First Prize:

Dr. Jiyun Jeon

Jiyun’s paper explains how and why organizations under the same institutional logic exhibit different practices by highlighting the relationship between the language and practice of the actors. The paper explores how and why Korean consumer cooperatives, notably, Dure, iCOOP, and Hansalim have established diverse Fair Trade practices despite being positioned in nearly identical institutional contexts. She argues that translation of the discourse of Fair Trade, reframing it based on local practice, text production, and discursive action make up the dynamics of Korean consumer cooperative’s Fair Trade practices. This paper contributes to developing the theory of institutional logic and discursive practice by providing an extended view. The author also offers practical advice to practitioners in the field to raise their understanding of the diverse practices of organizations.

Second Prize:

Ms. Kristine Atendido

Kristine’s study aims to explore the perceptions of Bachelor of Science in Cooperatives students regarding youth’s capabilities, capacities, and involvement in cooperatives. The data collection commenced through structured survey questionnaire formulated by the researchers and implemented through Google Form. To analyze and interpret the data gathered, descriptive statistics specifically frequency and weighted mean were used to provide statistically factual information. The findings from this research shed light on the students' perspectives and contribute to a deeper understanding of how youth perceive their roles and contributions within the cooperative sector. This study differs from others as it presents recent and practicable information, particularly, it is entirely focused on the perception of cooperative students themselves. The study also aims to determine the effectiveness of the existing Bachelor Program in Cooperatives in producing graduates who are eligible to lead in Cooperatives.