New Economies: An Introduction
Many of us think about economics as men in suits on Wall Street, politicians arguing about money, or maybe that class that only people good at maths understand. But, economies are actually an essential and almost ever-present aspect of our lives and we should feel empowered to understand them.
If we feel intimidated to even discuss economics we’ll never find the courage to change the current system and the truth is that the economy is inextricable from social and environmental justice and interconnects us all. For too long, ‘economy’ has been framed as a specialist subject, that only a few understand, and that is incompatible with our visions for fairer, healthier communities (how often have you been told “yes, but you’re not thinking about the economy”?...). Economic growth and accumulation of wealth have been placed on pedestals, important above all else and framed as incomprehensible, unreachable, and yet of the utmost importance, to the vast majority of us. This couldn’t be further from the truth.
Economy is present in almost every element of our lives & dominates global culture and society. It is connected to the food that we eat, the land that we live upon, the climate, and even our everyday human interactions. Whilst ‘economy’ is primarily used now in relation to money, the word actually originated from the Greek oikos, meaning home. Economy originally meant household management, and was linked to ideas of thriftiness and the careful management of available resources. However, our modern conception of ‘the economy’ is predominantly linked to the rise of a mass-consumption economy. Economy came to no longer mean the careful management and preservation of our home, but rather became linked to human self-interest and the rising wealth of the private sector. These days we see ‘the economy’ pictured as rising graphs, wealth accumulation and infinite growth. This linear and hierarchical conception is completely disconnected from the reality of our ‘home’, our oikos: our ecological system is an amazing web, not a line of growth. This is why it is time to change the cultural narrative. It is time for New Economies.
How we treat and manage ourselves, each other and our environment, are all interlinked. Despite the way ‘economy’ is presented to us: the reality is that our financial system is not outside of this. Nowhere is this clearer than when we look at ourselves and our society through the lens of our economic relationships. The structure of our deregulated globalised economic system is driving environmental destruction, inequality, atomisation and alienation. This is the constellation of challenges that new economic thinking tries to face.
Exploring New Economies means reevaluating and reimagining how we can undertake this ‘household management’; what we choose to value, and how we value it; how we can create systems of exchange that don’t depend upon the exploitation of our planet’s resources or cheap labour.
This topic explores alongside the thinkers, doers, and imaginaries how we can establish and implement economic systems that enable resilient communities and thriving ecosystems. We unravel the key ideas and terminology that dominate current economic thinking, and outline the systemic economic changes that are already possible, as well as the individual actions we can all do to divest from destructive practices, and to invest in our shared future.
Economy is present in almost every element of our lives & dominates global culture and society. It is connected to the food that we eat, the land that we live upon, the climate, and even our everyday human interactions.
Economy is present in almost every element of our lives & dominates global culture and society. It is connected to the food that we eat, the land that we live upon, the climate, and even our everyday human interactions. Whilst ‘economy’ is primarily used now in relation to money, the word actually originated from the Greek oikos, meaning home. Economy originally meant household management, and was linked to ideas of thriftiness and the careful management of available resources. However, our modern conception of ‘the economy’ is predominantly linked to the rise of a mass-consumption economy. Economy came to no longer mean the careful management and preservation of our home, but rather became linked to human self-interest and the rising wealth of the private sector. These days we see ‘the economy’ pictured as rising graphs, wealth accumulation and infinite growth. This linear and hierarchical conception is completely disconnected from the reality of our ‘home’, our oikos: our ecological system is an amazing web, not a line of growth. This is why it is time to change the cultural narrative. It is time for New Economies.
How we treat and manage ourselves, each other and our environment, are all interlinked. Despite the way ‘economy’ is presented to us: the reality is that our financial system is not outside of this. Nowhere is this clearer than when we look at ourselves and our society through the lens of our economic relationships. The structure of our deregulated globalised economic system is driving environmental destruction, inequality, atomisation and alienation. This is the constellation of challenges that new economic thinking tries to face.
Exploring New Economies means reevaluating and reimagining how we can undertake this ‘household management’; what we choose to value, and how we value it; how we can create systems of exchange that don’t depend upon the exploitation of our planet’s resources or cheap labour.
This topic explores alongside the thinkers, doers, and imaginaries how we can establish and implement economic systems that enable resilient communities and thriving ecosystems. We unravel the key ideas and terminology that dominate current economic thinking, and outline the systemic economic changes that are already possible, as well as the individual actions we can all do to divest from destructive practices, and to invest in our shared future.
