Doughnut Economics – Thurs 21st May 2020 – 7 pm to 9.15 pm
Are we stuck with continuing growth, leading us inevitably to further climate and environmental crises/disaster? An alternative model is ‘Doughnut Economics’.
This will be an evening of learning, explanations, Q&As and discussions. We will start as one group, have a Q&A session, break into smaller groups for discussions and return to the main group for the end.
Jay Tompt , expert in grass roots ‘new economics’, will help guide us through Doughnut Economics: what it is and isn’t, what it could mean for us and what changes it is already making in the world.
IMPORTANT – BEFORE THE MEETING:
- Please, you MUST have at least: watched a TED talk and/or read an article on Doughnut Economics (see list below). This will be assumed on the meeting.
- Feel free to send any questions/topics you’d like to be considered for this event to discussions@itsorted.org.uk
There will be a 10 minute break at 8 pm for people to go outside to applaud front-line workers.
1 min 26 secs video – From GDP to Doughnut
1 min 30 secs video – what is Doughnut Economics?
Humanity’s 21st century challenge is to meet the needs of all, within the means of the planet.
To ensure no one falls short on life’s essentials (food, housing, healthcare, political voice), while ensuring that, collectively, we do not overshoot our pressure on Earth’s life-supporting systems (stable climate, fertile soils). The Doughnut is a playfully serious approach to framing that challenge, and acts as a compass for human progress this century. “We need economies that make us thrive, whether or not they grow.”
Doughnut Economics – a disc with a hole in the middle. The hole depicts the people that lack access to life’s essentials, while the crust represents the ecological ceilings (planetary boundaries) that life depends on and must not be overshot.
The model calls for a new type of regenerative and distributive economy. It is a collection of goals that can lead to different actions, and does not include specific models related to markets or human behaviour.
Kate Radworth, who coined the term and devised the model, has written a book called “Doughnut Economics – Seven Ways to Think Like a 21st Century Economist”
The city of Amsterdam is currently using this concept as a tool for transformative action.
For the past 9 years, Jay has been at the heart of grass roots ‘new economics’. He’s co-founding member of the Totnes REconomy Project. Since 2011, the Totnes REconomy Project has launched innovative economic regeneration and resilience building projects, such as the Local Entrepreneur Forum and the REconomy Centre. Jay has also co-developed the Local Economic Blueprint course and handbook, advising community groups developing their own local blueprints. He has also been leading workshops and giving talks about this work on citizen-led economics – in 15 countries, so far.
For the past 3 years, Jay has been part-time associate lecturer in economics at Plymouth University, where he’s teaching on the Economics in Action and Perspectives Economics courses, both of which deal with how to bring about economic change in the context major challenges including global heating, biodiversity loss, and rising corporate power.
Most recently, Jay co-founded Local Spark: Torbay Community Enterprise CIC, a social enterprise aiming to catalyse citizen-led economic change in a challenging coastal/urban context. And he’s co-organiser of CTRLshift Emergency Summit for Change, a national movement building initiative of NGOs and networks.
Prior to moving to the UK from San Francisco, Jay spent 8 years as entrepreneur and consultant in the ‘green business movement’, after a 12-year career in Silicon Valley. Jay holds an MBA from the Middlebury Institute of International Studies in Monterey and a BA in Philosophy from San Jose State University.
Two recent articles by Jay Tompt
This Pandemic Bears Gifts – new possibilities for economic transition – April 2020
Local Resilience Now! – or what we can do to build local economic resilience in this crisis and create the conditions for regenerative economic transformation – March 2020