Bogdan Vitoc

Bogdan is learning to cooperate and organize, putting them both into practice as he works to energize a solidarity economy as a new team member with Cleveland Owns. He believes doing this work well involves striking many balances and staying aware of the trade-offs all must make when building a new world in the shell of the old. He enjoys the seasons, gardening, the water, and growing along with his friends and comrades.

Before moving to Cleveland in January 2023 to participate in this movement, Bogdan was a software developer at investor funded tech companies big and small. He witnessed how automation under hierarchical systems turns the gears of capitalist extraction. He's not soured on technology, but on the myth that technology is inherently neutral. He believes this myth fuels an approach to work that is ignorant of politics and injustice, which usually ends up reproducing the values of existing systems in the fruits of our labor. Bogdan witnessed this process overwhelmingly shaping the field of engineering, but recognizes the same patterns in many areas of our capitalist economy.

Born in Romania and raised in South Carolina, Bogdan has experienced different systems from the inside and out. Since getting to know, then moving to Cleveland, he's fallen in love with how soulful of a place it is. He feels blessed to live here and for the opportunity to do the most fulfilling work of his (admittedly young) life.

He's excited for each of the three areas of his work with Cleveland Owns: the Cleveland Co-op Fund, community organizing to energize the cooperative movement, and the community-owned internet infrastructure co-op ConnectedNEO. He welcomes your thoughtful input and hellos.