Women of Distinction and Leadership at the 2012 International Summit of Cooperatives

QUEBEC CITY, March 7, 2012 /PRNewswire/ - The influential, inspiring and accomplished women listed below head up large organizations around the world and are slated to speak at the 2012 International Summit of Cooperatives. Innovative and creative in their management approach and in their strategies for promoting the cooperative business model, they all offer a unique, value-added perspective that will enrich the Summit program.

The following speakers have been confirmed:

2012 International Summit of Cooperatives:

Kathy Bardswick, president and chief executive officer, The Co-operators (Canada)

Dame Pauline Green, president, International Co-operative Alliance (ICA) (United Kingdom)

Rachel Griffiths, co-founder, Reputation Consultancy (Great Britain)

Geneva Guerin, director, Sustainability Solutions Group (Canada)

Rebecca Kemble, president, Union Cab of Madison Co-operative (United States)

Monique F. Leroux, chair of the board, president and chief executive officer, Desjardins Group (Canada)

Judy Lipp, executive director, TREC Renewable Energy Co-op and TREC Education (Canada)

Sylvia Okinlay-Paraguya, chief executive officer, National Confederation of Cooperatives (NATCCO), (Philippines)

Antoinette C. Roxas, youth sector representative, MSU-IIT Multi-Purpose Cooperative (Philippines)

Tracy Redies, president and chief executive officer, Coast Capital Savings Credit Union (Canada)

Robynn Shrader, chief executive officer, National Cooperative Grocers Association (NCGA), United States

Hélène Simard, president and chief executive officer, Conseil québécois de la coopération et de la mutualité (CQCM) (Canada)

Imagine 2012 (Official Pre-Summit Event):

Claudia Sanchez Bajo, freelance researcher and consultant and chief editor of the Chine Actuelle review (Belgium)

Neva Goodwin, Co-Director of the Global Development and Environment Institute, Tufts University (United States)

Elinor Ostrom, Nobel Prize in Economic Sciences - 2009 (United States)

Vera Negri Zamagni, Senior adjunct professor of International Economics and Chair and professor of economic history, University of Bologna (Italy)

The addition of these presenters will enhance the already prestigious list of international speakers from the political, economic and social sectors, including Nobel Prize recipients.

In total, more than 130 speakers are expected to come and share their expertise, accomplishments and vision for the future of the cooperative and mutualist model. They will discuss how the cooperative approach can solve the challenges presented by the major economic upheavals in the world.

For more information about speakers, visit www.2012intlsummit.coop/site/speakers and www.imagine2012.coop/presenters.

Registration
Registration is now open on the Summit website: www.qvc.qc.ca/sommetinter2012/en

About the 2012 International Summit of Cooperatives
More than 1,500 decision-makers and influential figures from the international cooperative and mutualist community will attend the 2012 International Summit of Cooperatives in Quebec City and Lévis, Canada, from October 8 to 11, 2012. Under the theme "The Amazing Power of Cooperatives," the Summit aims to offer solutions that will promote the development and performance of cooperatives and mutuals so that they are better prepared to meet the economic and financial challenges they face.

The Summit will be preceded by Imagine 2012, an International Conference on Co-operative Economics, which will be held from October 6 to 8, 2012.

Summit site:  www.2012intlsummit.coop
Twitter:  Summitcoop2012
UN's IYC site: 2012 International Year of Cooperatives
Pre-Summit Event site: Imagine 2012

SOURCE 2012 INTERNATIONAL SUMMIT OF COOPERATIVES