2012 has been recognized as the International Year of Co-operatives by the United Nations. This is an acknowledgement by the international community that co-operatives drive the economy, respond to social change, are resilient to the global economic crisis and are serious, successful businesses creating jobs in all sectors.

The United Nations General Assembly passed a resolution declaring 2012 the UN International Year of Co-operatives on December 18, 2009.

The International Year of Co-operatives, or IYC, celebrates a different way of doing business, one focused on human need not human greed, where the members, who own and govern the business, collectively enjoy the benefits instead of all profits going just to shareholders.

As the global voice of co-operatives, the International Co-operative Alliance is seeking to leverage the International Year to raise the public awareness of co-operatives worldwide.

The logo for the International Year of Cooperatives (IYC) is based on the slogan for the year, which is "Cooperative Enterprises Build a Better World." The logo of IYC 2012 evokes the definition of cooperative enterprises as autonomous associations of persons united voluntarily to meet their common economic, social and cultural needs and aspirations, through a jointly owned and democratically controlled enterprises.