Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of Missouri-Columbia, 2002. / Typescript. Vita. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 327-346). Also available on the Internet.

Submitted by Milena Rubi (milenarubi@ufscar.br) on 2017-08-11T18:14:42Z No. of bitstreams: 1 FRANCO_Gabriel_2017.pdf: 57739136 bytes, checksum: 83d0331280ff1636b7d59fcbd84ddd93 (MD5) / Approved for entry into archive by Milena Rubi (milenarubi@ufscar.br) on 2017-08-11T18:14:50Z (GMT) No. of bitstreams: 1 FRANCO_Gabriel_2017.pdf: 57739136 bytes, checksum: 83d0331280ff1636b7d59fcbd84ddd93 (MD5) / Approved for entry into archive by Milena Rubi (milenarubi@ufscar.br) on 2017-08-11T18:14:57Z (GMT) No. of bitstreams: 1 FRANCO_Gabriel_2017.pdf: 57739136 bytes, checksum: 83d0331280ff1636b7d59fcbd84ddd93 (MD5) / Made available in DSpace on 2017-08-11T18:15:03Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 FRANCO_Gabriel_2017.pdf: 57739136 bytes, checksum: 83d0331280ff1636b7d59fcbd84ddd93 (MD5) Previous issue date: 2017-03-17 / Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior (CAPES) / The self-management practiced in the current cooperatives lost the grandeur of their origin, when it was treated as government system where the people would be sovereign and the decisions would flow from the bottom up. The cooperative self-management is far from seeking a transformation of society despite preserving the ideal of democracy. Because their fight is limited to enable the workers’ cooperative to manage their own business, although this struggle is of great importance. Considering self-management as an unfinished project, it is necessary to know your daily practice through the organization of work to understand what factors interfere in their development and consolidation. Ethnographic research was chosen as a research method to accomplish this task because it allows this diving in the daily life of the organization. The research was carried out in a waste picker cooperative using ethnographic research and adopting participant observation as the main method of data collection, where the researcher worked as a workers’ cooperative in several activities of the productive sector of the organization. Through the immersion of the researcher in the daily life of the cooperative it was possible to establish a debate on the influence of the practices adopted by the organization of work in the implementation of self-management. The data collected in the participant research were transcribed in a field diary shortly after each working day, were also performed informal interviews and interview by guidelines with key informants of the organization, well beyond the analysis of documents and making photographs. The analysis of the data produced an ethnographic account written in first person, where the influence of work organization on selfmanagement is discussed. It was found that the delegation of the management of the cooperative to an external manager during its creation made it difficult for the administration to be transferred to the own wokers’ cooperative and inhibited politecny by separating the administration of the production. It was also possible to verify that the lack of a rotation policy creates a specialization of functions in the cooperative and weakens the collective of workers. Already the collective ownership of the means of production and the equal division of profits establishes a collective control as a form of work control and educates the cooperative under new values turning it into a more supportive, political and autonomous worker. / A autogestão praticada nas atuais cooperativas perdeu a grandiosidade da sua origem, quando foi pensada como um sistema de governo onde o povo seria soberano e as decisões fluiriam de baixo para cima. A autogestão cooperativista, apesar de conservar o ideal de democracia, está longe de almejar uma transformação da sociedade, pois a sua luta encontra-se limitada, embora seja de grande importância, em capacitar os cooperados a gerirem o próprio negócio. Considerando-se a autogestão como um projeto inacabado, faz-se necessário conhecer a sua prática cotidiana, a luz da organização do trabalho, para poder compreender quais fatores interferem no seu desenvolvimento e consolidação. A pesquisa etnográfica foi escolhida como método de pesquisa para cumprir tal tarefa, pois permite este mergulho no cotidiano da organização. A pesquisa foi realizada em uma cooperativa de coleta seletiva, utilizando a pesquisa etnográfica e adotando a observação participante como principal método de coleta de dados, onde o pesquisador trabalhou como cooperado em diversas atividades do setor produtivo da organização. Através da imersão do pesquisador no cotidiano da cooperativa, foi possível estabelecer um debate sobre a influência das práticas adotadas pela organização do trabalho na implementação da autogestão. Os dados coletados na pesquisa participante foram transcritos em um diário de campo logo após cada dia trabalhado, também foram realizadas entrevistas por pautas e entrevistas informais com informantes chaves da organização, além da análise de documentos e a realização de fotografias. A análise dos dados produziu um relato etnográfico escrito em primeira pessoa, onde é discutida a influência da organização do trabalho na autogestão. Constatou-se que a delegação da administração da cooperativa para um gestor externo durante a sua criação, dificultou a posterior transferência da administração para os próprios cooperados e inibiu a politecnia, por separar a administração da produção. Também foi possível verificar que a inexistência de uma política de rodízio de funções cria uma especialização de funções na cooperativa e enfraquece o coletivo de trabalhadores. Já a propriedade coletiva dos meios de produção e a divisão igualitária das sobras estabelece uma fiscalização coletiva como forma de controle do trabalho e educa o cooperado sob novos valores, transformando-o em um trabalhador mais solidário, político e autônomo.

The main purpose of this study was to evaluate the impact of co-operative societies on poverty alleviation among the urban poor in Zimbabwe with particular reference to consumer co-operative societies in areas of agriculture, housing and micro- finance. The co-operative sector plays an important role in poverty alleviation since many unemployed people have turned to co-operative activities as a way of earning a lawful and decent living during a period in which Zimbabwe generally suffered immense impoverishment in the midst of the national economic meltdown that was characterised by hyper-inflation, de-industrialisation and mass unemployment. The period of study was as from January 2008 to August 2010. This period is significant in that many co-operative societies were formed with the following broad objectives: (a) economic power and through this power; (b) control of socio-economic institution, to eliminate exploitation of man by man to make the people of Zimbabwe self reliant; (c) skills management, goods and services and establish in themselves a sense of confidence, initiative and high development aspirations; (d) to provide an opportunity to develop the community; and a (e) collective way of living that provides a sound base for socialism and national solidarity ix In this study, two hundred and seventy four respondents were used as research subjects. This consisted of one hundred and sixty respondents from housing, twenty four from micro- finance, and eighty eight from agricultural co-operative societies which covered dairy, poultry and fishing co-operative societies. This also included the Registrar of Co-operatives and the Harare City Council Co-operative officer. The research instruments that were used for the purpose of this research study were questionnaires, field visits, interviews and observations. Use was also made of secondary data that was obtained from the offices of Registrar of Co-operatives and the Town clerk of the Harare City Council as well as from the various co-operative societies that constitute the research study’s sample. The key factors that account for the failure of co-operative societies included the lack of adequate funding, lack of relevant knowledge and experience about co-operative activities, conflict among co-operative society members, failure to follow co-operative principles, mixing politics with co-operative activities and lack of education and training. The study also found out that the key to the success of any co-operative venture includes some of the following factors: Proper application of co-operative principles, the provision of co-operative education to both the membership and management of co-operative societies and proper keeping of institutional records. Most important of which include membership, financial and asset registers. x The study recommends that the government should give adequate administrative and financial support to co-operative societies since they have a potential of alleviating poverty if properly managed. It is also further recommended that research be done in order to enhance the strategic management of co-operative societies since empirical evidence tends to suggest that they are a viable tool for broad –based participatory and democratic sustainable livelihoods development. The study also recommended further studies to be carried out on the applicability of cooperative principles in all environments since some co-operative societies that have followed these principles especially in the developed countries have proved to be suitable instruments for poverty alleviation.

Além do questionamento sobre a pertinência do uso do termo “tecnologia social”, em meio aos estudos de CTS, há a busca por quantificar e dimensionar os impactos mútuos entre tecnologia e sociedade. Algo sustentável para uma rede social não necessariamente se sustenta em outra. São questionamentos que vêm à tona quando se entende que toda tecnologia é social e que o equilíbrio é construído em meio a desequilíbrios. O objetivo é propor uma metodologia interativa que capte a “tecnologia social”, em construção conjunta, de alternativas pró-sustentabilidade com uma rede social local. A metodologia da pesquisa é predominantemente qualitativa e envolve: os procedimentos dedutivos; a pesquisa participante; a reflexão; a desconstrução do termo “tecnologia social”; a inversão da pesquisa para método indutivo; os procedimentos indutivos; a reorganização do alinhamento epistemológico, teórico, metodológico, operacional e prático; a redefinição dos métodos e das técnicas de pesquisa; a opção pela pesquisa-ação; até culminar na proposta de um modelo. Este é o produto da pesquisa, que tem como forma de análise a operacionalização e a prática da proposição. Trata-se de um modelo baseado nos princípios: da essencialidade da vida; da liberdade; da complexidade; da multi, inter e transdisciplinaridade; e de comportamentos cíclicos. Ele capta a tecnologia para construir modelos de construção da sustentabilidade característicos e peculiares a redes sociais, sob as diretrizes de comportamentos: da cultura da vida; da democracia; da construção conjunta; do compartilhamento de técnicas e de conhecimentos; e da qualidade, produtividade e otimização. Viabiliza-se pelos seguintes procedimentos: preparação do agente; identificação da rede social; estudo e histórico da rede social e do local; pesquisa-ação; aplicação de questionário; tabulação dos dados e Análise de Redes Sociais (ARS); construção conjunta de encaminhamentos; e alternativa para sustentabilidade. Este modelo tem seu ineditismo estruturado a partir da “tecnologia social” e difere dos demais pela reflexão e pela conscientização da rede social, como forma de potencializar o indivíduo diante das relações sociais que estabelece na construção do novo equilíbrio social. O conjunto de procedimentos também difere o modelo, que primeiramente propõe o aprendizado do agente que conduzirá a captação e a explicitação tecnológica da rede. A construção conjunta do questionário é outra diferença para que se captem os momentos da rede social, propondo alternativas de acordo com a sua identidade. Trata-se de um procedimento para mesclar técnicas e conhecimentos entre os atores da rede. A rede social foi a Cooperativa dos Apicultores e Meliponicultores Caminhos do Tibagi (COOCAT-MEL), em Telêmaco Borba – Paraná – Brasil. A partir dela foi possível construir um caso prático do modelo que teve como resultado a explicitação tecnológica da rede, com a apresentação das percepções sobre momentos, satisfação e construção conjunta, como medida das alternativas pró-sustentabilidade da rede. Os limites e as insuficiências do modelo são dados pela complexidade e pela multidisciplinaridade teórica, operativa e prática que resultaram na proposta de um Laboratório de Sustentabilidade para dar continuidade em próximos estudos. / In addition to the questioning on the relevance of using the term “social technology” in STS studies, there is the pursuit of quantification and scaling of mutual impacts of technology and society. Something that is sustainable to a given social network cannot be considered the same by another one. Those are questions that come to light when one understands that every technology is social and that balance is made up out of imbalances. The objective is to propose an interactive methodology that captures the “social technology” in joint construction of pro- sustainability alternatives having a social local network. The research methodology chosen is predominantly qualitative and comprises: deductive procedures; participatory research; reflection; the deconstruction of the term "social technology"; the inversion of said research to an inductive method; inductive procedures; the reorganization of the epistemological, theoretical, methodological, operational and practical alignment; the redefinition of methods and research techniques; the choice of action research; until culminating in the proposal of a model. This is the result of research, which has as its form of analysis the implementation and practice of the proposal. It is about a model based on the principles of: essentiality to life; freedom; complexity; multi, inter and transdisciplinarity; and cyclic behaviour. It picks up the technology to build sustainability construction models that are characteristic of and peculiar to social networks, under the behaviour guidelines of: culture of life; democracy; joint construction; techniques and knowledge sharing; and of quality, productivity and optimization. It becomes feasible by the following procedures: agent preparation; identification of the social network; study and history of the social network and the site; action research; application of questionnaire; data tabulation and Social Network Analysis (SNA); joint construction of referrals; and an alternative to sustainability. This model has its uniqueness grounded in "social technology" and differs from the others by reflection and awareness of the social network as a way to enhance the individual before the social relations that he establishes when composing a new social balance. The set of procedures also distinguishes the model, which first proposes the learning of the agent which will conduct the capture and technological explanation of the network. The joint construction of the questionnaire is another difference so that the moments of said social network can be captured, proposing alternatives according to their identity. It is about a procedure to merge techniques and knowledge amongst the actors of the network. The social network was the Cooperative of Beekeepers and Meliponicultors Caminhos do Tibagi (Cooperativa dos Apicultores e Meliponicultores Caminhos do Tibagi; COOCAT-MEL) in Telêmaco Borba - Paraná - Brazil. From it, it was possible to frame a practical case model that had the technological explanation of the network as a result, with the presentation of the perceptions of times, satisfaction and joint construction as a measure of pro-sustainability alternatives of the network. The limits and weaknesses of the model are provided by complexity and by theoretical, operational and practical multidisciplinarity that resulted in the proposal of a Sustainability Lab to be continued in further studies.

CAPES / O presente estudo realiza uma cartografia com a intenção de entender como se dão as relações entre o Programa Trinacional Ñandeva, um programa pertencente ao Parque Tecnológico de Itaipu, executado na região da Tríplice fronteira entre Brasil, Paraguai e Argentina e a COART - Cooperativa de Artesanato do Oeste e Sudoeste do Paraná. A COART busca reunir artesãos da região defendendo seus interesses e o Ñandeva objetiva o fortalecimento do setor artesanal e da identidade regional, trinacional, a partir da intervenção de designers em oficinas de capacitação e criação de iconografias destinadas a artesãos da região. Pretende-se, do ponto de vista da cultura material, perceber e apontar reflexões sobre as relações sociais, conflitos e disputas de poder que estão envolvidas no processo de produção e circulação artesanal. Para isso, a pesquisa apoia-se na circulação dos artefatos artesanais e nas narrativas dos sujeitos envolvidos, no contexto específico da cidade de Foz do Iguaçu, no período de 2012 a 2015. Para tanto, propõe-se conhecer as propostas e o funcionamento desses espaços, assim como mapear os movimentos realizados pelos artefatos a partir de narrativas das interlocutoras Dircéia Braga, Gorette Milioli e Nilse Mognol, responsáveis pelo Programa Ñandeva e Cooperativa COART. Trata-se de uma pesquisa exploratória, na qual as estratégias de desenvolvimento relacionam revisão bibliográfica, pesquisa exploratória e análise dos resultados, para buscar compreender e descrever os possíveis atravessamentos existentes entre Programa e Cooperativa. Acredita-se que este estudo possa contribuir para os estudos de cultura material demonstrando que na circulação dos artefatos artesanais estão presentes práticas, estratégias e disputas nem sempre explicitados. / This study conducts a cartography with the intent to understand the relationships inside the Programa Trinacional Ñandeva, a program belonging to the Itaipu Technological Park, performed in the region of the Triple border between Brazil, Paraguay and Argentina and belonging to' COART - Handcraft Cooperative of West and Southwestern of Paraná. The COART seeks to bring together artisans of the region defending their interests and the Ñandeva wants to improve the handcraft sector and regional, tri-national identity, starting with the intervention of designers in training workshops and creating iconography aimed at craftsmen in the region. It is intended, from the point of view of material culture, realize and point attentions on social relations, conflicts and power struggles that are involved in the production and circulation handmade process. For this, the research relies on the movement of artisanal artifacts and narratives of the subjects involved in the specific context of the city of Foz do Iguaçu, in the period 2012 to 2015. Therefore, it is proposed to understand the proposals and the working of these spaces, and how to follow the movements made by artifacts from narratives of interlocutors Dircéia Braga, Gorette Milioli and Nilse Mognol responsible for Program Ñandeva and COART Cooperative. this is an exploratory research, in which development strategies are related to literature review, exploratory research and analysis of results, seeking to understand and describe the possible existing crossings between Program and Cooperative. It is believed that this study may contribute to the material culture studies demonstrating that the movement of artisanal artifacts are present practices, strategies and disputes not always explicit.

Além do questionamento sobre a pertinência do uso do termo “tecnologia social”, em meio aos estudos de CTS, há a busca por quantificar e dimensionar os impactos mútuos entre tecnologia e sociedade. Algo sustentável para uma rede social não necessariamente se sustenta em outra. São questionamentos que vêm à tona quando se entende que toda tecnologia é social e que o equilíbrio é construído em meio a desequilíbrios. O objetivo é propor uma metodologia interativa que capte a “tecnologia social”, em construção conjunta, de alternativas pró-sustentabilidade com uma rede social local. A metodologia da pesquisa é predominantemente qualitativa e envolve: os procedimentos dedutivos; a pesquisa participante; a reflexão; a desconstrução do termo “tecnologia social”; a inversão da pesquisa para método indutivo; os procedimentos indutivos; a reorganização do alinhamento epistemológico, teórico, metodológico, operacional e prático; a redefinição dos métodos e das técnicas de pesquisa; a opção pela pesquisa-ação; até culminar na proposta de um modelo. Este é o produto da pesquisa, que tem como forma de análise a operacionalização e a prática da proposição. Trata-se de um modelo baseado nos princípios: da essencialidade da vida; da liberdade; da complexidade; da multi, inter e transdisciplinaridade; e de comportamentos cíclicos. Ele capta a tecnologia para construir modelos de construção da sustentabilidade característicos e peculiares a redes sociais, sob as diretrizes de comportamentos: da cultura da vida; da democracia; da construção conjunta; do compartilhamento de técnicas e de conhecimentos; e da qualidade, produtividade e otimização. Viabiliza-se pelos seguintes procedimentos: preparação do agente; identificação da rede social; estudo e histórico da rede social e do local; pesquisa-ação; aplicação de questionário; tabulação dos dados e Análise de Redes Sociais (ARS); construção conjunta de encaminhamentos; e alternativa para sustentabilidade. Este modelo tem seu ineditismo estruturado a partir da “tecnologia social” e difere dos demais pela reflexão e pela conscientização da rede social, como forma de potencializar o indivíduo diante das relações sociais que estabelece na construção do novo equilíbrio social. O conjunto de procedimentos também difere o modelo, que primeiramente propõe o aprendizado do agente que conduzirá a captação e a explicitação tecnológica da rede. A construção conjunta do questionário é outra diferença para que se captem os momentos da rede social, propondo alternativas de acordo com a sua identidade. Trata-se de um procedimento para mesclar técnicas e conhecimentos entre os atores da rede. A rede social foi a Cooperativa dos Apicultores e Meliponicultores Caminhos do Tibagi (COOCAT-MEL), em Telêmaco Borba – Paraná – Brasil. A partir dela foi possível construir um caso prático do modelo que teve como resultado a explicitação tecnológica da rede, com a apresentação das percepções sobre momentos, satisfação e construção conjunta, como medida das alternativas pró-sustentabilidade da rede. Os limites e as insuficiências do modelo são dados pela complexidade e pela multidisciplinaridade teórica, operativa e prática que resultaram na proposta de um Laboratório de Sustentabilidade para dar continuidade em próximos estudos. / In addition to the questioning on the relevance of using the term “social technology” in STS studies, there is the pursuit of quantification and scaling of mutual impacts of technology and society. Something that is sustainable to a given social network cannot be considered the same by another one. Those are questions that come to light when one understands that every technology is social and that balance is made up out of imbalances. The objective is to propose an interactive methodology that captures the “social technology” in joint construction of pro- sustainability alternatives having a social local network. The research methodology chosen is predominantly qualitative and comprises: deductive procedures; participatory research; reflection; the deconstruction of the term "social technology"; the inversion of said research to an inductive method; inductive procedures; the reorganization of the epistemological, theoretical, methodological, operational and practical alignment; the redefinition of methods and research techniques; the choice of action research; until culminating in the proposal of a model. This is the result of research, which has as its form of analysis the implementation and practice of the proposal. It is about a model based on the principles of: essentiality to life; freedom; complexity; multi, inter and transdisciplinarity; and cyclic behaviour. It picks up the technology to build sustainability construction models that are characteristic of and peculiar to social networks, under the behaviour guidelines of: culture of life; democracy; joint construction; techniques and knowledge sharing; and of quality, productivity and optimization. It becomes feasible by the following procedures: agent preparation; identification of the social network; study and history of the social network and the site; action research; application of questionnaire; data tabulation and Social Network Analysis (SNA); joint construction of referrals; and an alternative to sustainability. This model has its uniqueness grounded in "social technology" and differs from the others by reflection and awareness of the social network as a way to enhance the individual before the social relations that he establishes when composing a new social balance. The set of procedures also distinguishes the model, which first proposes the learning of the agent which will conduct the capture and technological explanation of the network. The joint construction of the questionnaire is another difference so that the moments of said social network can be captured, proposing alternatives according to their identity. It is about a procedure to merge techniques and knowledge amongst the actors of the network. The social network was the Cooperative of Beekeepers and Meliponicultors Caminhos do Tibagi (Cooperativa dos Apicultores e Meliponicultores Caminhos do Tibagi; COOCAT-MEL) in Telêmaco Borba - Paraná - Brazil. From it, it was possible to frame a practical case model that had the technological explanation of the network as a result, with the presentation of the perceptions of times, satisfaction and joint construction as a measure of pro-sustainability alternatives of the network. The limits and weaknesses of the model are provided by complexity and by theoretical, operational and practical multidisciplinarity that resulted in the proposal of a Sustainability Lab to be continued in further studies.

This study investigated the impact of government support on growth, survival and performance of agricultural cooperatives in selected areas of Eastern Cape Province of South Africa. The objectives of this empirical study were to examine (1) the impact of government support on growth of cooperatives, (2) assess the impact of government support on the performance of cooperatives, (3) reviewing the impact of government support on survival of cooperatives. A total sample of 157 agricultural cooperatives which consisted of poultry, maize, goat, nursery, sheep and vegetable coops was used. Stratified random sampling technique was used and a self-administered questionnaire used to gather primary data. The primary data of the study was gathered from the cooperatives managers only as they were the targeted respondents. Gathered data went through factor analysis, anova test and correlation analysis for the statistical analysis purposefully to arrive in study findings and conclusion. The findings of the study drawn from the 66% response rate concluded that government support has a statistical significant impact on growth of cooperatives. The study also indicated that government support has a significant impact on the survival of cooperatives. It is also reported that the performance of cooperatives is significantly impacted positively by government support. The findings of the study also indicated that agricultural cooperatives are not satisfied with the present government support.

M.A. / The dissertation analyses the political involvement of two women's organisations, Kontak and Women for Peace, during the period 1976-1990. Both organisations were established in the political watershed year of 1976. Kontak had its roots in `verligte' Afrikaner thinking concerned primarily about the image of the Afrikaner as oppressor. Women for Peace stemmed from the heart of liberal capitalist thinking fearing that the welfare community was under threat. Both organisations thus arose from the privileged white establishment and in this aspect differ from the many other women's organisations that existed in the period under review. The meaning of "political involvement" is defined in the study and evaluated in terms of the protest registered against the apartheid system, the ideological stand that was taken and the extent to which race relations improved. The latter was after all an essential objective of both organisations, more particularly to end conflict than to ensure a complete transition to democracy. The positioning, objective and conduct of the abovementioned organisations must of necessity be highlighted against the background of the oppressive political situation of the day. For this reason the study provides an overview of the political context within which the organisations had to function. It commences with the riots of 1976 when the National Party came under increasing pressure to scale down apartheid and make it more acceptable. Mention is made of the power of the National Party to equate matters of national interest with discrete party political interests. Further mention is made of the unbridgeable gap between intra-parliamentary and extra-parliamentary politics and how the decisive power of the latter was publicly suppressed. The impossibility of "political neutrality" is emphasised and that was precisely the label that the two organisations under discussion would have liked to attach to themselves. Kontak and Women for Peace were not the only players in the field of women's organisations. The study briefly discusses a few of the other main players such as the ANC Women's League, Inkatha's Women's Brigade and the Black Sash. Both Kontak and Women for Peace explicitly stated that they wished to seek reconciliation and peace between privileged whites and disadvantaged blacks "outside of the party-political arena". Neither of them could escape their political roots, however. The new enlightenment in the National Party for example prevented Kontak from taking an increasingly critical stand against apartheid. In the same way the much sharper voice of the Women for Peace was silenced by the approval of liberal PFP thinking. Both organisations registered protest within the safety of intra-parliamentary politics. They constituted no revolutionary threat for the apartheid state and their leaders were neither imprisoned nor banned. In summary it can be said that both Kontak and Women for Peace were able to realise the objectives of reconciliation within their chosen but limited target groups. Praiseworthy projects were undertaken and strong anti-apartheid positions were adopted. Democratic adjustments were constantly made with regard to membership, leadership hierarchy and language orientation. As far as the political main stream was concerned both, however, were wrongly positioned. The black majority moved in extra-parliamentary circles, outside the field of experience and even the protest actions of privileged whites. For this reason Kontak and Women for Peace were unable to contribute directly to the democratic transition to black majority rule but to some extent succeeded in sensitising the privileged white communities to accept change.

This study investigated the challenges faced by the Masizame Bakery as a cooperative in Steynsburg. The co-operative sector, tracing back to the 1800s, has become recognised as a key vehicle for community development and poverty alleviation. According to the Department of Trade and Industry (2012), international practices show that countries which have achieved economic development also have a vibrant and a dynamic co-operative sector, contributing substantially to the growth of their economies. The sector’s international success and foundations in agriculture have found resonance with the post-apartheid government in achieving social transformation and alleviating poverty in South Africa. The co-operative model in South Africa proved a success during the apartheid era in the agricultural sector with a turnover of about R22.5 billion. Post-1994 the government hopes to achieve the same level of success through the sector to transform the country’s socio-economic landscape. The co-operative sector’s principles of self-help and self-reliance have become synonymous with democratic South Africa’s government plea to active citizenry in development – Vuku’zenzele. Some South Africans have responded to this call to change their economic conditions through co-operatives. However, investment in the co-operative sector has found varying degrees of success and failure across South Africa’s provinces, with the Northern Cape, the Eastern Cape, and Free State experiencing the highest mortality rates. The areas’ rural hinterland has been attributed to this high failure rate, thus posing the need to investigate the challenges faced by co-ops in small towns such as Steynsburg. The study provides an overview of the sector’s history, including its growth in countries across the world. The role of co-ops in poverty alleviation has also been discussed. This role was interrogated in discussions held through interviews and focus groups with both members of the Masizame Bakery and other projects in the area, including public officials involved in both community.

M.Tech. (Fine Art) / The aim is to develop a sustainable sewing co-operative for Tshulu Trust, located in the Domboni village in the rural chieftaincy of HaMakuya, north-eastern Limpopo Province, South Africa. The development of the new sewing co-operative aims to address the extreme unemployment in HaMakuya, which is one of the main causes of poverty in the area. It is also a response to one of the primary objectives of Tshulu Trust, which is to create employment. The research study addresses the extent to which arts-based training interventions might ensure the sustainability of the new sewing co-operative. This study is a Participatory Action Research (PAR) training intervention that is Freirean in approach. I draw on the principles of Paulo Freire’s book Pedagogy of the oppressed (1995, 2008) to provide the theoretical framework that underpins the training envisaged in this study. Methodologically, this project and study involves four action research cycles with newlyrecruited members of the sewing co-operative. There is a final cycle which is my own selfreflexive cycle at the conclusion of the development project in HaMakuya. The cycles implemented with the members involve arts-based training approaches in design manufacture and embellishment, business training, and marketing of fashion and homeware products. In addition there is also training for enterprise development within the action cycles. Critical monitoring and reflection take place at the end of each cycle to inform action plans for the next cycles. The cycles of the development project end with a public showcase of the products manufactured and modeled by the participants. For my own self-reflections, I design and prototype my own designs for a fashion range inspired by my experience in HaMakuya. These prototypes as well as the products manufactured by the participants are included in a catalogue that supports this dissertation.