Purposeful Economics in a Purposeful World

Humanity is waking up every day to a world with ever increasing challenges ... and for humanity and the environment to survive and thrive in the future we will need a new economics, a Post AI, Purposeful Economics, putting wellbeing at its heart ...

For some time the prevalence/effectiveness of GDP within economics has been questioned (e.g. going way back to speeches made by Robert F. Kennedy) and today there are more and more reasons to question it. For instance in UK the Government over the past decade has been quietly using high levels of immigration as a strategy to boost GDP (the 'numbers') ... and despite this GDP has changed very little.

The Government is now being heavily challenged on its record and on levels of immigration it has overseen (over 750,000/year last year), particularly as budgets to support this population growth have been slashed, not increased (e.g. communities, education, health, housing), and the fact that house building has also been dramatically lower than the extra demand created for it (n.b. with housing already in crisis).

With such pressures, many now realise GDP is not a great measure, and are suggesting GDP/capita may be a better measure of the 'health' of a nation/economy. The reality is GDP/capita isn't much better, though if used instead of GDP it does show the UK economy has been 'declining', not growing, for some time.

In this TED talk, ecomomist Marilyn Waring, brilliantly highlights the fundamental flaws of using GDP (and GDP/capita) as the prevalent measure of health/wellbeing of an economy/nation and for policy making ...

"The economic formula called the "gross domestic product"or the GDP was drawn up in 1953. They established a boundary of production in drawing up these rules. What they were keen to measure was everything that involved a market transaction.

So on one side of the boundary, everything where there was a market exchange was counted. It doesn't matter whether the exchange is legal or illegal. Market exchange in the illegal trade in armaments, [munitions], drugs, endangered species, trafficking of people -- all of this is great for growth and it all counts.

On the other side of the boundary of production, there was this extraordinary phrase in the rules that the work done by the people they called "non primary producers" was "of little or no value" ... (e.g. volunteering, looking after others/family/planet) ...

... there are alternatives, and I'm going to spend my time correcting people, talking to them about this value base and talking to them about what the alternatives can be, because humankind and our planet need another way".

Failures, such as wars and disasters, grow GDP (e.g. due to rebuild costs). Crime, health service waiting lists/failures also boost GDP and GDP/capita (e.g. due to increased legal costs, private security, insurance costs, private health insurance, and litigation costs). We call this 'failure demand', i.e. GDP 'growth' resulting from failure, and in the future forward-looking nations will be focused on creating 'good growth' - which we call 'Purposeful Growth' (and part of 'Purposeful Economics').

To tackle failures in society, health challenges, financial challenges, and the ever-increasing environmental challenges we will need 'Purposeful Growth' - powered by Purposeful Organizations, Purposeful Economics and Purposeful Government, with human & planetary wellbeing at its heart ... the foundations are here, e.g. GNH, Doughnut Economics, Regenerative Economics, and these will need to join together and grow (in scope & application) if we are to create a thriving Purposeful Britain ... and a sustainable, flourishing, Purposeful World^†.

David Clift

Purposeful Ambassador®

Co-founder, Purposeful Education

Founder, Good Turns & Purposeful Enterprises

Co-developer of Purposeful Britain and a Purposeful World

^† Purposeful Government™, Purposeful Parliament™, Purposeful Economics™, Purposeful Britain™, Purposeful England™, Purposeful Scotland™, Purposeful Wales™, Purposeful Ireland™, Purposeful UK™, Purposeul World™, Purposeful Communities™, Purposeful Education™, Purposeful Council™, Purposeful Learning™, Purposeful School™, Purposeful Academy™, Purposeful College™, Purposeful University™, Purposeful Educator™, Purposeful Ambassador™, Purposeful Enterprise™, Purposeful Organizations™, Purposeful Board™, Purposeful Executive™, Purposeful Director™, Purposeful Governor™, Purposeful MP™, Purposeful Trustee™, Purposeful Partner™, Purposeful Investor™, Good Points™, Good Points System™, Good Turns™, Good Turns Foundation™ etc are all recognised/registered trademarks.

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