or her death and to curb the commercial exploitation surrounding death.

We believe that:

• Every human being, upon his death, has the right to be treated with dignity, through meaningful funeral services that respect his values and economic condition.
• Funeral cooperatives and mutual enterprises meet these needs while relying on the values of fairness and solidarity as well as on the seven cooperative principles adopted by the International Co-operative Alliance.
• The educational mission of funeral cooperatives and mutuals surrounding death and bereavement includes the promotion of practices and rituals imbued with humanity and respect for the environment.

 

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