Youth are the future, but, as we all stated in the Global Youth Forum in Malaysia, we are also the present, and the action starts now. With this in mind, the Youth Network created the Replication Project with the goal of having young people come together to start new cooperative projects.
The Replication Project is an initiative of the Youth Network, lead and managed by the Executive Committee, in order to understand existing cooperative youth projects, and to support replication of existing models and create new ones.
The program will be launched this year and aims to have a global reach. We will choose at least 8 projects (two per region) and fund them with a maximum of EUR 10,000 per project. We will also recruit mentors from the ICA network to help support the building of strong foundations and structures.
UPDATE: The ICA Youth Network is pleased to have received over 150 applications for the Replication Project and we are starting the review process. Due to the unexpectedly large number of applications received, which will take more time than expected to review and process, we will not be able to announce the winners until mid to late October. We will not be able to respond to individual inquiries regarding your application.
Timeline
| May 2020 | Launch call for project proposals |
| May 2020 | Launch call for mentors |
| 16 August 2020 at midnight (Belgium time) | Deadline for project proposals |
| mid-October 2020 | Winning projects announced |
| 30 October 2020 | Mentors matched with projects |
| 1 November 2020 | Allocation of first half of funds, projects begin |
| 1 March 2021 | First report due, evaluation of projects, and allocation of additional funds upon receipt |
| 1 August 2021 | Projects should finish work, final report due |
How to apply
If you are interested in applying, please download the form below.
Replication Project Questions
Question: I cannot open the file. Can you please send me the word document?
Answer: You can open zip folders by saving it onto your computer and then opening it from your computer just like any regular file. You cannot open it up directly from the website. In case your computer is using a Microsoft operating system older than XP, you will need to download a special program to open the foler such as 7-Zip or WinZip.
Question: Is this project available to people in my country?
Answer: Yes, there are no geographic limitations.
Question: What are the judging criteria of this program?
Answer: The applications will be reviewed by the members of the Youth Network Executive Committee and a representative who provided the funds for the project (the International Summit of Cooperatives). A minimum of two projects from each ICA region will be selected and we will fund the creation of different types of coops. The judges will evaluate the applications based on the answers to each question in the application form.
The short-listed projects will have a Skype call with one of the Youth Network Executive Committee members in their region and a second neutral evaluator.
Question: What kinds of projects are eligible for this program?
Answer: Collective and cooperative projects led by young people and with an impact on youth. It would better if they were inspired by a similar project started somewhere else.
Question: At the end of the program, do we have to legalize our group into cooperative according to the law in our respective country?
Answer: This is required if the registration or law in your country is not prohibitive. If for some reason the project is not ready to be or cannot be launched in legal form, a detailed report will be required that states the reasons for not registering the cooperative.
Question: What are the type of expenses in our budget that are eligible to be funded?
Answer: All expenses are eligible, including investment and current expenses. A fully balance budget is strongly recommended.
Question: How will the report and evaluation by held? What kind of documents should we prepare for the evaluations?
Full information about the evaluations will be communicated to those who win the project upon signature of the contract. Evaluation criteria:
· Business model and timeline
· Growth goals (after a year)
· Cooperative principle embodiment
· Team and mentor evaluation
A first evaluation of the project will be completed and presented to Cooperative Congress in February/March 2021 in Seoul. All applicants will be required to provide a final report including a written summary of the process and development of the coop and a video summary before the end of July 2021.
Question: What kinds of documents should we prepare for the evaluations?
Answer: This will be communicated to those who win the project upon signature of the contract.
Question: What kinds of documents should we prepare for the applications?
Answer: The application form states which supporting documents are required.
Question: Having never been part of a co-op, would I have to form my own co-op through the Replication Project program? Would it be possible for me to join others in my country who are founding a coop? I do not know others who would be interested, and my lack of experience would not allow me to form a co-op in the near future.
Answer: The goal is for the new initiatives to form cooperatives by the end of the project. As stated in the application criteria, the newly created groups that apply to the Replication Project will need to be at least 3-5 people. If you are only one person, you need to find other youth to apply with you. The base principle in cooperatives is cooperation and you can’t cooperate with yourself. You can get in touch with the Regional Committee in order for them to support you with connections within your country.
Question: Can we have more than two projects awarded in each region? In some regions, it is not necessary to apply for the full amount to develop our youth coop and it would be better if more youth coops could be developed in our region.
Answer: There is a MINIMUM of two projects per region. We can fund more projects in each region if the amount of each project is less than the maximum EUR 10,000. We hope to receive many project proposals so that we can show that youth globally have amazing ideas, and then we can use these ideas to raise more funds. If we can raise funds more, we will be able to fund more of the projects that applied in the near future. Therefore, it is not necessary to limit the number of applications sent by country and/or region.
Question: The program mentions 'mentoring' besides the financial funds - what does this entail?
Answer: Our goal is to find two volunteer mentors, one from your country, and one in your sector, who will be able to assist you in the development of your youth coop.
Question: Are there more specific criteria for participation besides that it has to be a youth cooperative that applies?
Answer: As stated in the application criteria, the newly created groups that apply to the Replication Project will need to be at least 3-5 people who have as a goal to form cooperatives by the end of the project. These cooperatives must adhere fully to the cooperative identity, values and principles.
Question: Is it advisable to submit the application as soon as possible or the reviewing process only starts after the 16th of August?
Answer: We will not evaluate applications depending on when they submitted them.
Question: The program mentions 'development of a cooperative' as a desired outcome of the program - does this mean the funds could be used to invest in appliances and building materials in order to develop a new activity at the coop?
Answer: The goal of this project is to benefit youth. We will consider funding new youth coops established by already existing coops. We will also consider funding improvements or new activities at already established youth coops, based on inspiration from other youth coops (replication), if it will have the impact for youth that we are looking for.
Question: How detailed accounting does the program expect from a coop that has been awarded funds?
Answer: Detailed explanations of the expectations and format will be communicated to the winners. A balance sheet with details about how the funds were spent will be required.
Question: In my country, youth are persons with age from 15 to 30 years old. Is there any age criteria for your youth cooperative?
Answer: The Youth Network defines youth as those persons up to 35 years inclusive.
Question: We are a diverse team with members of 23, 37, 37 and 42 years who want to form a coop. Can we still apply on the basis that our target group for organizing is young, or that one of the team members is under 35?
Answer: You can apply if the project is youth-led and youth is one of the purposes. It should not just by youth-led by chance. There should be a plan to keep the coop at least 50% youth-led in the future.