In 2012, as part of the International Year of Co-operatives, the Federation of Funeral Cooperatives of Québec invited all funeral cooperatives and mutual enterprises to the First International Summit of Funeral Cooperatives. At that meeting, representatives of funeral cooperatives from six countries, researchers with an interest in the subject and participants from other cooperative sectors adopted the first Declaration of Funeral Cooperatives and Mutual Enterprises, shared some tools, and created a committee in charge of organizing a second meeting in 2014.
We would like to take this opportunity to invite you to the Second International Summit of Funeral Cooperatives and Mutuals, which will be held in Quebec City, Canada from October 4 to 6 of this year. Lectures, panels and round tables will give you a better idea and grasp of the issues relevant to funeral cooperatives all over the globe.
Following a tour of the facilities of a Quebec funeral cooperative and a talk on the challenges involved in collaborating with Catholic cemeteries, representatives of the International Co-operative Alliance will explain to us the place that is made available to funeral cooperatives within their organization, a paper will describe the scope of the global network, and there will be discussions on marketing, use of the Web, and the issues of tomorrow.
Whether you are volunteers or managers at a funeral cooperative, working in some other cooperative sector, researchers, funders, or simply curious about the cooperative system, you can take part by registering on the site dedicated to the Summit.
Réjean Laflamme
President
Federation of Funeral Cooperatives of Québec