National Conference on Black Cooperative Agenda

The Network for Developing Conscious Communities is rewriting Black cooperative history in the United States with the rebirth of The National Conference on Black Cooperative Agenda. The conference theme is “Building Cooperative Capacity Through Conscious Practices” The story behind this conference is the story of The Poor People’s Development Foundation (PPDF), a civil rights group founded in the wake of the 1968 Poor People Campaign. The group worked tirelessly on building a national cooperative movement, aimed at bringing together Blacks and poor people for the purposes of building strong cooperative ecosystems throughout the United States. In later years, the PPDF would work to ensure congressional chartering of the National Consumer Cooperative Bank, which later changed its name to the National Cooperative Bank.
Why should you attend this conference? As attendees you can expect a variety of discussions and training workshops designed to provide instructions on how to build your cooperative, share strategies on developing a political and advocacy agenda and learn why it’s importance to incorporate a cultural consciousness within your cooperative work.
Our desire is to encourage every attendee to mobilize against the disproportionate effects of racial and economic injustices. We see this conference as a Moral and Conscious Call To Mobilize A Black Cooperative Movement, a movement born with new leadership and a vision for strengthening Black people, families and communities.
We call upon Black and other cooperatives of all sizes and types – farmers, growers, producers, distributors, financiers, policymakers, and retailers, to come and share on building a new consciousness across the cooperative network.
Here’s what a collective community can gain by coming together::
  • Strengthen BIPOC economic systems by developing cooperative business skills to support successful ventures
  • Create strategic alliances and strengthen relationships between BIPOC cooperatives
  • Celebrate successful examples and learn from other cooperatives
There are 15+ training workshops and talks, one catered receptions and plenty of time to meet new people and visit with old friends. We are also happy to announce the Dr. Karama Neal, USDA Administrator Rural Business Cooperative Services, will be the 2022 Keynote Speaker.
Interested in becoming a conference sponsor? Please refer this sponsorship packet for additional information about sponsorship opportunities. Inquiries can be sent via email to [email protected]
Please consider supporting the National Conference on Black Cooperative Agenda through a donation. Donations will be used to defray the cost of registration fees for those who may not otherwise be able to attend.
We thank you for joining us and look forward to meaningful and fruitful deliberations.
Consciously yours,
Ron Hantz, Founder and Executive Director
Conference Keynote Speaker
Dr. Karama Neal served as president of Southern Bancorp Community Partners, a CDFI loan fund and financial development organization promoting economic mobility in rural Arkansas and Mississippi through April 2021. Southern, understands that wealth building isn’t just for the wealthy, so we provide the products, services, and support to help people reach their financial goals.
In 2013, she started a statewide grassroots organization promoting passage of the Uniform Partition of Heirs Property Act. The legislation was passed with no dissent in 2015. Her 2015 TedX talk focused on this work. She is the author of the award winning blog, So What Can I Do, and serves on the board of the Arkansas Access to Justice Commission, the Little Rock Branch of the Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis, and the Mary Reynolds Babcock Foundation. She maintains an active interest in heir property retention, internet equity, and nontraditional access to education.
After a career in the basic biosciences, she transitioned to work that has a more immediate effect on human well-being. She speaks frequently on family economic security, internet equity, and career development and has taught both online and in the classroom at Emory University, Loyola University Chicago, Shorter College, and the Arkansas School for Mathematics and Sciences.
After graduating from the historic Little Rock Central High School, she completed my undergraduate degree in biology at Swarthmore College and later earned a doctorate in genetics from Emory University and a master’s in bioethics and health policy from Loyola University Chicago. She also completed executive education in impact investing at the University of Oxford Said School of Business.

“One of the things that has to be faced is the process of waiting to change the system, how much we have got to do to find out who we are, where we have come from and where we are going.” – Ella Baker

National Black Co-op Building Time! !

Jambo,

The Network for Developing Conscious Communities (NDCC) invites you to take advantage of the Early Registration for the 1st Inaugural National Conference on Black Cooperative Agenda, September 27-29, 2021, through attending in-place or virtually from your workspace. This year’s conference theme is “Deepening Black Wealth Through Building Equity and Ownership”

This conference is a national call for Black cooperators, solidarity economy workers and economic justice advocates to take part in a broad array of plenary sessions, workshops, and symposia; as well as celebrate 53 years of The Poor People’s Development Foundation (PPDF), final national conference which expanded the cooperative movement in Black and poor communities.

This is a Call-To-Action Conference that will feature prominent keynote speakers, and grassroots cooperative leaders. Sessions will be facilitated on Afrocentric cooperative development practices, community based economic solidarity strategies and creating community ownership that changes the everyday lives and destiny of Black individuals, Black families, and Black communities.

This year’s “Early Bird Registration” is open from July 12th until July 25, 2021, ending at

11:59 pm. Regular Registration will begin July 26 ending at 11:59 pm. The price will shift after early bird registration ends. so put this conference on your calendar! We invite you to join us at this 1st Inaugural National Conference on Black Cooperative Agenda as we continue the important discourse for liberation as conscious warriors for building Black conscious communities, abolishing racial inequities, and strengthening solidarity among Black and poor people.

We want to hear and learn from your cooperative experiences as worker owners, developers and grassroot supporters as we seek to impart culturally centered history and ownership values as renewed cooperative building platforms. Later this week, our new website will launch and you can learn more about speakers, sessions, sponsorship opportunities and membership. www.ndccnetwork.org

Register to Attend

Hear From A Previous Conference Attendee

“I have been able to attend conferences held by Network for Developing Conscious Communities and I applaud the level of commitment to bring together people across generations, culture and racial identity. The one thought that describes my feeling being there is “Heighten Conscious Circle.” The conference organizers aren’t afraid to tread in uncomfortable dialogues and conversation that have included institutional racism, Black reparations and shifting community power dynamics. The speakers were amazing! Networking was awesome! More importantly, I felt most people attending were there to consciously make real change and create a unique mindful experience.”

-Jennifer Lumpkins, Cleveland Ohio