The typical characteristic of the cooperative enterprise is to keep mutualist function and economic activity always together, in a consubstantial way.

The cooperative connects within itself two distinct dimensions even if not opponents: the economic dimension, of a subject that operates within the market, accepting its logic, and the social dimension, of an entity that pursues reasons of metaeconomics and that generates positive external effects in favour of other subjects and virtually of the entire community.

It’s this dual nature that makes the cooperative a very difficult reality to explain and complicated to rule. The big true challenge for the cooperative movement of the 21st century is to be able to keep a dynamic balance between the two codes, making sure that strategic complementaritIes derive from their reciprocal contamination.