ILO contributes to the 2025 International Summer School on Cooperative Law

Pula, Croatia (ILO News) – The ILO’s Cooperative, Social and Solidarity Economy Unit (COOP/SSE) contributed to the 2025 Global Cooperative Law Summer School, held in late August in Pula, Croatia. The event brought together more than 40 lawyers, economists, cooperative policymakers and practitioners from 21 countries, from Serbia to the Philippines and from Malta to Saudi Arabia. Organized by the International Cooperative Alliance (ICA) and the International Centre for Co-operative Management at St. Mary’s University (Canada), it was the second Summer of School of its kind, following the one organized in 2023.

© Pula Municipality

© Pula Municipality

The course was led by Prof. Hagen Henry, Chair of the ICA Cooperative Law Committee and ex-ILO officio. Over five days, participants examined how cooperative principles and values can be translated into legal rules and practices worldwide and explored the challenges lawmakers and regulators face in shaping effective cooperative law.

“The Summer School addressed the question of how through legislation that respects the internationally recognized cooperative principles, cooperatives can and must align their practices on the legal principle of sustainable development”, Prof. Hagen stated.

© ILO

© ILO

Two ILO COOP/SSE Unit staff took part — one as a participant and the other as a resource person. In her contributions, Simel Esim, Head of the Unit, emphasized the importance of ILO’s instruments, adopted through tripartite discussion, particularly the Promotion of Cooperatives Recommendation, 2002 (No. 193), and the 2022 International Labour Conference resolution on decent work and the social and solidarity economy. She underlined how strong legal frameworks can promote an inclusive and sustainable cooperative, social and solidarity economy, anchored in values and principles, that advances social justice while providing a stable foundation for cooperatives and other SSE entities to serve their members and society at large.

© ICA

© ICA

Reflecting on the experience, Waltteri Katajamäki, an SSE Specialist from the ILO COOP/SSE Unit, noted: “The Summer School was a very useful experience. Learning from such a diverse group of experts and practitioners provided not only a deeper understanding of cooperative law but also practical insights that I can apply in my future work”.

ILO’s contribution to the Summer School highlights its ongoing commitment to strengthening cooperative law as a driver of decent work, sustainable development and social justice.