- Welcome Reception – Wednesday, June 29 at 6 pm, Broken Clock Brewing Cooperative – join us to say hello to your fellow Co-op Educators!
- 1 full day of session learning – July 30 – See our Thursday schdedule below
- A big 75th Anniversary Banquet! Let’s celebrate being connected in an Educator Community for 75 years and the collective impacts we’ve made!
- 1 full day of co-op tours – meet some of the local cooperators and learn how they are doing education in their spaces! Including ACER, Mercado Central, CHS, Seward Co-op and Mayday Cafe
ACE Institute 2026 thursday Program | Sessions, & Speakers
9:30 am | Taproom, Broken Clock Brewing Cooperative
Keynote Panel: Past and Future of Co-operative Education
Panelists: Dr. Jessica Gordon Nembhard (John Jay College), Electra Skrzydlewski (MCCD), and Nonkululeko Shongwe (NEXUS)
Facilitator: Tamah Yisrael (Co-op New Orleans)
Session Description
Co-operative education has always evolved in response to changing social, economic, and community needs. This keynote panel will explore where co-operative education has been, where it is going, and how educators and practitioners can continue strengthening the movement for the future.
Panelists will share perspectives from their work across different communities and contexts, exploring the role of education in building co-operative knowledge, leadership, democratic participation, and community ownership.
Breakout Sessions
10:30 am | Taproom and B-Side Lounge
Taproom (1 hour)
From Tenants to Owners: Building Sky Without Limits Under Pressure in South Minneapolis
Presenters: Chloe Jackson and César Atienzo
Session Description
In the shadow of displacement, rising rents, and the aftermath of civil unrest in South Minneapolis, a group of tenants took on one of the city’s most powerful landlords and won.
This session tells the story of Sky Without Limits (SWL), a resident-led effort to convert four multifamily buildings into permanently affordable, democratically controlled housing.
Over several years, tenants organized collectively while navigating legal, financial, and political barriers. In partnership with Inquilinxs Unidxs por Justicia, residents transitioned from renters to co-creators of a new housing model rooted in autonomy, justice, and dignity.
This session explores how cooperation within the tenant community and across institutional partnerships served as a stabilizing force in a community experiencing significant pressure. Participants will learn about the practical realities of cooperative conversion, grassroots leadership, and sustaining democratic governance over time.
Participants will explore:
- The key steps and challenges involved in converting tenant-organized buildings into permanently affordable co-operative housing.
- How resident leadership and mission-aligned partnerships can support community stability.
- Governance approaches that sustain long-term democratic control.
B-Side Lounge (30 Mins)
Canada and Puerto Rico: Influence of the Antigonish Cooperative Movement
Presenters: José Julián Ramirez-Ruiz (FIDECOOP)
Session Description
This book presentation explores the historical connection between the Antigonish Social Movement in Nova Scotia and the development of modern co-operativism in Puerto Rico beginning in the mid-1940s.
Drawing on recovered lectures and writings of Canadian priest Joseph Alexander MacDonald, an emissary of Monsignor Moses Coady, the presentation examines how Antigonish ideas shaped Puerto Rican co-operative education and practice by connecting theory with lived experience.
The session traces nearly two decades of influence, highlighting how Puerto Rican educators and practitioners adapted approaches to adult education, democratic participation, and collective self-help within local contexts. It also explores how these ideas influenced the creation of educational programs, regulatory institutions, and financing mechanisms that supported co-operative development.
The presentation connects this history to current challenges, reflecting on the continuing relevance of participatory education, institutional innovation, and values-based economic development.
11:00 am | B-Side Lounge
Details Coming soon
Presenters: Lymarie Nieves
Session Description
Watch this space for more info coming soon.
11:30 am | Taproom
Futuro: A Co-operative Ecosystem Developed Alongside Immigrant and Rural Working-Class Communities in the Central Coast of California
Presenters: Maria Cadenas (Ventures)
Session Description
Building co-operative ecosystems in rural and working-class communities requires more than a strong idea. It requires sustained investment in relationships, leadership development, and structures that support genuine community ownership.
This session explores Futuro, a co-operative ecosystem developed alongside immigrant and rural working-class communities in California’s Central Coast. Participants will learn about the process of building partnerships, engaging community members as leaders rather than beneficiaries, and adapting approaches when early strategies did not hold up under pressure.
Central to Futuro’s approach is a secondary co-operative structure designed to expand democratic participation and create pathways from program participation to worker ownership. The session will examine how this structure was developed, what it takes to sustain it, and how it has supported broader economic participation.
Participants will explore:
- The structural and relational elements needed to build co-operative ecosystems.
- Strategies for engaging communities as leaders and owners.
- Lessons from sustaining co-operative development under economic and social pressure.
11:30 am | B-Side Lounge
Strengthening Equity and Access to Development Supports in Canada’s Co-operative Entrepreneurship Ecosystem; Opportunities for Education. Report findings for Co-operatives and Mutuals Canada (CMC) presentation
Presenters: Christine Clarke
Session Description
Watch this space for more info coming soon.
12:00 pm | Lunch & Networking
1:00 pm | Breakout Sessions
Taproom
Mapping the Co-op Learning Continuum
Presenters: Cooperative Development Foundation (CDF), National Cooperative Business Association (NCBA), Association of Cooperative Educators (ACE), CooperationWorks!, Hanan El-Youssef, Virginia Brown, and Alex
Session Description
Education, training, and information are central to co-operative practice, but finding and navigating co-operative learning opportunities can be challenging. This session explores a collaborative effort by ACE, CDF, CooperationWorks!, and NCBA to map co-operative education, training, and professional development opportunities across North America.
The session will introduce the goals of this initiative, gather feedback from participants, and begin an interactive mapping process to identify existing educational resources, programs, and pathways for learners across the co-operative sector.
Participants will contribute their knowledge of current offerings, identify gaps and opportunities, and help shape future efforts to strengthen access to co-operative learning.
Participants will explore:
- Current efforts to map co-operative education, training, and professional development opportunities.
- Existing resources and learning pathways available across the sector.
- Opportunities to strengthen access to co-operative education.
B-Side Lounge
A Co-operative Inquiry (CI) to Explore the Application of Co-operative Economics and Sustainability to Support Positive Change in Economically Marginalized Communities
Presenters: Mary Sutton (Collective REMAKE)
Session Description
This interactive workshop explores Co-operative Inquiry (CI) as a participatory action research methodology, a co-learning strategy, and a tool for democratic decision-making.
Grounded in the principles and values of co-operative economics and sustainability, the session will introduce participants to multiple ways of knowing, including experiential, presentational, practical, and propositional knowledge. Participants will engage in cycles of action and reflection, exploring how co-operative education and development can support positive change in communities experiencing economic marginalization.
Through activities including collective reflection, a gallery walk, and a collaborative art project, participants will consider how co-operative principles and values can be applied to build economies of care, social wellness, and environmental health.
Participants will explore:
- The use of Co-operative Inquiry as a tool for education, research, and democratic decision-making.
- How participatory learning strategies can strengthen co-operative development.
- Approaches for applying co-operative principles to community challenges.
2:00 pm | Breakout Sessions
Taproom
Stories of Personal and Professional Transitions in Co-operative Education
Ralph K. Morris Sponsored Panel
Presenters: William Nelson, Rebecca Savoie, LuAnn Werner
Session Description
The 75th Anniversary of the Association of Cooperative Educators provides an opportunity to reflect on the experiences that shape co-operative educators, activists, and leaders. This panel brings together co-operative practitioners to explore what draws people into co-operative education, what keeps them engaged, and how knowledge and experience are carried forward to future generations.
Panelists will share stories from their own personal and professional journeys, reflecting on transitions within co-operative education and the broader movement. Participants will be invited to consider their own experiences and the future of co-operative education as ACE continues to evolve.
Participants will explore:
- The personal and professional pathways that bring people into co-operative education.
- Lessons learned from decades of co-operative practice and leadership.
- Questions and opportunities shaping the future of ACE and co-operative education.
B-Side Lounge
What Happens Within Our Co-operatives When Everything Is Going Well?
Presenters: Michel Lafleur (Université de Sherbrooke)
Session Description
This session examines a critical question facing successful co-operatives: what happens when the pioneering generation has left and a new generation of directors and managers takes leadership?
While co-operatives may appear strongest during periods of stability and success, these moments can also create vulnerabilities. Drawing from examples across consumer, worker, and producer co-operatives, this session explores the relationship between co-operative identity, governance, strategy, and legislation.
Participants will consider how traditional management frameworks can overlook co-operative identity, and how education, governance practices, and legal frameworks can either strengthen or weaken the co-operative mission.
Participants will explore:
- Why co-operative identity education must be connected to governance and strategy.
- How traditional management approaches can create challenges for co-operatives.
- The role of legislation and governance in sustaining co-operative purpose.
2:30 pm | Breakout Sessions
B-Side Lounge
Building Community Safety in a Co-operative Context
Presenters: Pink Flowers (Inter-Cooperative Council)
Session Description
This participatory session explores approaches to community safety that move beyond punitive or police-based systems. Drawing from experience within a student housing co-operative network, the session examines the challenges and possibilities of implementing restorative and accountability-based approaches in democratic, high-turnover communities.
Using techniques from Theater of the Oppressed, including Image Theatre and facilitated reflection, participants will explore questions of power, harm, and response. The session combines storytelling, analysis, and practical tools for communities seeking to develop more accountable and collective approaches to safety.
Participants will explore:
- Tools for examining harm, power, and response in community settings.
- Key elements of accountability-based approaches to community safety.
- Strategies for navigating resistance and uncertainty while building new systems.
3:30 pm | Breakout Sessions
Taproom
North Star Black Cooperative Fellowship
Presenters: Nonkululeko “Nkuli” Shongwe (Nexus Community Partners)
Session Description
What we often call “new” economic models are rooted in long histories of collective survival, resistance, and care. In Black communities and other communities pushed to the margins, cooperation has long been a necessary tool for building resilience, shared ownership, and collective well-being.
This session draws from the North Star Black Cooperative Fellowship to explore how practitioners can reconnect with these traditions while building co-operative futures in the present. Grounded in real examples, the session highlights how co-operative education, political education, and storytelling can support shared governance, community ownership, and collective care.
Participants will explore lessons from supporting co-operatives and collectives, including approaches for sustaining participation, making decisions collectively, and resourcing work without compromising values.
Participants will explore:
- Tools and approaches for strengthening shared governance, political education, and community ownership.
- Strategies for sustaining collective work and decision-making.
- Ways to adapt co-operative approaches within different community contexts.
B-Side Lounge
Connecting Co-operative Economic Democracy with Tangible Environmental Action
Presenters: Gary Hampton, Valentine Cadieux, Molly Codding, Nate, and Electra Skrzydlewski
Session Description
How do we connect the highest theories of co-operative economic democracy with tangible environmental action?
This session explores the intersection of co-operative community economic development, shared ownership models, and community urban ecology. Grounded in the concept of a “co-operative commons philosophy,” presenters will examine how communities can move toward shared abundance, mutual aid, and collective stewardship.
Drawing from partnerships among housing community land trusts, conservation land trusts, co-operatives, agricultural land trusts, and community organizations, the session will explore how cross-sector collaboration can support community self-determination, environmental resilience, and wealth building in historically marginalized communities.
The session will include reflections from the Rondo mini-forest work in St. Paul, highlighting the role of local leadership, community partnerships, and collaborative approaches to urban ecology.
Participants will explore:
- Connections between co-operatives, land trusts, and community stewardship models.
- Strategies for building cross-sector partnerships that support community priorities.
- Lessons from community-led environmental projects rooted in shared ownership.
4:00 pm | Breakout Sessions
Taproom
Rebuilding Rural Food Access Through Shared Services and Community Partnerships
Presenters: Chris Gessele, Diana Hahn, and Jenna Gullickson
Session Description
Keeping grocery stores in small rural and remote communities alive is increasingly challenging. Slim margins, limited purchasing power, distributor consolidation, and competition from large corporations threaten rural food access, local economies, and community vitality.
This session shares lessons from the North Dakota Association of Rural Electric Cooperatives (NDAREC) and its rural and co-operative development work, including efforts to strengthen rural food systems through collaborative approaches.
Presenters will highlight the Rural Access Distribution (RAD) Co-op, a shared-service model involving rural grocery stores and community partners, as well as other initiatives exploring cooperative purchasing, shared distribution, and expanded local food opportunities.
The session will examine both successes and challenges, including trust-building, logistics, financing, and stakeholder collaboration.
Participants will explore:
- Shared-service approaches that can strengthen rural grocery stores and food systems.
- Partnership-building strategies for cross-sector initiatives.
- Challenges and opportunities in transforming local food systems.
B-Side Lounge
Shared Capital Session
Presenters: Shared Capital
4:30 pm | Keynote
Taproom
CoMinnesota: Leveraging Principle 6 Through a Statewide Network
Panelists: Emily Stewart (CoNorth), Leslie Watson (CDS), and Andrea Molnau
Facilitator: Katie Marty (CoMinnesota)
Session Description
This panel explores the role of statewide networks in strengthening co-operative development and advancing Principle 6: Co-operation Among Co-operatives.
Panelists will share perspectives on building connections among co-operatives, development organizations, and community partners across Minnesota. The discussion will explore how collaboration, shared resources, and stronger networks can support the growth and resilience of the co-operative movement.
Participants will explore:
- The role of networks in supporting co-operative development.
- Practical examples of co-operation among co-operatives.
- Opportunities for strengthening connections across the sector.