The Centre for the Study of Co-operatives is proud to announce to its stakeholders in the co-operative community, its management board, and associated fellows, scholars, and staff that our director, Lou Hammond Ketilson, is this year’s winner of the Co-op Merit Award for Exemplary Contributions to Co-operative Studies. The award is given annually at the Canadian Association for Studies in Co-operation (CASC) meetings, held this year in Vancouver, 5–7 June, to an individual who has championed the study of co-operation in all of its forms.

Lou has a proven track record of dedication to co-operative studies that extends back many years, and all her activities in teaching, research, and outreach are informed by principles that consistently demonstrate mutuality. She is well known for her skills in bridging the gap between the academic world and the co-op sector; her work, in fact, is known throughout the co-op world, and perhaps more importantly, has been applied in the field by both academics and practitioners. Finally, Lou’s role as a mentor to students and others is invaluable; her egalitarian values coupled with an enthusiasm for studies in co-operation has brought many young people into the co-op fold who have then gone on to inspire others — a living legacy of her own work.

Lou has been with the centre since 1985 and also holds an appointment in the Department of Management and Marketing in the Edwards School of Business. Her research interests include management in co-operatives and other democratic organizations, community development, women in co-operatives, Aboriginal co-op development, and diversity on co-op boards and governance bodies. After serving a five-year term as associate dean in the College of Commerce, Lou became director of the centre in April 2005.

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