corvin's blog

So much for the new era of social economy and social entrepreneurship. NGOs and foundations are downsizing left and right. A prominent social change event attended by social entrepreneurs and social innovators has had to be postponed because of the economic crisis.

Acting in solidarity means supporting people in their struggle: being there for them. Sometimes, though, it feels like we're not really present when we're being there: we could have been there, or we could as easily have been somewhere else. Or, we think we're present, but others perceive us, actually, as being quite distant. There's a cookie-cutter quality to a lot of solidarity - today it's Palestine, tomorrow it's Six Nations - that often bothers me. Can you begin to build a full and equal relationship without learning what makes each of us, as individuals or collectives, what we are?

The other day I picked up a book at the place where I sometimes work: Global Profit and Global Justice: Using Your Money to Change the World. It's about socially responsible investing and using your consumer power to change the world. It's the kind of thing I run into and hear a lot of among professional progressives.