More than fair trade & charity: Socially Enterprising.
Where is the invisible hand really pressing ?
More than fair trade and, more than charity work, it's socially enterprising.
"There are, first, the environmental factors. It has been stated and will have to be established that the capitalist process produces a distribution of political power and a socio-psychological attitude—expressing itself in corresponding policies—that are hostile to it and may be expected to gather force so that they will eventually prevent the capitalist engine from functioning."
Shumpter, p. 112 (1950)
Innovation then lies in the need to formulate an alternative means to address current global market failures in the capitalist system by which intra-generational equity can be sustained. Such modes of capitalism that enshrine a social value are far from established, what is concurrent in recent decades is the political power lobbying for social change through the economy which is safeguarded by the increasing investment that runs parallel to technological innovation. Coyle (2012) argues that the market globalised has been recently propelled by ICT which has caused greater retrenchment patterns within recession, causing greater inequalities on larger scales, in so far, abandoning previous economic models that bare no resemblance to current economical contexts, as economics is on observatory study concentrating upon the flux of dynamic interactions (Schumpter, 1950), one can assume that the technological systematic changes creatively destructing our previous capitalist model also propel our inquisition to develop resolve and solutions through the use of ICT. Where technology has arguable increased inequalities due it's increased speed of transactions and interactions as not only widened previous stratification's but developed anew, as see in the digital divide and next user generations (Dutton & Blank, 2011). Mirroring technological cultural shifts with interconnectivity, transparency, fast access to information, big data and the donation of data, all of which encompass greater social integration and integrity. Technology has had the power to empower citizens who are able to utilise the machines for a fairer market by gaining greater access to asyymetric information alike. Many phenomenons have also occurred through the use of the internet since it's establishment, as we see social media campaigns (Kony, 2011), crowd funding (crowdbait, 2012), mobile donations, big data and so. Within this new mode of commerce, greater social interactions occur, although non-humanistic via the use of technological protocols, networks and machinery, the market has since developed a stronger communication arm as the platforms for corporations to engage with consumers has expanded dramatically through the use of multimedias and other tech innovations. Within this, lies the essence of socially enterprising change, it may not be inherent within technologies, but it's within a paradigm shift that is beginning to shape our future commerce.
In so far, what we can gather from these wider contextual factors shaping our economical landscape, is that socially enterprising solutions to addressing new environmental needs, is in fact more than a triple bottom line de facto, entrenching environmental and social ends within previous capitalist structures, and indeed, much more than fair traded goods and charity. Current transformations of the market arena are ensuing social services devolved from government, which rewards, the marketisation of altruistic virtue, tokenistic opportunities and creation of private socially enterprising organisations that are providing alternative means to addressing current societal needs.
Coyle, D. (2012). How to Build the Future Economy. Joseph Rowntree Foundation. Available at [http://www.jrf.org.uk/publications/how-build-economy-future]
Dutton, W.H. and Blank, G. (2011) Next Generation Users: The Internet in Britain 2011. Oxford Internet Institute, University of Oxford.
Shumpter, J. 1950. Capitalism, Socialism, and Democracy. 3rd ed. New York: Harper and Brothers.