First of all, they are rooted in the community. Second, they answer the direct needs of the community. Third, they're democratic, in the sense that it takes so much time to have a consensus among the people who want to start the cooperative that, when it's done, it not like a shooting star. These are, I think, the three major reasons why they last longer. Through different periods I would say, different times, where difficulties emerge, all together they have an expertise that multiplies each other's knowledge. So they bring different alternatives, different points of view, and because of that they bring a certain capacity to go further than just saying “we'll let go because we are not strong enough”, or whatever.
On July 25th, 2012. See this statement in context.