Based on the book Solidarity Economics: Why Mutuality and Movements Matter, by Chris Benner and Manuel Pastor, with artwork by Golnoush Pak. This chapter discusses how investing in mutuality actually leads to better economic systems, and why we should expand our metrics for economic well-being.
Traditional economics is built on the assumption of self-interested individuals seeking to maximize personal gain. This is far from the whole story, however: sharing, caring and a desire to uphold the collective good are also powerful individual motives. In a world wracked by inequality, social divisions, and ecological destruction, can we build an alternative economics based on our mutual co-operation?
This comic series, based on the book by Chris Benner and Manuel Pastor, invites us to imagine and create a new sort of solidarity economics – an approach grounded in our instincts for connection and community – and in so doing, actually build a more robust, sustainable, and equitable economy. We argue that our current economy is already deeply dependent on mutuality, but that the inequality and fragmentation created by the status quo undermines this mutuality and with it our economic wellbeing. We follow the theoretical framing, policy agenda, and social movements we need to revive solidarity and apply it to whole societies.
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