Cooperatives in industry and services featured in the first World Map of Cooperative Cultural Heritage sites

13 November 2025

On 12 November 2025, the International Cooperative Alliance (ICA) launched the first World Map of Cooperative Cultural Heritage sites at the Itamaraty Palace in Brasília, headquarters of Brazil’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs. The Map is part of a broader ICA initiative to document and safeguard both tangible and intangible expressions of cooperation. The platform invites cooperatives worldwide to nominate additional heritage sites and living traditions through an open process guided by international criteria of authenticity, community participation, and sustainability.

Among the 31 founding heritage sites, several stand out as powerful examples of worker and social cooperatives preserving and promoting cooperative values through their everyday work and community engagement.

CICOPA is proud to share that several sites from its sectors have been included in the Map:

Otalora Center (Spain): the historic education and training center of the Mondragon cooperative group, symbolizing the cooperative spirit of lifelong learning and participation.

ILO Cooperative Unit (Switzerland): the home of the ILO’s Cooperative and Social and Solidarity Economy Unit, supporting cooperative employment and decent work worldwide.

Ardelaine (France): a worker cooperative revitalizing the wool industry and rural culture in Ardèche through local production, museum activities, and education.

ULCCS (India): one of the world’s oldest worker cooperatives, linking cultural heritage with infrastructure development and cooperative employment.

Ceramiche di Imola (Italy): a historic worker cooperative producing ceramics showcasing the artistic skills and resilience of industrial cooperation.

Levignani (Italy): a community cooperative preserving cultural identity and local life in a small Tuscan town.

These sites demonstrate how worker, social, and community cooperatives contribute to cultural continuity, sustainability, and innovation, core dimensions of cooperative identity that go beyond economics.

CICOPA congratulates all participating cooperatives and encourages members to explore and contribute to the platform here.