The Co-operative Revolution Street Gallery

The Rochdale Pioneers: In 1844, a group of 28 weavers and other tradesmen established a shop in Rochdale; a shop that went on to inspire the greatest and most durable grassroots movement the world has ever known – co-operation. Photograph: The Co-operative

The SCWS Shieldhall site, circa 1895 – a mammoth industrial complex that, by 1914, included 16 different factories producing clothing, footwear, jam and confectionery. There was also a printing works and a pharmaceutical laboratory on the site. Photograph: The Co-operative

As the main shoppers, and because co-operatives had an ethos of equality, co-operatives were a good place for women to come together. They formed the Co-operative Women’s Guild in 1883 and worked to improve the position of women both inside and outside the co-operative movement. This photo shows Ilford Women’s Co-operative Guild Brighton outing in 1926. Photograph: The Co-operative

When built in the year 2000, Middelgrunden co-operative was the world’s largest offshore windfarm. Situated outside Copenhagen, it is fifty percent owned by thousands of investors. Photograph: The Co-operative

A small group in India formed the Irula Snake Catchers’ Industrial Co-operative Society. Each snake is trapped and carefully carried back to the co-operative, where it is milked for its venom and then released back into the wild. The venom is then sold to laboratories to produce snakebite antivenom. Today, snake catchers can earn several times more per live snake turned in for milking than they did for snakeskins previously ( which is now an illegal practice). Photograph: The Co-operative

La Riojana - Argentina La Riojana Co-operative was founded in 1940, when Italian immigrants decided to build a small bodega (winery) and planted vineyards in La Rioja province, northwest Argentina. The co-operative now has over 500 members from across the province, the majority of whom are small-scale producers with less than three hectares of land. It is the world’s largest producer of Fairtrade-organic wine and produces around four million cases per year. Photograph: The Co-operative

Many of the successful agricultural co-operatives in North America have their origins in the economic depression of the 1930s, and the desire to provide good food at a reasonable price. Ocean Spray (pictured) was established in 1930 by three cranberry farmers in Massachusetts who believed they would be more successful if they worked together, sharing their growing expertise and resources. Today, it has over 700 cranberry and 50 grapefruit farmer-members with products available all over the world. Photograph: The Co-operative

Leafcutter ants harvest inedible leaves to feed fungus they cultivate in underground chambers, which in turn provides food for the ants’ larvae. Photograph: The Co-operative

Owned by its member colleges and universities, The Co-operative British Youth Film Academy (BYFA) delivers activity-packed summer camps focused on the production of a full-length professional feature film, combined with year-round educational opportunities. Photograph: The Co-operative

The packing station at the COOBANA banana co-operative in Panama. Workers directly benefit from a committed co-operative to co-operative relationship, where Fairtrade premiums have helped build a new staff restaurant and meeting hall, and have allowed individual workers to access scholarships. Photograph: The Co-operative

Across the world, 500 million small farms in developing countries already feed and support nearly a third of humanity. Many via co-operatives, which enable them to pool resources, realise economies of scale and secure fairer prices. This photo shows a remote coffee farm perched above the clouds in the town of Ixcuintepec, Mexico. Despite the huge distances between farms, the UPCTIZ co-operative co-ordinates activities between member growers for the benefit of all. Photograph: The Co-operative

Baywind Energy Co-operative was the UK’s first community owned windfarm and, established in Cumbria in 1996. Photograph: The Co-operative

FC United (pictured) was formed in response to the takeover of Manchester United in May 2005 by the American businessman Malcolm Glazer. The football club held trials for players in June of that year, and almost 900 applied to take part, of whom 17 were chosen to play for the new team. By July, more than 4,000 people had pledged money and the club had over £100,000 in the bank. The team is rapidly moving up the leagues and looking to build a brand new stadium, with community facilities of course! Another supporter owned club is FC Barcelona, run by its 175,000 members. Photograph: The Co-operative

Betty Chesang is among 11,000 Kenyan smallholder tea producers in the Kericho region who were supported to form into five co-operatives. Co-operative membership gives smallholders like Betty a stronger voice in negotiations and the ability to help build a business which is collectively owned and democratically run.
Photograph: The Co-operative

The Co-operative Revolution Street Gallery has been produced in collaboration with street gallery pioneers, wecommunic8, the team behind 'Britain from the air' and the 'Earth from the Air' environmental exhibition. Wecommunic8 also created the Tarnished Earth street gallery which was on tour permanently for over 18 months from 2010 to 2012. Photograph: The Co-operative