Features of Sustainable Development and Green Growth of Cooperative Business in the Conditions of Economic Transformation
摘要
The research aims to show the features of sustainable development and green growth of cooperative businesses in the conditions of economic transformation. The authors set the following research tasks: (1) to clarify the essence of the concepts of sustainable development and green growth; (2) to identify the features inherent in sustainable development and green growth; (3) to consider the cooperative practice of sustainable development and green growth; and (4) to analyze data on the development of cooperative organizations. During the research, the authors used the methods of systematization and analysis of secondary sources, calculation of indicators of dynamics, structure, and variation, and the “3V” analysis developed by N. M. Sharnina to interpret the calculated data. The market model of the economy, along with its efficiency, has brought a consumerist attitude to capital, labor, and nature, forgetting the need to preserve and multiply their potential for the future. In the market conditions, collective forms of ownership demonstrate greater efficiency in economic management and proximity to societal and environmental issues. Sustainable development is the concern for the well-being of the entire society and nature, a balance between consumption and responsibility for the utilized resources, a resource-saving policy, and a shift from growth goals to objectives focused on qualitative improvement of the system. The peculiarity of implementing the concept of sustainable development by the Central Union of Consumer Cooperatives of the Russian Federation (Centrosoyuz) lies in (1) the fundamental agreement of cooperators with the principles of sustainable development and green growth since its inception, (2) the union’s ability, despite the transformation of the economic system, to maintain the profitability of its activities, albeit with a noticeable decline in recent years, and (3) the adaptation of cooperative business to the transformation of the economic system by seeking alternative sources of income beyond its core activities. The research involved the systematization of materials on the research topic, analysis of data on the activities of Centrosoyuz from 2011 to 2022, and the formulation of quantitative and qualitative conclusions.