Schemata Workshop is excited to announce that Principal Geoff Anderson has been selected as a participant in the Leadership Tomorrow (LT) class of 2021.
LT is an intensive civic leadership program focused on interconnections between elements of Seattle Foundation’s “Healthy Community” framework. The program helps participants further develop their leadership skills and practices, focusing on the goal of creating a healthy, just, and inclusive Puget Sound region. In particular, the program has been actively evolving its approach to racial equity, supporting participants’ development as antiracist civic leaders.
To prepare for this Challenge Day, the class researched and discussed two economic concepts: “Doughnut” Economics, and the Gift Economy.
The concept of Doughnut Economics was developed by University of Oxford economist Kate Raworth. She proposes a modernized way to evaluate the economy beyond just looking at the GDP. She explains that because every part of our society is driven by continual growth, “the plane can never land.” Instead of using the GDP as the only measure of economic success, Raworth developed a dashboard of indicators called the “Doughnut,” an economic model based on maintaining balance between planetary and essential human needs. See her TED talk here: Kate Raworth TED2018 "A healthy economy should be designed to thrive, not grow"
The idea that our economy should thrive as opposed to grow is so refreshing to me. It relates to my struggle with searching for live/work balance. Instead of defining my own success by the quality of my life, I feel the pressure of the continual need to get more done to grow my worth.
The topic for our last Leadership Tomorrow Challenge Day was “Economy.” I am certainly not one to claim that I understand all the ways our economy works, but I do have a basic grasp of the fact that our capitalist system is based on exploiting land, mineral, petroleum, forest, animal, and even human resources to create wealth. I can also appreciate that it is easier to make and hold on to wealth once you have it. In a capitalist society, money is power. Put in the context of race and equity in America, it is easy to see the history of the use of a capitalist economic system to influence the power of whites in this country. Over the past few decades, we have seen an increasing number of government policies that are widening the economic gap, shifting a disproportionate amount of wealth and power to fewer people, most of whom are white.
The topic of “Economy” is directly related to all other topics we have studied - Neighborhoods & Communities, Basic Needs, Healthcare, and the Environment. As I do with all the previous topics, I believe we can evolve our thinking around the economy to better serve the entire community more equitably.
To prepare for this Challenge Day, the class researched and discussed two economic concepts: “Doughnut” Economics, and the Gift Economy.
Kate Raworth
The concept of Doughnut Economics was developed by University of Oxford economist Kate Raworth. She proposes a modernized way to evaluate the economy beyond just looking at the GDP. She explains that because every part of our society is driven by continual growth, “the plane can never land.” Instead of using the GDP as the only measure of economic success, Raworth developed a dashboard of indicators called the “Doughnut,” an economic model based on maintaining balance between planetary and essential human needs. See her TED talk here: Kate Raworth TED2018 "A healthy economy should be designed to thrive, not grow"
The idea that our economy should thrive as opposed to grow is so refreshing to me. It relates to my struggle with searching for live/work balance. Instead of defining my own success by the quality of my life, I feel the pressure of the continual need to get more done to grow my worth.
Marie Goodwin
The concept of a Gift Economy was introduced in an excerpt called “The Gift of Strawberries” from the book Braiding Sweetgrass by Robin Wall Kimmerer. The discussion centered on the perception of the value of a gift as opposed to the value of a purchase. When we purchase something, we exchange money for an item that is deemed to have that value. That item becomes our property, and that is the end of the transaction. However, if we receive that same item as a gift, our perception of that item’s value is altered. We appreciate where the item came from and feel a sense of gratitude towards the giver. In a Gift Economy, the exchange establishes a feeling or bond between the giver, the recipient, and the item. The core idea here is that the more a gift is exchanged, the more valuable it becomes. This is fundamentally different than capitalism, which I described earlier as being based on exploiting resources.
There has always been a significant difference in the perception of value between Native Americans the Europeans who colonized the Americas. Some stark examples of this difference are the ban on the Potlatch native to Pacific Northwest indigenous peoples, and the use of the term “Indian giver” as a pejorative. The Potlach tradition was outlawed in Canada and the US because the white settlers “considered it ‘a worse than useless custom’ that was seen as wasteful, unproductive, and contrary to 'civilized values' of accumulation.”[1] Likewise, the term “Indian giver” comes from a “fascinating cross-cultural misinterpretation between an indigenous culture operating in a gift economy and a colonial culture predicated on the concept of private property.”[2].
Even in our private property and growth-dependent economic system, most of us can comprehend that the economy stalls if people stop exchanging things. Money and goods need to be constantly moving and not hoarded in order for the economy to work for everyone. I do not believe that capitalism by itself creates poverty or the expanding wealth gap. Rather, I see that the policies and regulations those in power put on our economic system do. Because of this, I like to think there is a way to improve our economic system so that it works better for more people and that we can integrate more of the Doughnut and Gift Economy concepts into a more equitable, sustainable, and universally beneficial economy. Here are some questions to ponder:
Can we alter how we define “success” to be more than just rooted in financial growth?
Should we be better at teaching basic financial literacy in public schools? Access to that knowledge creates access to the resource and power-sharing.
Will we ever be able to move away from a model that sees healthcare as a commodity to a system that serves the basic healthcare needs of the community?
Can we look to the next generation to think more broadly and see that sharing wealth ultimately benefits everyone? See Resource Generation.
As we come out of the post-COVID-19 economy, can we reshape how we support our local, family-owned businesses? Or did the pandemic accelerate our journey towards a more online, “no-contact” type of economy that benefits big businesses, like Amazon, grow even more? Or will we spend intentionally?
