NASCO Institute 2014 Keynote Speech, delivered by Nikki Marín Baena, titled "Owning Our Neighborhoods: Our mission, should we choose to accept it." Ann Arbor, MI - November 08, 2014.
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Owning our Neighborhoods: Our mission, should we choose to accept it
Ed Whitfield of the Fund for Democratic Communities recently wrote, "Our full humanity is expressed only when we have the capacity and the opportunity to be productive, to do for ourselves, meeting our needs in our communities." The world is having an important moment. The growing climate crisis, the situation in Ferguson, Missouri, and our dwindling economic prospects have made it clear that the status quo cannot continue.
Is there a cooperative solution? Can we be a part of it?
Nikki Marín Baena will guide us through exploring our current context and the potential for our roles moving forward, as well as telling stories from her experience doing cooperative development work as part of a struggle for immigrants' rights.
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Nikki Marín Baena comes from a Colombian family and grew up in Paterson, New Jersey. She has lived in several small towns throughout Appalachia, following textile mills with her family. This personal experience fuelled her interest in international trade policy and its effects on individuals. She has a longtime interest in cooperatives and has worked at Firestorm Cafe and Books, a worker-owned cafe in Asheville, NC and Weaver Street Market, a hybrid cooperative grocery store composed of both worker and consumer members in Carrboro, NC. Before arriving in Texas, Nikki worked at the Center for Participatory Change in Asheville, coordinating publications, developing popular education curriculum, and co-coordinating the organization’s cooperative development and multilingual projects. She also worked as an education and policy analyst for Witness for Peace in Oaxaca, Mexico. Nikki currently serves on the Board of Directors of the United States Federation of Worker Cooperatives and the Democracy at Work Institute.