A cooperative is an autonomous association of persons united voluntarily to meet their common economic, social and cultural needs and aspirations through a jointly owned and democratically-controlled enterprise. Cooperatives are democratically controlled by their members, with each member having one vote in electing the board of directors.
Cooperatives may include:businesses owned and managed by the people who consume their goods and/or services
businesses where producers pool their output for their common benefit
businesses owned and managed by the people who work there
businesses where members pool their purchasing power
multi-stakeholder or hybrid cooperatives that share ownership between different stakeholder groups. For example, care cooperatives where ownership is shared between both care-givers and receivers. Stakeholders might also include non-profits or investors.
second- and third-tier cooperatives whose members are other cooperatives
platform cooperatives that use a cooperatively owned and governed website, mobile app or a protocol to facilitate the sale of goods and services.