VALUES AND BASIC PRINCIPLES
__The Manifesto was adopted in March 1977 by members of Quebec housing co-operatives for the development of the co-operative model they believed in.
The goal of the manifesto is to state the values and basic principles common to housing co-operatives, which will serve as a reference to any action in the housing co-operative movement.
A healthy housing policy should recognize the right to housing for all and apply this right to meet the needs of all in housing, rather than creating profit for a few people.
To meet the housing needs of people and promote equal human and social relations while promoting each individual taking charge of his right to adequate housing, we recommend the development of a genuine cooperation Movement in the housing sector.
A Co-operative movement should allow everyone to have access to adequate housing, at an adequate cost. A housing co-operative movement must always depend on the initiative of members themselves, respect and encourage active participation and control by members of specific projects and the Movement as a whole. A housing co-operative must be and must remain a collective property, which does not seek individual accumulation of capital, but rather the accumulation of collective capital.
The Housing co-operative movement must educate and train its members and expand their horizons to other dimensions and issues in their neighborhood and in society.
Cooperation in the field of housing has meaning and a future only if the various projects come together at regional and national levels to enable fruitful exchanges between co-operatives and to promote and defend the principles ensuring the harmonious and authentically co-operative development of the movement.