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New Economy

The Business Of Unconditional Love

Josh talks to Cristobal, Wren, and Dayle — three of the people behind People's Plumbing, a worker cooperative operating on the Gift Economy model in Cleveland, OH. That's right, when People's Plumbing does a job, there is no bill to be paid at the end, just a participation form and a flushing toilet. Despite this unconventional model, the co-op has been successful for two years, is providing a living for multiple people, and looks to continue growing into the future.

Socialism Much More Than Just An Idea

Socialism is both a political and economic theory and a historical stage in human development. As capitalism continues to squeeze profits from workers, more people become aware of who truly produces society’s wealth—and who benefits from their labor. This growing awareness raises a critical question: if capitalism creates unbearable conditions for the majority, what comes next? At its core, socialism advocates for social ownership and democratic control of the means of production. This means that major resources and industries—such as factories, land, energy, and transportation—are owned and managed collectively, rather than by private individuals or corporations.

From Breakdown To Breakthough: 2025 Union Co-op Symposium

The 7th Union Co-op Symposium, a gathering of worker-owners and union members from across the US, opened with guests being invited to talk to someone they don't know. Facilitators repeat this exercise two or three times in a row to begin the biennial event. “It is actually really hard to shut it down once you get it started, because so many people are so excited,” says Kristen Barker, a co-director of Co-op Cincy, which has hosted the Symposium since 2013. The 2025 Symposium took place from October 17-18, offering workshops, panels and conversations on how the cooperative and labor movements can work together to build a democratic economy.

How Africa’s Social Economy Is Shaping Its Development

In February 2025, the African Union (AU) Heads of State adopted the continent’s first 10-Year Strategy on the Social and Solidarity Economy (SSE), a landmark commitment to institutionalize inclusive, community-embedded economic models across Africa. It signals a shift from piloting to policy and from recognition to implementation. In May the same year, a high-level roundtable took place in Nairobi on "Unlocking the Social and Solidarity Economy in Africa," bringing together leaders from African governments, the South Africa G20 Presidency, the private sector and civil society. It focused on the implementation of the AU 10-year strategy.

Ten Principles Of Next Economy Enterprises

The 10 Principles of Next Economy Enterprises serve as critical guideposts for designing organizations from a socially just and environmentally regenerative perspective. They are emergent and malleable, derived from work with hundreds of social enterprises. Here is an outline of the 10 principles: Meet Basic Needs This principle prioritizes providing human-centered essentials like nourishing food, clean water, shelter, and medicine. It directly challenges the Business as Usual (BAU) economy, which is geared toward fulfilling greed rather than human need, by providing essentials without destroying habitat and ecosystems. Enterprises adhering to this principle also look for ways to consider ecosystem repair as an impact outcome of their business functions.

A Localism Manifesto

Planet Earth is experiencing a five-alarm emergency, yet our political systems are paralyzed and incapable of responding. Unprecedented hurricanes, floods, droughts, fires, and other climate disasters are overwhelming us. Inequality is at a historic high, with 3,000 billionaires shaping our political systems and civil societies. Our once open and vibrant democracies are mutating into dictatorships. Our economies, which were remarkably stable after World War II, continually careen between uncontrolled inflation and unemployment. The list of seemingly insoluble national and global problems is growing.

Why We Need A Solidarity Economy Now

As people across the United States face massive cuts to Medicaid, SNAP and other vital programs, many are asking: What happens when the systems we rely on fail us? And what happens when our communities are torn apart by toxic inequality, political fragmentation and declining social trust? The solution may lie in something that humans have been doing throughout our existence: taking care of each other, often without realizing it. Today that’s what some of us call the “solidarity economy.” I first heard the term in late 2008, and I wasn’t impressed. I believe the term I used might have been something like “boutique-y.”

Why The ‘Local Multiplier Effect’ Always Counts

The Local Multiplier Effect (LME) is a very valuable, hidden feature of our economies. The term refers to how many times dollars are recirculated within a local economy before leaving through the purchase of an import. Famed economist John Maynard Keynes first coined the term "Local Multiplier Effect" in his 1936 book The General Theory of Employment, Interest and Money. Imagine a hypothetical influx of money, say one million dollars, entering a local economy. Now imagine these dollars are spent on local goods and services. Imagine that each of the local vendors who earned those dollars then re-spends that money on more local goods and services.

Death Doula To A Dying Empire

A while ago, my partner LiZhen turned me onto a TEDx talk by Deborah Frieze. In this talk, titled “How I Became a Localist,” Frieze said something that really made me think: “You can’t fundamentally change big systems. You can only abandon them and start over or offer hospice to what’s dying.” She went on to explain that systems — our educational systems, economic systems, criminal justice systems — are nonlinear and incredibly complex. These aren’t machines but living systems. And as with anything alive, they go through a natural cycle of rise, peak and decline. It’s the nature of life. In breath, out breath. Expansion, contraction. Birth, death.

Sociocracy: A ‘Light In Our Path Towards A Co-operative Society’

When it comes to collective leadership, simply having the willingness to work in this way is not always enough, and trying to ensure everyone is heard without systems and structures to support this aim can become messy and unworkable.  A growing number of co-ops are exploring how the governance system of sociocracy can help them to ensure those involved have a say while still getting things done.  Sociocratic organisations are made up of small, semi-autonomous working groups called circles, connected by members who ensure the flow of information between them. Roles within circles are selected via an open, transparent selection process rather than a secret ballot. 

The Seven Fundamental Drivers Of Overshoot

Humanity is in overshoot. The last 50 years have marked a unique period in history during which our species has been able to access, extract, and consume natural resources at a rate faster than the Earth is able to regenerate them. As humanity continues to grow its population beyond the carrying capacity of its environment, the associated excess consumption is degrading the health of Earth’s ecosystems. By over-consuming our environment—and ecosystem stability—in the short-term, we are putting our planet’s long-term stability and capacity to provide for future generations in jeopardy.

Arizmendi: A Co-Op Of Co-Ops

I like everything all together. I like the fact that it's a cooperative. I like working with my hands and I like physical labor. Everybody's paid the same wage no matter how long you've been working at the Cheeseboard. Even though I'm one of the newest people there - I've only been there two years - I still have all of the rights, responsibilities and privileges as somebody who's been there for 30 or 40 years. Everybody is valued equally and we operate by consensus, but we all make decisions collectively. We're always trying to work together to make the decision work for everybody. So we reach unanimity on almost every decision.

A Cautionary Tale From The US Federation Of Worker Co-ops

In this episode of Punchcard, we speak to Rebecca Kemble, an experienced cooperator from the US, who is a member of Union Cabs Worker Cooperative in Madison and co-founder of the Solidarity Economy Principles Project. From 2009-2016 Rebecca was a member of the board of the US Federation of Worker Cooperatives, and in late 2024, Rebecca penned an article pointing a finger at the Federation for having drifted away from its grassroots cooperative movement origins, by centralising power and becoming unaccountable to the cooperatives that it claims to represent.

How A Worker Cooperative Is Mitigating The Stray Animal Crisis

The popularity of support animals attests to the mental health benefits of bonding with a pet, such as decreased stress, anxiety, and loneliness. According to the Mayo Clinic, having pets may also positively impact cardiovascular health and blood pressure control. Unfortunately, many animals that could be treasured companions never get that opportunity. This is especially true in the state of Texas. According to the animal welfare group Best Friends Animal Society, approximately 568,325 cats and dogs entered Texas shelters in 2023, and an estimated 82,681 of these animals were killed.

Chicago Clinic Offers Free Legal Aid To Solidarity Economy Groups

Chicago, Illinois, has a rich history of grassroots organizing. Notable examples are the Back of the Yards Neighborhood Council’s efforts to improve local economic and social conditions and the Black Panther Party’s establishment of housing cooperatives and free food, clothing, and medical services. The solidarity economy movement has continued to gain momentum in Chicago. In 2024, a map from the worker-owned ChiCommons Cooperative showed more than 800 solidarity enterprises, co-ops, and mutual aid groups in the city.
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