Cooperative Development Institute: Northeast Center for Cooperative Business

The Cooperative Fund of New England has been providing loans to cooperatives and small nonprofits serving the needs of low-income people for 35 years. Having started with $11,000 in social investments and an initial $2,000 loan to Buffalo Mountain Food Co-op in 1975, CFNE has over the years made over $19 million in loans, without losing a penny of investors' capital. Read more about their work helping to create good green jobs, healthy local food systems, affordable homes, and cooperative networks in the 2009 Annual Report.

The Business Matters radio show, aimed at exploring how businesses can shape our world for the better, took up the topic of Worker Owned Cooperatives in a recent episode.

The Cooperative Fund of New England's Winter 2010 Newsletter is ready to read. This year marks the Cooperative Fund's 35th anniversary -- see photos of Rebecca Dunn's home office then and now.

In their most recent newsletter, the Cooperative Fund of New England announced the launch and first loan of the Cooperative Capital Fund, a new source of patient capital (including equity and equity-like loans) for co-op expansions, conversions and start-ups. There is a whole lot of other interesting news as well about events, co-ops, and Co-op Month.