voicEd Radio Canada: I Quit!

As of June 30, 2023, I will be retiring from my work at voicEd Radio. There, I said it and, in the spirit of Yul Brynner, "So let it be written, so let it be done".

(Please be sure to read on for some exciting next steps!)

I began voicEd Radio in January 2017, building on the multi-author blog space that we had started five years earlier. The vision for both initiatives was to encourage open and lively dialogue among educators, researchers, parents and policy thinkers about education. I still believe that changing the way we talk about education is the first step in realizing change in the way we do education but the way that we do that needs to change as well.

When voicEd Radio began, I imagined that we could gather folks around their devices to listen live to interesting and important conversations about education. At that time, education podcasts were in their infancy. In fact, in 2017, there were only three Canadian educators producing podcast content, and we were able to quickly connect with them to integrate on-demand listening into our live stream.

Well, as you know, so much has changed in the past 6 years. Among what I've observed:

• The proliferation of podcasts in all areas, including education has changed the way that I think about the voicEd Radio space. (I would love to think that we could still gather people around live "event" radio, but it appears that on-demand listening is where it's at!)
• Increased accessibility of great quality tools has really democratized the podcast production space. I like to refer to it as a burgeoning Podmocracy!
• A dramatic increase in the number of educators, researchers and those supporting the education space wanting to create podcasts. Each week I receive, on average, three new requests for support of different types: editing, hosting, moderation and concept planning.

The bottom line is that education podcasting is growing leaps and bounds and I can't keep up with the requests that are coming in for all types of support. I'm not doing voicEd Radio justice by holding on to it as a personal project! But I think that I've discovered a better approach—and this is where it gets really exciting.

A few weeks ago, I was listening to an episode of Spark on CBC. Norah Young was speaking with Nathan Schneider about the idea of cooperatives. I was immediately drawn into the conversation and began to wonder how adopting a truly cooperative model for voicEd Radio could move the initiative out of my basement and lead to a more scalable and sustainable future for the work. After reaching out to Nathan, I discovered that there was a lot happening here in Canada around cooperative research and practice and I have since begun exploring some of the resources with which he very kindly provided.

Cooperatives have a long history around the world. Here in Canada, the agricultural Co-Op would be a fixture in the memories of many who grew up in and around rural communities. There are other strong models of how a cooperative works but, for now, I wanted to direct you to the 7 principles that ground the work of cooperative business practice:

Cooperatives are based on the values of?self-help,?self responsibility,?democracy,?equality,?equity, and?solidarity. In the tradition of their founders, cooperative members believe in the ethical values of honesty, openness, social responsibility and caring for others. (from the International Cooperative Alliance)

The seven principles of cooperatives are:

1. Voluntary and Open Membership: Cooperatives are open to all people regardless of their social, economic, or political status, who can use their services and are willing to accept the responsibilities of membership.
2. Democratic Member Control: Cooperatives are democratic organizations, controlled by their members who have equal voting rights, regardless of their level of investment or involvement.
3. Members' Economic Participation: Members contribute equitably to, and democratically control, the capital of their cooperative. This benefits the members in proportion to the business they conduct with the cooperative.
4. Autonomy and Independence: Cooperatives are autonomous, self-help organizations controlled by their members. If they enter into agreements with other organizations, including governments, or raise capital from external sources, they do so on terms that ensure democratic control by their members and maintain their cooperative autonomy.
5. Education, Training, and Information: Cooperatives provide education and training for their members, elected representatives, managers, and employees so they can contribute effectively to the development of their cooperatives. They also inform the general public about the nature and benefits of cooperation.
6. Cooperation Among Cooperatives: Cooperatives serve their members most effectively and strengthen the cooperative movement by working together through local, national, regional, and international structures.
7. Concern for Community: While focusing on member needs, cooperatives work for the sustainable development of their communities through policies accepted by their members.

These principles are the foundation of cooperative businesses and serve as a guide for their operations and decision-making processes.

So, let me go back to my opening statement: As of June 30, 2023, I will be retiring from my work at voicEd Radio. But voicEd Radio will not be disappearing. I will be working over the next 5 months to gather the interest, commitment and energy of our first members of the cooperative.

I will be consulting with folks about how to transition what has been a largely personal enterprise into this new model of working. I'm not sure how that will work, but that will be part of the journey. I will also be using this space to share what I'm learning about the model. Stay tuned for opportunities to join in the learning and the conversation!

The vision to connect education research, practice and policy across Canada remains strong. Scaling, sustaining and supporting those who share that vision is now of paramount importance. In announcing my retirement from voicEd Radio, I'm really announcing an intention to place the future of the initiative into the hands of many more people—a voicEd Radio Cooperative!

There's a lot more to tell you, but I wanted to take time today to just get the idea out there. Stay tuned for more details about opportunities to participate. In the meantime please feel free to reach out if this idea captures your imagination. I would be happy to provide you with a warm welcome and, quite possibly, a T-Shirt!