STWR - Share The World's Resources

Campaigners have long proposed measures to reduce extreme inequality, but policymakers remain fixated on an economic model that threatens to undermine the fabric of society. When will the political elite heed the growing demands for redistribution that are being voiced in countless reports, books and public protests? 

Land value taxation embodies the principle that natural resources are the creations of nature and should therefore belong to society as a whole, not individuals – and as STWR acknowledges, the ramifications of this conceptual shift for a more just and sustainable world are potentially immense.

In a webinar scheduled for 18th February 2013 at 19.30 (GMT), STWR will present their ideas on how policies based on the principle of sharing can help address the immediate crises facing humanity, as well as guide – given sufficient public support – the many structural reforms to the global economy that must follow.

There are many policies that governments could implement to raise the finances needed to reverse austerity measures, tackle climate change and prevent needless poverty-related deaths. But we cannot rely on governments to change the current world direction - the only hope is a huge groundswell of popular support in favour of global sharing. 

Oxfam's chief executive makes some thought-provoking observations about transitioning to a sustainable and just world, and points towards an important question: what will it take to spur a mass engagement of ordinary people around the need to end poverty and social injustice?

The recent climate talks in Doha were held as if in an alternative reality to distressing developments across the world. But there still remains hope and optimism because there is no possibility of preventing runaway climate change without global sharing and justice.

In the last newsletter of 2012, STWR highlights some recent events and discussions on rethinking the global economic order and scaling up sharing in our societies, and stresses the importance of everyone getting involved in the emerging debate around global sharing.

The recent documentary and debate series called 'Why Poverty?' highlighted the extreme differences in living standards and life chances around the world, and once again emphasised that there can never be an end to poverty until the world's resources are more equally shared.

We have just published a web version of the introduction to our latest report, Financing the Global Sharing Economy. The introduction outlines how governments could mobilise over $2.8 trillion every year to bolster the global sharing economy and prevent life-threatening deprivation as a foremost priority.

The concept of sharing is fundamental to the business sector, despite the huge challenges to creating an alternative economic model in the midst of a free-market, private enterprise system. Yet the co-operative movement is playing a key role in building sustainable businesses based on people and not profit.