Entrepreneurship, “limited liability partnerships,” “S corporations,” spreadsheets—these terms don’t leap to mind with the phrase, “Occupy movement.” Yet over in the Sustainable Economy and Social Enterprises working groups, they are the shared vocabulary of dedicated Occupiers scanning the big picture and sweating the details, in pursuit of a sustainable economic system. “Sustainability” is defined by three pillars: Economic- a sustainable “bottom line”; Social- impact on community and family; and Environmental-short and long term ecological costs. In their overall vision, these groups reject the old revolution/ reform dichotomy, instead pressing for sweeping change, one community and social enterprise at a time, from the grass roots up.
The Sustainable Economy and Social Enterprises working groups share an economic focus, and the dynamism of their founder, Occupier Terra Friederichs. Before the dawn of Occupy, she had taken her experience as corporate consultant and her environmental concerns into local politics. Her grasp of economic detail and readiness to press local developers toward more sustainable policies gained real successes. But, her willingness to talk straight, upholding high ideals with her affluent constituents produced political culture shock. “So, I was ‘de-elected’,” she shrugs, and turned to many outlets for activism before joining Occupy last fall. In Occupy, she found many with like minds and backgrounds, eager to put business skills at the service of social and environmental justice.
SE/SE members are often fully engaged, professionally and by activism, and have evolved methods of on-line collaboration through periodic seminars, presentations, and film screenings. Anchoring this working method is the Sustainable Economy/Social Enterprises e-mail list, a heavily used forum where all members, and any interested outsiders, may present information, brainstorm, and raise questions for research and discussion. Members are assigned research and data collecting tasks for spreadsheets on issues like organic farming practices, alternative business structures and banking, and business sustainability.
Friederich’s experience with the “growth fever” of local politicians and developers spurred Sustainable Economy’s battle with mythologies of growth and progress. Especially in hard economic times, many crave a return of “good old days” of roaring economic growth—even as the environmental costs of our carbon-driven economy are clearer every day. Sustainable Economy works on petition drives toward passage of laws upholding communities’ rights to shape their local economy, against unrestricted corporate intrusion. The sustainability ideal also drives SE research into ethical business practices and legislation. Successful models of sustainable community development, like the Dudley St. Neighborhood Initiative, have been closely studied, as SE rates local banks and credit unions for their level of community reinvestment.
Though “consumerism” leads SE’s enemies list, the groups favor tapping the consumer power they do have. Knowledge of how, where, and of what goods are made empowers consumers to buy from local, environmentally sound producers, and to boycott environmental despoilers. “I love the mapping tool project, to map the data for where to buy sustainable goods,” says Terra. “It allows for both individual and group action,… “good” economic development and … good, sustainable business. …” Concerned consumers should “stop buying from huge industrial complexes. For every dollar you spend at a local farm, 92% of the money stays local…. at a locally owned store/restaurant, 40% stays local… at a multi-national store, only 9% of it stays local…”
Environmental sustainability is one of SE’s triple pillars. This May, stark new statistics of an approaching global warming tipping point were spotted by ardent SE environmentalist Jen Mazer, who “just freaked, sank into despair, “ she says. “I thought- we’re too late! We’re cooked!” Second thought was to turn despair into action; she forwarded the chilling stats to the SE list, with a call to more action on: the SE fight to end use of coal for energy in MA; working with Climate Action, Sustainability, and Environmental Justice WG {CASEJ} for a carbon tax beneficial to the 99%; and with OMBTA to shift the region from cars toward green mass transit. Other SE environmental efforts include: pushing for local food production, rating the environmental record of local organic food producers, and information campaigns, demonstrations, and boycotts against global corporate polluters like Monsanto.
“Corporate Law” is another phrase seldom linked with Occupy, which made its name by challenging cities’ right to limit gatherings in public spaces. But many lawyers were led to study law by a concern for justice, and to defend human rights. Lawyers have brought their expertise to SE/SE/CASJ projects to use existing laws and pursue changes in law toward a sustainable future. Corporate lawyers help the Social Enterprise groups evaluate the corporate structures available to social enterprises, including Occupy itself. Lawyers also educate on the antique European laws behind “the commons,” which might protect “community property”, like the eco-system and our socio-cultural heritage. Some SE/SE members seek re-drawing of the “the commons” in law, to include equal access to healthy food, air, and water.
Occupiers know they need a ready answer to the question: “What do you people want?” A decent counter – “watch what we do– how we run our little communities.” Similarly, “Social Enterprises” WG grew from a desire to practice SE principles into real enterprises. “Social enterprises” are not necessarily non-profit, but also serve other social ends, such as environmental protection, community development, or reducing poverty. Social enterprisers have spent months collecting legal and business advice for cooperatives, worker-run collectives, and community enterprises. For such entities, operating efficiently is as essential to survival in a troubled market economy as for any large for-profit corporation. Studying the growth of large cooperatives like Mondragon in Spain has taught SE about thriving in a “neo-liberal” world. Some members bring previous “alternative business” experiences to the group. Matt Carroll, energetic and conscientious anarchist, was part of a worker-run pizza shop collective that learned “you have to reserve money for a new oven” the hard way. Wayne Clark of Occupy Boston and Newton has advocated for and organized coops for decades; he would insist that I note that the UN has declared 2012 “the year of the cooperative.” Novice social enterprisers trying out their “sea legs” include: Elise Moussa, founder of an on-line educational ap that rewards students with college money for correct answers to quiz questions; Terra, co-founder of a silk-screening coop; and Seble Argaw and Joe Cugini {au}, building an office and home cleaning coop.
Reflection the problems they confront leads SE members to two core issues. First, there is the “cancer of growth” – cancer meaning an organism growing out of control. The group sees economic expansion crashing against our finite capacity for debt and ultimately, our planetary capacity. Entrepreneurs of this new era must work creatively within those limits. The other issue is easier to define, but harder to control- human greed. It appears to be a deep well, but like all Occupiers, SE/SE members live in hope that it does not go all the way down.
But for the most part, these groups focus not on big Speculations, but on immediate, practical work, and on spreading the alarm to all citizens. Neither the issues nor the activists are going away. “The earth will burn us if we don’t respect her” says Friederichs…” {Activism} will continue till social justice is achieved,” says.
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