SDG Series – Cooperative contributions to SDG 4 – Cooperatives Build a Better Future Through Quality Education

Cooperatives are key partners in achieving Sustainable Development Goal 4, ensuring inclusive and equitable quality education and promoting lifelong learning opportunities for all.

In the latest edition of the Building a Better World Together: Cooperative Contributions to the SDGs series, Cooperatives Europe, the International Cooperative Alliance (ICA), COPAC, and other ICA regional offices explore how cooperatives expand access to education, reduce inequalities, and empower learners across the world.

The Cooperative Difference: Learning Through Participation

Education is a core cooperative value (cooperative principle 5). From early childhood to higher education and lifelong learning, cooperatives make quality education accessible, inclusive, and community-driven. They create schools, universities, and training programmes that strengthen local economies while teaching democratic participation and solidarity.

Around the world, cooperatives support youth and vulnerable groups by addressing child labour, providing scholarships, and promoting equity for people with disabilities, refugees, and women. By linking learning with practical experience, cooperatives help prepare young people for leadership and decent work.

Learn more about what Cooperatives Europe does on education here.

Examples of Cooperative Education in Action

• Portugal – CASES: Delivers the FORMAES programme and the Academy Y.ES, which train young people and social economy leaders.

• Europe – REScoop.eu: Engages students and communities in sustainable energy education, from Belgium’s CORE cooperative to the UK’s Repowering London initiative.

Closing Gaps and Building Futures

While education systems worldwide still face inequalities, cooperatives help bridge these divides through inclusive, community-based approaches. They connect schools with real labour market needs, strengthen youth leadership, and make education part of broader social development.

A Call to Action

The brief urges policymakers to recognise cooperatives as key partners in advancing SDG 4. It calls for stronger support for cooperative schools and universities, inclusion of cooperative values in national curricula, and investment in training, innovation, and international cooperation.

As we approach the International Year of Cooperatives 2025, education remains a foundation for sustainable development. Cooperatives show that when learning is democratic and people-centred, communities grow stronger, fairer, and more resilient.

📄 Download the full policy brief on the COPAC website.