The Flexibility of the Cooperative Model as a Development Tool: The Case of the Metamorphosis of an Italian Region

Abstract

With the crisis in laissez-faire philosophy and practices, cooperation has rediscovered topical relevance and, at the same time, its diversity. The case of Trentino, an Italian region with an important history of cooperatives, can serve as a way to introduce a reflection on the challenges that we must tackle today. The three “renaissances” of Trentino’s cooperation show the capacity to move beyond repeating traditional solutions and to invent new ones in response to new issues.

Keywords: Cooperatives, Cooperative districts, Local development, Province of Trento

JEL Classification: L31, P13, P46, R58