出版社：Institut de Recherche et d’Education pour les Coopératives et les Mutuelles de l’Université de Sherbrooke
摘要：• This exploratory investigation documents five case stud-
ies of cooperatives in rural environments in four countries with the
objective of providing a descriptive work of cooperative actions and
contributions which encourage local sustainable development. A dis-
tinction is made between the economic and social functions of the
economic, social, environmental and political-institutional contri-
butions. Results show that the cooperatives in the study undertook con-
crete actions that exceeded the framework of their primary economic
activities. Actions consisted of rich and diverse contributions that fit
within the categories set out in our model. Our research nonetheless
underscores the permeability of these concepts which make conceptual
boundaries difficult to define. Finally, without measuring the results of
the contributions made by the cooperatives, our research shows that
the actions favoring sustainable local development are in themselves
the most promising results
