Cooperation. Ever heard of it? To cooperate means to work as a team. It means joining forces so that you can grow stronger. For example, let’s say you want to sign up for a skills competition at school. If you signed up alone, you’d have to be good at spelling, sports and art, all at the same time. That’s a lot for just one person! Maybe you’re good at sports, but your friends might be better at spelling and art. By joining forces, you’d make one heck of a team… …with a great shot at winning! Anything’s possible when you and your friends work together! The same thing can happen in a business. People can decide to cooperate to achieve a common goal. Businesses where this happens are called cooperatives, and the people that are a part of them are called members. Unlike other types of businesses that only have 1 or 2 owners, a cooperative belongs to all of its members, and each member can vote on decisions. Like you and your friends, the members of a cooperative are equal. They join forces to work toward a common goal that they wouldn’t be able to achieve alone. It’s like if you were a member of your favourite candy store. As a member, you could vote for your friends and neighbours to get the best candy at the best price! And who wouldn’t want that? It’s the same thing with cooperatives—when you become a member, you work with other members toward a common goal that benefits everyone. Well done! You’ve now finished watching our video on cooperation.