MONTREAL, April 25th, 2017 -- As Uber announces new services in Montreal and comes under increasing scrutiny worldwide, social entrepreneurs will be gathering on April 29th and 30rd for the first Canadian event on platform co-operatives, held during the Transform Montreal conference at Concordia University. International business leaders and local entrepreneurs will discuss existing democratic “sharing economy” platforms in Québec and around the world as well as paths to fund and support new ventures.

“About 25% of the price of every ride hailed on ridesharing apps goes directly to Silicon Valley interests, and not to local economic development” said Jessica Cabana, spokesperson of Transform Montreal. “Platform cooperatives combine the power of decentralized online coordination with community ownership, so the benefits and profits of innovation remain locally anchored.”

Sponsored by the Desjardins Group and Co-ops and Mutuals Canada, the Platform Co-operatives track of the conference ties in directly with a growing international consortium of business and social leaders working to reinvent the “sharing economy”.

Enspiral, a New Zealand-based network that has started two platform cooperatives is one of the headliners this year. Last year’s conference highlighted Stocksy, a Victoria, BC-based platform cooperative with annual revenues of over $7 million.

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For more information and the full program, visit www.transformermontreal.com or contact info@transformermontreal.com

See also: Montreal Gazette: Innovation helps millennials cope in the gig economy

Photos of Transform Montreal 2016. (Photo credit: Andy Fidel).