DEVELOPMENT EDUCATION
To promote the cooperative ideal, continued involvement in the DE program provides DEs with an excellent opportunity for career development and personal enrichment.
The Credit Union Development Education (DE) program began in the USA in 1982, reached Australia in 1991, and continues to be delivered in Asia through the Asian Confederation of Credit Unions. The DE program is designed to provide critical lessons in cooperative & mutuality principles, credit union philosophy and international development issues while incorporating the challenges that mutuals face today. Every year, people from all parts of the world become certified as Credit Union Development Educators (DEs). These individuals commit and volunteer their professional time to take the credit union message to audiences where they reside and throughout the world. In addition to promoting the cooperative ideal, continued involvement in the DE program provides DEs with an excellent opportunity for career development and personal enrichment.
The learning outcomes for the DE program are to:
Demonstrate effective presentation skills
Work effectively in a cross-cultural setting
Understand social and economic development concepts
Learn how cooperatives contribute to the development
Become an advocate of the cooperative organisation
Complete social responsibility/development project
Below are testimonials from our DE Program Attendees:
We left the program with a greater sense of responsibility to keep the Cooperative candle burning, to provide financial and educational services to our members, and to be confident campaigning for the common cause of Cooperatives.
Rubie and I are definitely different people since returning to Australia after completing the DE Program in Bangkok. Different in a more confident, knowledgeable, appreciative, enthused and certified Development Educators to pass on and instil the cooperative and credit union values to everyone.