Ivano Barberini, ICA President has congratulated the international co-operative movement on their response to the devastating Tsunami. "I made an appeal for international solidarity on 30 December," he said. "Since then numerous co-operatives throughout the world have established relief and reconstruction funds to help the victims of the tsunami." Details on the ICA's Tsunami Appeal Fund can be found at www.ica.coop

"The International co-operative movement has responded very quickly and generously. This is not surprising given its long tradition of global solidarity," - Ivano Barberini

The ICA dedicated the first issue of its weekly digest for 2005 to the Tsunami disaster.

• How the global cooperative movement is responding to the tsunami disaster
• Commentary: Robby Tulus - The role coops can play in the longer-term reconstruction of areas affected by the disaster.

The co-operative effort

Links with local communities, networks and resources mean co-operatives are ideally suited to assist the relief effort as these examples demonstrate.

• Local co-operatives help food aid distribution, Colombo
• Sri Lankan co-operative credit union mobilises local networks and resources to help disaster communities
• SOS Children's Villages Canada, provide relief based on co-operative principles, for tsunami orphans
• Members of the Alpha House Artists Co-operative in Sydney, Australia made over 100 dolls to send to children in a Sri Lankan orphanage who were affected by the Tsunami