Agenda, Blog & Podcasts

“I lived with a negative image of both communism and capitalism, but through a lecture by Economy Transformers, I now understand that a very beautiful alternative can still be created that is humane. The lecture was very easy to follow because Jac explains in such a way that anyone can understand it, while still giving you profound insights. It stimulates you to work for a better world in your own way and I now understand better why the current system is set up the way it is, not serving people or the Earth, but we can change that together. It was a very interesting lecture for both thinkers and doers.”

Living together might be the best choice I ever made! Why? Because this programme offers me inspiration and tools for doing business, working and living (together) in an innovative way - appropriate to the times and questions I experience. Because Jac and Damaris are two good and fun teachers who know how to convey their knowledge and expertise, while at the same time leaving room for whatever comes up in me or the group. Because the fellow students, each with their own unique life story, are united here, around the same questions. Because we come together in a beautiful location, away from city and crowds, where the water flows steadily by and the old tower bell rings out every hour, outside - so it feels then - of time and space. It is befriending a tree, recognising straights and curves in my daily life and feeling the concepts of ‘free’, ‘equal’ and ‘together’ come alive in me. In short, it is a vision of the future realised once a month in this meeting, learning and playing place!

We had been thinking about it for a while, Leonie and I: it's not right for us to build up capital through our private limited companies while all our colleagues do the work together. Squarewise grew and you feel that capital can then start to take a toll on mutual cohesion and commonality. So we made Squarewise steward-owned and self-managing. And then we met Economy Transformers and everything fell together in systemic and social perspective. The role Economy Transformers attributes to capital is pure and inspiring and helps us take the next steps. Sometimes capital is needed to create. We are in a sector where capital needs and risk are relatively low, while earning power is high. Therefore, we also want to stop holding onto our capital and let it flow to places where it cannot be earned as a matter of course, such as healthcare, education, the arts and R&D. Entrepreneurship is creation. The experience from that is the real reward of entrepreneurship

I am not crazy, I am an Economy Transformer.

Everything necessary for human life comes about through an interplay of the factors of production, land, labour and capital. Whether - and to what extent - people have access to resources, food and wealth is irrevocably determined by how a society organises the exchange and allocation of land, labour and capital. (...) The organisation of the exchange and allocation of land, labour and capital is thus the foundation of any society.

I came to hear all about the Share Society. I learnt all kinds of things about myself, my motivations, my value. Confronting and purifying at the same time.

This is what I wish for everyone looking for new organising!

Through Economy Transformers, I discovered that something I learned from a young age does not have to be true, namely that a business has an owner. The thought exercise of what it would mean if a company “belongs to itself” and the entrepreneur undertakes in complete freedom gave me a different perspective on business. How would we then deal with resources, climate, income inequality, labour and the race of cheap, cheaper, cheapest? Why does everything always have to be cheaper in the first place? Why are we not willing (anymore) to pay a reasonable price for labour? Where is it actually going with the one economic factor that determines everything: economic growth? Where does this mantra lead? What are we actually pursuing? When have we reached the finish line? Jac taught me how money works, where it comes from, what economics actually is. By going back to basics, I gained a clear insight into why the current system doesn't work (anymore). But also insight into how things can be done differently. I have resolved to experiment with new ways of doing business, not with, but alongside the current system. In this way, I want to make my contribution to a more sustainable world.

Jac's extensive knowledge of why money came into being, his good explanation of it and how it affects today's society and how it affects many people's personal lives, has made me more relaxed about money and more confident about doing work and receiving the right rewards.

As a wonderful, authentic, life-like training where personal development from connection to society is central. I like the way the training and the trainers themselves are also allowed to discover and grow, that not everything is fixed, that you are taken seriously, that you are part of the training. So not just coming to fetch, but also to bring. It's a bit unconventional, but it feels so right.

I have just finished reading Jac's book.......which I don't really say well because I will probably pick it up many more times. I found it a deeply fulfilling experience every time I read and re-read it....because yes not everything goes in at once and needs a lot of repetition to actually sink in. But it resonates SO deeply within me and feels so true. All my life I have felt so many times that none of it makes sense...reading Damaris book and now Jac's, I feel seen and heard as it were. Both books are for me complementary and deepening to each other and to each other. They strengthen and support me and offer the practical tools that help me in my contribution to the human and earth-worthy society. Thank you very much for all your work!