The global co-operative movement is remembering Alban D’Amours, the former International Cooperative Alliance director who died on 9 November 2025, aged 85.
Born on 9 July 1940 in Sainte-Françoise, Quebec, Canada, he studied at the Université Laval and the University of Minnesota before working as a professor at the Université de Sherbrooke. He was also an official in the Government of Quebec. From 2000 to 2008, he was president of the Desjardins Group from 2000 to 2008, through which he joined the board of the ICA.
“Alban was one of the outstanding members of the ICA board during my time as director general,” said Iain MacDonald, who held the post from 2002-2010.
“On his arrival, he made it very clear that he wanted to help with the revitalisation of the ICA which was certainly needed at the time. At his suggestion, Desjardins put considerable resources into the ICA, particularly in the reconstruction of the membership system. His energy and commitment ensured that this difficult task was undertaken in a very professional and thorough way. He chaired the steering group responsible for this task and, as far as I understand, the resulting system remains largely in place today.
“Alban’s personal commitment to Cooperation was evident in all his work, and I was very impressed with how he combined his leadership of Desjardins with an unwavering support for the movement. A lesson to many of us, I think.
“He was also a very personable and generous man, and I was very grateful for the considerable support he gave me in my time as director general. He will be sadly missed.”
Tribute was also paid by the current ICA president, Ariel Guarco, who shared his condolences with Denis Dubois, current president and CEO of Desjardins Group.
“Across the co-operative world, Mr D’Amours will be remembered for the clarity of his convictions and for his unwavering commitment to strengthening the cooperative model,” he said.
“On the international stage, he helped shape the way many of us think about leadership, governance, and the role of co-operatives in society. His insistence that co-operatives remain both true to their principles and responsive to contemporary challenges has had a lasting influence within our movement. During his time as a member of the board of directors of the ICA, he gave generously of his time and was unstinting in his ultimately successful effort to achieve essential structural reform. We remain the beneficiaries today of the insight, energy and readiness to compromise to advance the greater good that he demonstrated.”
Guarco added that those who encountered Mr D’Amours “often spoke of his thoughtfulness, his ability to bring people together, and his genuine interest in the well-being of communities”.
He said: “[D’Amours] had a rare ability to pair strategic vision with a deeply human approach, and that combination made his leadership both distinctive and impactful.
“He was one of our movement’s great leaders. [He] leaves behind a legacy that will endure, not only through the initiatives he championed, but also through the example he set of calm, principled, and forward-looking leadership.
“His passing is a loss for all of us who see co-operative entrepreneurship as a powerful force for social and economic progress.”
