Co-operation in Mesopotamia is a project of the Solidarity Economy Association. We are a multi-stakeholder co-operative, and we see ourselves as part of the international solidarity economy movement, as well as the co-operative movement in the UK, where we are based.
This project has been running for over three years, and in that time it’s grown from humble beginnings into one of the most respected sources of information in English on the growing co-operative economy in Northern Syria (Rojava) and Bakur (Eastern Turkey).
We re-named the project Co-operation in Mesopotamia (the original name was Co-operative Economy in Rojava and Bakur), in line with the growing pluralism of the Kurdish freedom movement, which we express our solidarity with. Mesopotamia is a term often used within this movement to refer to the historic land, before the creation of nation states and the borders which now divide it.
We’ve published over 250 articles, documenting the ways in which people in Rojava and Bakur have been rebuilding their economy from the ground up, by establishing co-operatives that are owned and run democratically.
In the North and East Syria, a new democratic, pluralist and gender equal model of society is being created, and we’ve been talking to people about it at events all over the UK and Europe, ranging from international conferences to small, informal workshops.
We’re extremely proud of our work to date.
