The circular economy: Capital vs Commons,

and how to start winning

Socrates Schouten, 19 April 2016 WUR Development & Social Change

www.socrates.nu // @soc_sch

Outline

1. My book in short

2. Economy-merit relations

3. Capital vs Commons

• Why the rapid uptake of ‘circular economy’?

• Nice discourse for business & gov’t

• Inspiring vocabulary for the ecologically minded

My book / The question

1. Economy — finitude — growth

2. New business models

3. The society, city, and policy perspective

4. Capitalism in the 21st century

5. Circularity beyond the economical

My book / Chapters

• Circular economy: change of discourse offers opportunity

• But already well on its way of reaffirming economic liberalism and corporate action

• We need our own narrative, and I like to call it ‘the commons’

My book / Main message

• pro: It puts economics into clever perspective

• con: Economics inevitably in the middle

• con: Means—ends dichotomy not very ecologist

Economy—merit relations / 1 / Daly’s ends

ultimatemeans

intermediatemeans

intermediateends

ultimateends

economicsnatural sciences humanities

• pro: Vivid concept, putting ‘humanity’ center stage

• pro: ‘Ends’ more critically expressed in human rights terms

• con: Is there such a space, and can economic development mediate it?

• con: Again, dissociation of people and nature

Economy—merit relations / 2 / Doughnut economics

• pro: Strong and straightforward proposition

• con: Perhaps a bit too business friendly

Economy—merit relations / 3 / Environmental fiscal reform

extracted value

added value

• pro: Strong and straightforward proposition

• pro: Citizen entitlements; business auctions

• con: Perhaps a bit too… clever?

• My guess: Need to strengthen ‘merit’ logic

Economy—merit relations / 4 / Cap-auction-share

a merit logic?

1. New ‘organic economy’

2. Decoupling? Or recoupling?

3. Common, reciprocal, goods

4. The economical and the ecological

the Common(s)

Barnes 2006: Capitalism 3.0

Barnes 2006: Capitalism 3.0

Barnes 2006: Capitalism 3.0

• process: extraction, accumulation, trickle-down

• pro: strong, legible, ‘taxable’

• con: amoral, evasive, depleting

Same dichotomy, different take

capital commons

• process: creation, circulation, emergence

• pro: resilient, generative, lateral

• con: complex, latent

• process: extraction, accumulation, trickle-down

• pro: strong, legible, ‘taxable’

• con: amoral, evasive, depleting

Same dichotomy, different take

capital commons

• process: creation, circulation, emergence

• pro: resilient, generative, lateral

• con: complex, latent

limited extraction

taxing: share rentscultivate

formalize

• Multinationals: keep detailed records of their use of the commons & pay

• Sme’s: subject to simpler tax scheme

• Citizens: organize in commons institutions and get gov’t support

Economy—merit relations / The commons ‘solution’

commons: describes and delineates the ‘merit’ domain of people & nature

… Does this survive critical scrutiny?

• My big fat proposition: it is possible to bring to life a broad concept of the commons that provides a vocabulary with which ‘capital-first’ institutions are avoided

www.socrates.nu // @soc_sch

Commons first!