Cooperative Banking and Transitions Symposium - Paris, 29-30 January

Societal, Industrial and Environmental Transitions in a Cooperative World

"It is a familiar remark that only 'the rich can borrow,' and the experience of every day seems to prove it. Yet the poor also may have need of credit, even more than the rich. How, then, can they obtain it? This problem is easily solved by cooperation. An isolated laborer or artisan, no matter how honest or industrious he may be, cannot furnish sufficient guarantee for a loan. Sickness, loss of work, and death, may at any time overtake him and make it impossible, despite his best intentions, to pay back what he has borrowed. But if laborers or artisans to the number of ten, a hundred, or a thousand, are grouped in an organization, and held together, if need be, by the ties of collective responsibility, the security they have to offer will be considerably greater, and they will find it much easier to obtain credit without falling into the hands of usurers. The dues which are paid to such an organization, moreover, will ultimately build up to a large amount of capital which the organization can lend to its members."

Charles Gide (1847–1932) – France’s first university professor of economics and one of the founders of the Banques Populaires, Principles of Economic Policy

The Cooperative Banking and Transitions Symposium 2026 in Paris will bring together academics, researchers and scientists to discuss one central question:

What should be the priorities of Societal, Industrial and Environmental Transitions in a Cooperative World ?

This French event is the place to exchange ideas, showcase innovations, and shape the roadmap for transitions in the 21st century.

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