The second part of this 5th Principle describes the importance of informing the general public about the nature and benefits of co-operation, particularly young people and opinion leaders. Shortly after 2000, Ivano barbarini, then President of the International Co-operative Alliance, warned of how globalisation was leading to the invisibility of co-operatives. this 'invisibility' has been tracked by academics who reported on the disappearance of co-operatives from economic textbooks in the last half century.

Since the adoption of the Statement on the Co-operative Identity in 1995 efforts by co-operators have significantly influenced the wider policy agenda. the adoption of International Labour organization recommendation 193 on the Promotion of Co-operatives provided opportunities not only to revise co-operative law, but also to raise awareness of co-operatives and their distinct nature within ILo constituent organisations; namely governments, workers, trade unions and employers' organisations on every continent. ILo recommendation 193 also requires co-operatives to be included in the curricula at all levels of national education systems.1 Co-operatives should encourage and actively participate in developing the curriculum and promoting co-operative education in their national education system.

The Alliance and its members are firmly of the view that all nation states should, in response to ILo recommendation 193 and UN resolution 56/114, be encouraged to protect the use of the name "co-operative". It should be restricted exclusively to describe genuine co-operatives that operate in accordance with these Co-operative values and Principles. the danger of permitting other businesses to use "co-operative" in their name is that it confuses the general public and devalues co-operatives. the Alliance recognises that restricting the use of "co-operative" as a descriptive noun is the prerogative of nation states. It is justified because requiring the use of "co-operative" to be restricted to enterprises that comply with the Co-operative values and Principles will make it significantly easier to educate and inform the general public, young people and opinion leaders about the nature and benefits of co-operative enterprise. It will be mutually beneficial to governments and co-operatives.

Seeking to restrict the use of the name "co-operative" to genuine co-operatives that conform to the Alliance's Statement on the Co-operative Identity and operate in accordance with the Co-operative values and Principles, is an important part of the process of educating and informing the general public. So too is using the global Co-operative Marque and DotCoop domain name, and participating in international campaigns and events, such as those presented by the UN International year of Co-operatives 2012 and the annual International Co-operative Day. General and regional Assemblies of the Alliance and major co-operative conferences also provide opportunities for raising the profile of co-operatives and informing the general public of their nature and success. however, education and information programmes specifically aimed at educating and informing young people, the general public and opinion leaders in the local communities in which co-operatives operate about the nature and benefits of co-operative enterprise are vital too if we are to realise the vision in the Alliance's "blueprint for a Co-operative Decade". this vision is for the co-operative form of business, by 2020, to become the acknowledged leader in economic, social and environmental sustainability, the model preferred by people, and the fastest growing form of enterprise.

In addition to providing for co-operative members and employees, co-operatives should promote education and information programmes that help raise awareness of the role and potential of the whole co-operative sector and challenge the way the sector is ignored by the mainstream media. In partnership with national apex organisations, co-operatives need to ensure that mainstream media regularly report the benefits of co-operatives and the scale of co-operative enterprise both nationally and internationally. the objective should be that equal prominence is given in the media to co-operative businesses as is given to investor-owned businesses. New social media technologies offer cost effective ways of communicating the nature and benefits of co-operative enterprise. Co-operatives should also develop new communication strategies adapted to the opportunities for improved communication in the modern technological world.

Whilst recognising that there is a link between effective communications and education, training and information, the implementation of this 5th Principle is far more than communications alone. Implementation requires co-operatives to have effective education, training and information programmes and opportunities that reach and are accessible to all members, employees and the general public in the communities they serve.