Pragmatic Idealism: We can pragmatically harness business in its many forms to achieve social
transformation and conservation of resources.
Enter social enterprise and impact investment.
Compassionate Capital: Investment does not
have to be for profit alone. People are not only
motivated by greed (the classic Milton Friedman
assumption). Care for others and concern for one’s
community and environment can be equally important motivations. Social enterprise and microfinance are creative approaches using compassionate capital.
Conscientious Consumption: Consumers can
purchase or boycott with conscious and affect
corporate behavior. We have the power to demand that the corporate sector adopt renewable
and efficient energy, recycling, non-genetically
modified foods, and socially responsible practices
through the sheer power of organized boycott.
Environmental Economics: Investment into conversion of energy grids from fossil fuels to renewables combined with fiscal and credit policy that
will drive business to use renewable and efficient
energy. This approach will drop actual carbon
output levels while creating jobs and business
opportunities in multiple sectors that can scale
renewable and efficient energy technology, water
conservation, recycling, organic agriculture, while
reducing fossil fuels absolutely. (This is not to be
confused with trading carbon or pricing natural resources sometimes called the “green economy”).
These ideas are only part of growing matrix of
often separate yet interconnected movements,
running in parallel, but coming into an inevitable synergy and convergence that will change
the economic architecture of our planet. Some
of these ideas come from villages and ghettos,
others are being driven by business and financial
photography courtesy of laurence brahm
localization. Empower people by getting capital
to communities (rather than only to banks who
just speculate with Fed bailout funds issued on
the back of more debt) and the austerity that has
crippled Europe.