A New Economy | New Business Models
The desire to restructure traditional economic practices to benefit humanity and the environment is rising.
This paradigm shift is known as the New Economy movement.
Hundreds of innovations around the world are growing through unconventional models.
Many have roots in co-ops and credit unions, long-time champions of economic democracy.
What follows are stories of those striving for A New Economy.
A New Economy is about people making a fresh start toward building a new economy. It features seven interwoven stories, including a small craft-brew coop, a peer-to-peer open hardware lab, and an urban agricultural social enterprise.
A New Economy (2016)
Genre: Documentary
Country: Canada
Language: English
Release Date: 3 November 2016
Synopsis:
About people making a fresh start towards building a new economy. Watch as several organisations move towards a more cooperative future by experimenting with open and non-traditional business models.
By rewarding human effort fairly and proportionately instead of obsessing about the bottom line, these revolutionary businesses are creating a more people-friendly future, creating new ways to make money and make it sustainably. A New Economy features seven interwoven stories. Among them are a small craft-brew coop, a peer-to-peer open hardware lab and an urban agricultural social enterprise:
London Brewing Co-op follows five guys who love beer as they jump-start a tasty craft-brew cooperative within a local sustainable food ecosystem in London, Ontario. While they face the challenges of starting a new business and learning to work together democratically, several members are also beginning new families. At the same time, the group wrestles with the day-to-day struggles of growing the enterprise to a sustainable size.
Sensorica follows a Romanian laser physicist with a big heart who collaborates with other high-tech professionals in Montreal, Quebec, and worldwide to prototype new socially responsible technologies while developing a new type of democratic, open-source, peer-to-peer organisation- the open value network.
Sole Food Street Farms follows a Vancouver, B.C.-based social enterprise transforming how we work and eat by adapting unconventional urban spaces for large-scale food production—with a social twist. While hailed by local chefs as the best produce in the city, many of Sole Food's dozens of employees face barriers to traditional employment.
Their unique model creates an equitable and fair workplace that understands their needs while producing transformation and healing through creating a high-quality product. In addition, a string quartet weaves beautiful music together with conversations on the core rewards of cooperation.
Other stories examine housing, public spaces, and the use of technology in building community, all while blending the economic and social needs of a functioning new economy with cooperative values and principles as its base.
1. Shift from Traditional Economic Models
The world is undergoing a significant transformation, driven by a realisation that traditional economic and social systems are no longer sustainable. There is a need to align economies with ecology.
"People are beginning to see the old system isn't working... We must align the human economy with the principles and patterns of living systems."
2. Cooperative Living and Housing
One example is the Red Victorian, a co-living space that rethinks traditional housing models by offering flexible accommodation to fit modern lifestyles and emphasises collective management without strict hierarchy.
"The Red Victorian is a new way of thinking about home and housing in the 21st century... a cooperatively run space."
3. Urban Agriculture and Social Enterprises
Urban farming is a growing movement that connects agriculture with social goals. For example, farms in urban settings offer meaningful employment to people facing social and economic barriers, helping them reintegrate into society.
"We have five farms... employing people facing barriers, such as addiction or mental illness."
4. Cooperative Brewing Model
The London Broom Cooperative brewery operates on a one-person-one-vote model, ensuring equitable ownership and decision-making. It challenges the traditional capitalist model by focusing on community and sustainability, not just profit.
"It's not $1, one vote... everyone has a stake in the outcome."
5. Open Source Technology and Decentralization
Open-source hardware initiatives democratise access to technology, reduce costs, and encourage global collaboration. This model allows anyone to improve and share innovations, fostering a more inclusive technological ecosystem.
"We are democratising access to the micro world... Open-source hardware can reduce costs by up to 80%."
6. Challenges of Cooperation
Although cooperation can be robust, it's not always easy. Collective decision-making, as shown in the Lumio platform for collaborative decisions, often requires managing different perspectives and emotions.
"Cooperation means deciding goals together... human interaction is hard, especially without hierarchy."
7. Regenerative Economy
The emerging concept of a regenerative economy focuses on sustainability and resilience. It is based on autonomous, self-learning systems and continuously evolving to align with ecological principles.
"What we see emerging is a regenerative economy... a system that is itself-organising, self-refueling, and self-learning."
This summary captures the essence of the document, showing how cooperative and regenerative models are being explored in various sectors, such as housing, agriculture, brewing, and technology. These examples reflect a shift towards more inclusive, sustainable, and equitable systems.
A New Economy | New Business Models
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cg6vupfEqNM
