Presenting the economy as a place where human happiness is as paramount as profit, is a utopia. This truism is, however, confronted by the actual situation of our economy today. In this book, we find a plea for economic practices as elaborated in the Social Economy, the Purpose Economy, and the Economy of Communion.
Exploring fundamental philosophical questions about existence, morality, and life's meaning, this introduction invites readers on a reflective journey spanning over 2,500 years of thought. It emphasizes the importance of philosophy in addressing personal and societal challenges, including economic and ecological issues. The narrative encourages readers to not only seek answers but also to formulate their own responses and pose new questions, highlighting the dynamic nature of philosophical inquiry as a tool for understanding the world and oneself.
The centenary of E. F. Schumacher’s birth (1911-1977) offered an urgent opportunity to revisit his work and life. Against the background of the crisis at the beginning of this century, reconsidering Schumacher’s Small is Beautiful or frugality paradigm makes clear that advances in responsible economics continue to be a priority. This book contains the proceedings of the 2011 Annual Conference of the European SPES Forum on ‘Responsibility in Economics and Business: The Legacy of E. F. Schumacher’, which was organised in September 2011 by the Centre for Ethics of the University of Antwerp in collaboration with the Business Ethics Center of Budapest. The aims of this conference were to celebrate the 100th anniversary of E. F. Schumacher’s birth and to engage with Schumacher’s vision to help address the present need for responsibility in economics and business. The answers to our current economic crisis presented in this book prove that the legacy of an economist and philosopher like Schumacher are not confined to a utopian economic paradigm. Utopian economic paradigms are concerned with a better economic situation in the future. Schumacher reconsidered today, however, makes it clear that society needs responsible economics invested in the sustainability of the globe, right now.