The 23rd CIRIEC International Congress, organized jointly by CIRIEC-Canada and CIRIEC International, will be held on Tuesday and Wednesday, June 13 and 14, 2000 in Montréal, Quebec, Canada.

The International Centre of Research and Information on Public and Cooperative Economy (CIRIEC) is a non-governmental international association of businesses and organizations of the social economy (co-operative, mutual and non-profit enterprises), of the public sector and of people interested in these fields of activity. Founded in 1947, the organization strives to promote international exchanges between the various types of businesses geared to the collective or the common interest, and between the world of practice and the world of science.

Founded in 1966, CIRIEC-Canada is a non-profit organization bringing together collective members (public, co-operative, mutual and non-profit organizations, workers’ funds, trade unions, university research centres, training institutes, etc.) and individual members (researchers, teachers and professionals). The purpose of this scientific association is "to help build an integral economy by means of enlightened, critical support for the development of the social economy" and to promote the common interest in economic matters.

Every two years, the CIRIEC International Congress provides a prestigious forum where business leaders, scientists, economic analysts, union representatives and other economic stakeholders exchange information, voice concerns and share ideas and experiences.

For the year 2000 Congress, the CIRIEC International Council has selected as its theme: The social economy and the public economy: new forms of cooperation in an era of globalization. In reference to the new trends in the economy, terms such as neoliberalism, postkeynesianism have been used. However, these labels do not account for new trends such as the formation of regional and continental blocs, the adoption of new economic policies and the refocusing of large companies on their main calling. Moreover, they fail to take into account the multiplication of forms of cooperation between businesses including networking, strategic alliances, service outsourcing and resource sharing. In some cases, these elements can help bring about a renewal of economic democracy and a new equilibrium between the private sector, the public sector and the social economy (co-operative, mutual and non-profit organizations) locally, nationally and internationally.

The 23rd CIRIEC International Congress would like to examine this hypothesis, looking at new forms of partnership within our economies, from the standpoint of more general considerations that might shed light on current experiments. The fundamental objective is to openly seek the forms of cooperation best suited to protect individuals, give them control over their future and place the common interest at the heart of economic dynamics.