As the 50th anniversary of Small is Beautiful, 2023 is our opportunity to advance solutions to today’s social, economic, and environmental challenges that build on Schumacher’s original vision.
To meet this calling, the Schumacher Center is convening a monthly series featuring New Economic thinkers, builders and activists from a range of fields. “Schumacher Conversations: Envisioning the Next 50 Years” brings together change-makers whose work today is actively shaping a ‘small is beautiful’ future, organized around 12 key themes and fields of activism.
May’s theme is Activating Stagnant Capital to Catalyze Local Transformation. This online Conversation took place Thursday, May 18th at 2PM (EST).
Register here.
Small is Beautiful advocated “production from local resources, for local needs” as a key organizing principle of a just, ecologically-balanced economics. But a web of flourishing regional economies, producing first for local needs, is possible only when resources and finances are in local control.
With soaring inequality and the pressing need to transition out of old, extractive systems, accumulated wealth cannot remain stagnant. Either it will be captured and reallocated centrally via taxes, or released as free gifts and interest-free investments for placed-based transformation of social, economic and cultural life. May’s panelists are those advancing innovative approaches to the catalytic redistribution of wealth. This group of participants advocate radical steps—encouraging foundations to spend down their funds, land gifting rather than land-hoarding, and total divestment from Wall Street—calling on people and institutions to commit to transformation here and now.
Each panelist was invited to reflect on themes in Small Is Beautiful that connect with their own thinking and activism. These reflections then opened up a broader conversation on the topic of localizing production. An audience Q&A follows moderated by our host, Nwamaka Agbo of the Kataly Foundation.
Register here.
View our list of May allied organizations here.
