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Overview
A new movement is afoot that promises to save the world by applying the magic of the market to the challenges of social change. Its supporters argue that using business principles to solve global problems is far more effective than more traditional approaches. What could be wrong with that?Almost everything, argues former Ford Foundation director Michael Edwards. In this hard - hitting, controversial expose, he marshals a wealth of evidence to reveal that in reality, a market approach hurts more than it helps. Real change will come when business acts more like civil society, not the other way around.
Synopsis
A new movement is afoot that promises to save the world by making civil society model itself after private enterprise. Dubbed "philanthrocapitalism," its supporters believe that business principles can and should be the primary drivers of social transformation. Philanthrocapitalism's adherents mistakenly pass it off as the whole solution, downgrading the costs and trade-offs of extending business and market principles into social transformation. In reality, the hype surrounding philanthrocapitalism runs far ahead of its ability to deliver real results.
Business approaches, former Ford Foundation officer Michael Edward points out, are often at odds with those needed for fundamental social change, since they privilege competition over cooperation, individual effort over collective action, and short-term results over the necessarily patient, long-term support required for the messy and unpredictable process of fundamental social transformation. Moreover, the increasing concentration of wealth and power among philanthrocapitalists is unhealthy for democracy—the phenomenon is itself a symptom of a disordered and profoundly unequal world. Ultimately, Edwards argues that the use of business thinking can and does actually damage civil society. It's time to differentiate the two and re-assert the independence of global citizen action.