On Friday, January 28, the Center for Peace & Global Citizenship and Assistant Professor of Political Science Craig Borowiak welcomed Wharton Professor Andy Lamas for a talk on “The Potential and the Problems of the Solidarity Economy.” Lamas, who is also the co-founder of the Reinvestment Fund, covered a broad range of topics from the oft-ignored difference between “income inequality” and “wealth inequality” to the difference between worker-owned and consumer-owned co-ops.
Thanks to Borowiak’s work, the concept of the solidarity economy (a cooperative, socially conscious alternative to mainstream competitive capitalism that is engaged with social justice and sustainable business practices) has garnered much interest on campus. And just last semester, he launched a web resource that not only offers links to related articles, databases and organizations across the globe, but also features an interactive Google Map, created by Cameron Scherer ’11, of local Philadelphia organizations that are working in the solidarity economy.
Lamas didn’t just give a talk on Friday; he offered a multi-media experience. So as students munched sandwiches provided by the CPGC, he showed YouTube videos to illustrate the idea of ideaology, and hosted a thoughtful, lively Q&A session. He also encouraged Haverford students concerned with wealth and equality to work to make this new solidarity economy available to and scalable for the poor and working classes.
Missed this event? Sign up for our “Events eNewsletter” to stay up-to-date on the latest on-campus happenings, such as the March 23 Symposium on Oral History and Human Rights Issues, which will include a lunch roundtable at 12:00 and a reading from recent Voice of Witness books on Zimbabwe and Burma at 4:30. Details can be found here.