The Lisbon Strategy and Lisbon 2010 proposed to transform the EU economy in the most competitive and dynamic one, based on knowledge and capable of an economic and sustainable increase, with better jobs and an increased social cohesion. The Consumer Co-operation of the Republic of Moldova proposed itself a similar objective – to become a durable, competitive and efficient sector of the national economy and to recover its previous position. Consumer Co-operatives of the Republic of Moldova have their own educational system with its own education institution, which offers educational and professional development programs in the field of co-operation. University researchers continuously monitor co-operative development problems and provide solutions for the improvement of co-operative activity. In this paper, we will present several aspects of our experience in implementing research-based education at our University, focusing on the mission and on the image of co-operative system of our country.