Connect with the youngest profiles and retain them, a key challenge for current cooperativism

We live in a context of global instability that is strongly felt among younger generations. In Catalonia, as in the rest of territories, the accumulation of economic crises in recent years has called into question an idea that for decades was not questioned: that institutions act with neutrality and watch over the general interest. For many young people, this trust has cracked, and a growing sense of precariousness is added, widening the distance from the system.

The data are a symptom of this malaise. A survey by the Centre d'Estudis d'Opinió shows that 8% of Generation Z – between 16 and 26 years old – self-identify as far-right, compared to 4% of millennials and 3% of Generation X. A trend that invites reflection, as today's youth will be the ones who, in the future, will occupy the spaces that are now in the hands of adults. Cooperativism has much to offer in this context of disaffection and lack of horizon, but also a path to follow, and it is precisely young people that it needs to approach more than ever.

Shorten distances as a key milestone

One of the challenges for Catalan cooperativism is knowing how to connect with young profiles and retain them. Today, however, the relationship between young people and cooperativism is weak, marked by a deep cultural and informational distance. People under 30 are the least familiar with the model, according to a Moodin study conducted in 2025.

And it's not because the values don't connect: many young people describe cooperativism with words like collaboration, community, democracy, or horizontality, and associate it with close experiences committed to the common good. The problem is that this image remains in the realm of ethical ideals, almost like a non-profit organization, and is not fully visualized as a future career option.

Young people's work priorities – flexibility, a decent salary, a good environment, and meaningful work – coincide with cooperative values. But many do not consider working in them, nor do they know where to look: economic uncertainty weighs heavily, as it is perceived that a cooperative implies more risk, less stability, and lower wages, and a lack of information weighs heavily, because cooperativism often does not appear in job offers nor is it taught in schools.

When someone gets involved, the story is repeated: no one had told them about it before, and they discover it when they were already looking for another way to live and work. Once they join, they recognize the values that make them stay: belonging, coherence between ideas and work, collective work, flexible hours, and a will for social transformation.

Structural type ignorance

The diagnosis is clear: the lack of knowledge among young people about cooperativism is structural. It is not present in the educational system, nor in vocational training, nor in youth employment policies, and when young people do encounter it, it is through indirect paths. The main challenge is to transform this identification of values into real involvement: to demonstrate that cooperativism is a tangible, accessible, and contemporary experience, combining ethical coherence with economic viability and organizational flexibility.

If there is one area from which this change can begin, it is education: knowledge of the cooperative model must reach secondary school, high school, vocational training, and university in a generalized way, especially in specialties linked to business and entrepreneurship. From the Confederation of Cooperatives of Catalonia, we are promoting projects in this direction: in secondary schools, the Educational Itineraries for Social Economy and Ethical Finance offer modules to introduce students to the model within the classroom; at the university level, the Summer University of Cooperativism (UESCOOP) creates a space for training and debate for students and cooperativists; and the sector also offers postgraduate courses for theoretical and practical training in social and solidarity economy.

Bringing cooperativism closer to young people is not just a matter of communication, but of building, from an early age, the references that are currently lacking: a challenge that is also an opportunity to show that another model of business, and of society, is possible.