Co-operative socialism – The Fair World Project (FWP) – for a just global economy

The Fair World Project

Justice in the Fields

Mission:

  • people are treated fairly with dignity;
  • the environment is respected and nourished;
  • commerce fosters sustainable livelihoods and communities in a global society based on cooperation and solidarity;
  • fair market opportunities and fair government and trade policy defend, and support the contributions of farmers, workers, and artisans to our global society;
  • marketing claims have integrity and promote throughout entire supply chains, and support dedicated brands that put people before profits.

Goals:

  • To contribute to the movement to build a just economy that benefits and empowers all people especially those traditionally marginalized in our current system, including family-scale farmers, small-scale artisans, and food and apparel workers
  • To educate consumers, retailers, manufacturers and marketers regarding:
    • The standards, criteria, and possible fair-washing behind claims of fairness and justice on products they produce, sell and/or consume, including understanding the benefits and limitations of third-party verifications.
    • The ways government and international trade policies support or inhibit a just economy.
    • Key issues, theories, initiatives, policies, and campaigns related to fair trade, family-scale farmers globally, labor justice, sweat-free apparel, and trade and agriculture policy
  • To pressure companies to: improve sourcing and labor practices by obtaining fair trade, fair labor or other appropriate certification for major supply chains; make only authentic ecosocial market claims; and support public policies that benefit small-scale producers and workers
  • To promote certification labels, membership organizations, companies, and brands that further progress toward a just economy
  • To facilitate dialogue among and between movements working towards a just economy
  • To advocate for a better world by: educating and inspiring individuals and organizations through our twice-yearly free publication; providing educational resources and workshops for consumers, retailers, and brands; and collaborating with other organizations with similar values.

Co-operative socialism: a seven point action plan

1) Co-operatives and peace – not Corporations and coercion
Convert competitive, market-based businesses into workplace co-operatives, and remodel monopoly activities as stakeholder community co-operatives: each co-op having responsible, time-limited stewardship of land and knowledge resources, shared from the commonweal, with each co-op demonstrably working according to the Statement on the Co-operative Identity of The International Co-operative Alliance.
See points 2) and 5), below, for the funding mechanism for this;

2) Predistribution not Redistribution. Distribute the created wealth from these workplace co-ops through nationally collected, co-operative corporate taxation, distributed into local, democratically-controlled, Co-operative, Community Banks and, so, make money and credit available for eco-and socially-responsible wealth creation, community development and care,

3) Global stewardship for needs and care, not private resources for profit Maximise human needs and public service provision (health, life-long education, libraries, transport and so on) on a co-operative, free-at-the-point-of-use basis, thus only retaining money as a mechanism for access to discretionary purchases,

4) Fair, guaranteed incomes for all. Introduce guaranteed fair income for all, within upper and lower limits, and with elements of automatic liveable Citizens’ Income – and so do away with the need for direct and indirect personal taxation,

5) Banking as public service – not as global warfare
Abolish money-lending and credit-creation for profit: operate banking as a community co-operative public service (see point two above),

6) End global exploitation through financial speculation
Reintroduce international exchange controls, a Tobin Tax, etc, as necessary,

7) All our sisters are our brothers: and all our brothers are our sisters

Make capital grants (not loans) to developing countries

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