In an article for the October issue of Shelterforce, James Carr of the Opportunity Agenda cautions that the way the mortgage finance system is rebuilt after our current housing collapse will have a profound effect on the housing market for years to come. Carr argues that a vibrant and healthy housing market is one that offers affordable and equitable homeownership opportunities to all American families as well as quality rental options. While other proposals for a secondary mortgage market would create eligibility hurdles or a dual credit market, Carr calls for a single institution that can pilot innovative products and services and push the envelope on comprehensive community investment as the only means of solving our current housing woes while making the American dream more equitable.
The documentary Shift Change, produced by Melissa Young with Mark Dworkin and Moving Images, highlights the Mondragón cooperatives in Spain’s Basque Country, as well as a number of U.S. cooperatives. A recent review points out how the film also shows that operating a successful worker-owned co-op is not always simple. Shift Change, this review notes, presents worker-owned co-op as an attractive, alternative business model — especially in countries hit hard by the global economic crisis— while honestly portraying the challenges of sustaining a successful enterprise.
