IYC 2012 Maleny ''On the Couch"

Location

Monthly “On the Couch” Forums will kick-start discussions and stimulate ideas about various ways Co-ops can meet community, social, economic and cultural needs.

The various forums will comprise of a panel of experts from different types of co-ops as well as groups that are thinking of starting up new brands of co-operative organisations. A host will compare the event and initiate an exchange between the experts and a participating audience.

The focus will be predominantly forward-looking and will include lessons learnt, sharing information from established Co-ops in the Sunshine Coast region and trying to find outcomes towards changing government policy and regulation to make Co-ops a more viable option for a greater proportion of the population.

These forums will also be a precursor to a larger forum event that will take place during the “Expo”: a culmination of the year’s events and celebrations in September.

To date the forums that are being planned include:

• Co-operative Housing and Land Sharing - 22 March 2012
• Co-ops and IT& Social Networking - 26 April 2012
• Co-ops Alternative Technology - 24 May 2012
• Share Farming - 20 June 2012
• Future of Co-operatives: Youth - 26 July 2012
• Co-operatives and Community Banking - 23 August 2012
• Co-ops 4 Change Expo - 22 September 2012