A New Economic Culture:
the Culture of Giving

The Economy of Communion is a global project involving a network of entrepreneurs, academics and ordinary citizens in building an economy that puts the human person at the centre. The heart of the project involves over 800 businesses worldwide who participate in a type of economic action that is imbued with a 'culture of giving' and communion.

Every concept of economic life presupposes a particular culture, a certain vision of the world and a perspective on the human person. The entrepreneurs who participate in the Economy of Communion seek to spread a 'culture of giving' within their businesses and amongst their contemporaries, creating a groundswell for a new style of economic action that puts the person first, while operating within the heart of the market economy. At the core of the venture is the sharing of profits in favour of the poor in order to spread this culture of giving.

The Origins

The Economy of Communion began in Brazil in 1991. It came about during a visit that Chiara Lubich, the foundress of the Focolare Movement, made to the city of Sao Paolo. While there she was struck by the stark contrast between poverty and wealth. She recognized that the efforts of the Focolare Movement, which had been at the forefront of working with the poor in the shanty towns of the city, were no longer enough. There was a need for a new economic culture in order to build a new model for economic action. She appealed to the generosity and ingenuity of the Brazilian people to build this new culture founded on a new economic framework that respects and enhances the human person.

The Concept

The commercial enterprises that participate in the Economy of Communion project operate within the market economy. They operate like any other commercial concern but at the same time, they attempt to propose something different. For them, the true meaning of all economic activities lies not just in the economic transactions per se, but in transforming commercial life into a 'meeting place' in the deepest sense of the word: a place of communion. Commercial activity becomes a point of encounter between those who have economic means and those who do not; there's a communion created between all those who are engaged in the economic process. All can become 'beneficiaries,' in the sense that even those without economic means become dynamic members in the venture; stating their needs but also taking the initiative to live the new culture of giving.

Some examples

The businesses that participate in the Economy of Communion project have a diverse profile. They range from iron and steel foundries, financial institutions, management consultancies, language and learning centres to local shops. In Brazil, for example, a company called Prodiet Pharmaceutics has expanded its workforce and increased its turnover by 50% in the last few years. It has now opened a subsidiary company along with six other Economy of Communion concerns in a purpose built 'model' industrial park on the outskirts of Sao Paolo. There is a bank in the Philippines called Kabayan, where the majority of the shareholders partake in the Economy of Communion model. The bank, which is assisted by a consultancy firm in the venture, has moved from being 123rd to the 3rd largest rural bank in the Philippines in terms of deposits. It has opened eight branches with 150 partners. It survived the Asian financial crisis of 1998 due to the trust created within and around the business.

Over time these businesses have developed in stature and expertise, forming a global network of linked commercial enterprises stretching from Cameroon (West Africa) to Santiago (Chile) and from New York to Jerusalem.

Solidar Capital is a venture capital development fund set up by twenty three German entrepreneurs. Its aim is the promotion and growth of new productive activities in Eastern European countries, the Middle East and Latin America. There are many other examples in Europe; for example, there is the International learning company called, Language and Learning International based in Ireland.