Social Capital, Ecological Production, and Communicative Dynamics in the Tunceli/Ovacık Women's Cooperativism Model

Abstract

This study examines the local cooperativism experiences that emerged in the province of Tunceli and its districts (Ovacık, Hozat, Mazgirt) through a holistic approach encompassing gender, social capital, ecological production, and communicative networks. Utilizing a qualitative phenomenological design, it focuses on the institutionalization process of the ‘Ovacık Doğal’ (Ovacık Natural) model—a self-reliant, publicist approach developed without initial capital or subsidies—through female entrepreneurship and collective women's labor. Within the scope of the field research, semi-structured, in-depth interviews conducted with key actors of the local government of the era, representatives of the Tunceli Chamber of Commerce and Industry (TTSO), cooperative founders, field coordinators, and female producers were subjected to discourse and content analysis. The findings demonstrate that these cooperatives explicitly reject hierarchical employer-employee structures, operating instead through horizontal decision-making (consensus) mechanisms, job rotation, and traditional collective labor practices (imece). The structural constraints imposed by geographic isolation, harsh winter conditions, and elevated logistical costs are mitigated through consumption cooperatives, hometown solidarity networks, regional logistics hubs, and shared transport strategies. The ecological production practices of female partners—centered on heirloom seeds (such as kara kılçık wheat), endemic flora (mountain garlic, medicinal herbs), and a nature-respecting ethos rooted in Alevism—converge with digital storytelling on social media (specifically Instagram) to establish a bond of spiritual trust with consumers. In conclusion, the study reveals that this publicist model, standing in opposition to profit-oriented market dynamics, fosters women's social agency, builds intergenerational bridges via youth digital engagement, and offers a sustainable rural development framework for food sovereignty.