Transforming Capitalism

The framework discussed in the paper is based on two main ideas. The first assumes three stages in the evolution of Western capitalism: Capitalism 1.0—the free market or laissez-faire capitalism (focus on growth); capitalism 2.0: a more regulated European- style stakeholder capitalism (focus on redistribution); and capitalism 3.0: an (as-yet- unrealized) intentional, inclusive, ecosystem economy that upgrades the capacity for collaboration and innovation throughout all sectors of society (focus on ecosystem innovation). The second identifies seven key dimensions and categories of economic thought that need to be reframed in order to move the economic system from the 2.0 to 3.0 stage. They are:

1. Nature: Design all production and consumption cycles completely earth-to-earth (without the need for landfills and in co-evolution with the natural ecosystem).
2. Labor: Create economic human rights (such as basic income, access to health, education, entrepreneurial opportunity) in order to enable all people to actualize their full creativity for shared wealth generation and social well-being.
3. Capital: Redesign and redirect money and capital flows to serve all sectors of the economic system (and develop commons based property rights in support of it).
4. Technology: Build communities of creation to generate breakthrough technologies in areas that matter most to societal needs and aspirations.
5. Leadership: Reinvent leadership learning to facilitate “learning from the emerging future” rather than reproducing the patterns of the past.
6. Coordination: Upgrade the economic operating system from one driven by competition and special interest group led legislation (“ego-system awareness”) to one that operates from shared seeing and common will (driven by an intentional “eco-system awareness”).
7. Consumer Awareness: Create infrastructure innovations that allow all citizens to become aware of their real power in co-creating the intentional ecosystem economy and in deepening our democracy

The problem today is that we try to solve 3.0 challenges with 2.0 frameworks and response patterns. The seven categories of economic thought constitute seven acupuncture points that, if touched upon simultaneously with strategic initiatives, could greatly accelerate the shift of the economic system from 2.0 to 3.0.

Framework Document (1.7MB)