The Moral Economy Project

The Quaker Institute of the Future launched the Moral Economy Project (MEP) in 2005 to address Friends’ concerns about the human prospect in a world of unbridled growth and increasing ecological degradation. The central effort of MEP has been the drafting of a book, Right Relationship: Building a Whole Earth Economy, on how to work toward a moral economy. The book, published in February 2009, is already in its second printing and is now available from Berrett-Koehler Publishers; click here to order it on-line.

What is right relationship? A thing is right when it tends to preserve the integrity, resilience, and beauty of the commonwealth of life. It is wrong when it tends otherwise.

The MEP team continued its work with book promotion and outreach, aiming to stimulate an evolving dialogue and action plan that build from the book and its message.

The QIF/MEP symposium, “Bringing the Economy in Line with Ecology”, held in Montreal on May 15-16, 2009, brought together concerned Friends, members of other faith communities, scientists, environmental activists, and many others to attempt to discern a way forward. Both the online and print versions of the symposium report will soon be available.

QIF board members Judy Lumb and Geoff Garver held a workshop at Friends’ General Conference on “Right Relationship: Economy, People, and Earth”. Drawing on a Quaker-inspired notion of “right relationship” Friends examined what the economy is for, how it works, how big it should be, what is fair, and how to govern the economy. Friends explored how to gather our spiritual and intellectual energy to move toward an economics respectful of Earth’s ecological limits.

QIF also held several events related to the Right Relationship project at the FWCC Northeast Regional Gathering in 2010. For the events programme (PDF), click here.