The UN’s 12th Sustainable Development Goal aims to encourage the world to do better with less and promotes a shift to a model that prioritises reuse, repair, and recycling. It also calls on businesses and governments to embed sustainability into their practices and enable informed consumer choice.
Cooperatives are uniquely positioned to advance responsible consumption and production because sustainability is embedded in their identity, governance, and operational logic. The seventh cooperative principle (concern for community), for example, establishes a commitment from cooperatives to work for the sustainable development of their communities through policies approved by their members.
In terms of sustainable production and efficient resource use, The Pastoral Women’s Council (PWC) has supported women in Monduli and Longido (Tanzania) to build and replicate improved energy-saving stoves and insulated cookers using locally available materials – which directly benefits members of nearby producer organisations.
The Japanese Consumers’ Co-operative Union has developed environmental production standards in collaboration with farmers, promoting reduced use of pesticides and chemical inputs. And through the Baja California Regional Federation of Fishing Cooperative Societies (FEDECOOP) in Mexico, 13 fishing cooperatives jointly manage 10 Territorial Use Rights for Fishing zones, which have contributed to the recovery and long-term sustainability of local fisheries.
When it comes to responsible consumption and consumer awareness, Spanish agri-cooperative Càmara Arrossera del Montsià, with its ORYZITE® project, transforms rice husks into a sustainable material that can replace a significant share of petroleum-based plastics, while in Argentina, Cooperativa Obrera combines retail operations with consumer education programmes that promote responsible purchasing, product awareness, and community engagement.
Cooperatives also play a significant role in reducing waste and increasing recycling initiatives while providing dignified livelihoods for workers – as illustrated by the experience of waste picker cooperatives in Belo Horizonte, Brazil. And more widely, responsible supply chains and greater transparency are also strengthened through cooperative governance structures.
But while cooperatives provide practical models for responsible consumption and production, they often operate in unsupportive systems and remain underrepresented in circular economy strategies. Achieving responsible consumption and production requires economic models that place people, communities, and long-term sustainability at the centre of decision-making. Cooperatives already embody these principles in practice. What is needed now is a stronger enabling environment that allows cooperative solutions to grow and reach their full potential.
Read the full SDG 12 Policy brief, which includes several case studies on this topic, here.
