TCraig Uprighthe Winona State University CLASP Lecture Series will host “Cooperative Enterprises: Promoting the Common Good” with Craig Upright at 7 p.m., Wednesday, March 30, in Stark Hall Auditorium. The event is part of the 2015-16 University Theme, Equity as a Human Right: Building Inclusive Community.

Upright will talk about the promotion of the common good as an enduring foundation of American society and how this principle guides many non-governmental organizations to pursue social equity. This talk will explore how formal cooperatives have participated in economic markets to help address the shortcomings of capitalism and to serve the common good.

Upright is an Assistant Professor of Sociology at WSU. He is a scholar of social movements, organizations, politics and culture. Upright earned his Ph.D. from Princeton University, and his research focuses on sustainability movements. He currently has a contract with the University of Minnesota Press for a book examining the role that 1970s Minnesota cooperative grocery stores played in developing the organic food market.

This event is part of WSU’s 2015-16 University Theme, Equity as a Human Right: Building Inclusive Community. Equity as a Human Right is about upholding people’s rights, valuing diversity, challenging intolerance, and making institutional change around issues of social justice. For WSU and its communities, partnering around a university theme has proven to be an effective strategy for bringing faculty, staff, students, and community members to the engagement table. The year-long focus will enable students, faculty, staff, and members of the wider Winona and Rochester communities to explore the intersections of identities, cultures, and abilities.

This event is free and open to the public and is available for stream via ITV in UCR ST 116 on the Rochester campus.

For more information, contact David Speetzen at DSpeetzen@winona.edu.