Tower and Town, April 2018

  (view the full edition)

How Well Is Our Economy Working For You?

Thank you, Barney and Rachel Rosedale and everyone who helped organise an exciting ‘New Economics’ course on successive Tuesday evenings in January and February in the Jubilee Centre. It was based on seven booklets produced by the Quakers, but our course was secular.

Quakerism is more a way of life. Quakers try to minimise their consumption, minimise their carbon and environmental footprint. They respect everyone and everything, whoever and whatever they are. Inequality in our society is a concern; as is understanding that the world’s resources are limited.

The first evening was an introductory session led by Rachel. Thereafter each evening, which was led by a different person, our discussion in the whole and smaller groups was based on a booklet. That first evening Rachel asked the thirty of us, who had different political and religious beliefs and perspectives, why we had come and what we were hoping would be the outcome of the course. Some were activists and others, like myself, had come out of interest.

Booklet 1 ‘What is the economy for?’: The Concise Oxford Dictionary defines economy as ‘The administration of concerns and resources of a community’. The Quakers’ booklets build on ideas in a Quaker document ‘Principles for a New Economy’, which aims to help explore alternatives to our current economic system. So for them the economy should be the enhancement of all life, human and non-human.

Booklet 2: ‘Good work in the new economy’
Booklet 3: ‘Energy in the new economy’
Booklet 4: ‘Money, Banks and finance in the new economy’
Booklet 5: ‘The role of markets in the new economy’
Booklet 6: ‘Ownership in the new economy’
Booklet 7: ‘Building the new economy’ .

Some of the objectives, which came out of our discussions, were (among others):

To find an alternative economy to our present one, which is based on continual growth, expansion, profit.
To achieve less differential between the highest and the lowest earners.
A fair basic standard of living for all, including housing, fuel supply, healthcare.

I enjoyed the stimulating and complex concepts and ideas, and the exchange of different views, often different to mine. This for me was sometimes challenging.

There will be ongoing, occasional meetings and anyone is welcome. If you would like to come please contact: Rachel Rosedale, 512205, rachelrosed1@gmail.com.

Clare Napier