Do you know the Economy for the Common Good? This movement was founded in 2010 by the Austrian journalist Christian Felber with members and followers all over the world.
Instead of economic growth and markets, the aims are solidarity, cooperation, honesty, appreciation and trust. Money should serve the people and not vice versa.
The intention of the Economy for the Common Good is that companies support each other instead of competing with each other. The sustainable investing of profit, fair cooperation with suppliers and the opportunities for participation of the employees are the company’s aims which take priority over the profit. With the help of a point system companies become more transparent and their products can be compared better to each other. Every company thinks about its personal goals: These include for example transparent handling of corporate profits, checking the products of ecological sustainability and the satisfaction and opportunities for participation of the employees.
Landgut Stober in the Havelland: meaningfulness instead of maximizing profit
The company Landgut Stober is leading by example: The company – Landgut Stober – in Groß-Behnitz that has been an agricultural model estate in terms of social responsibility since 1866, has been part of the Economy for Common Good since 2018 and achieved with 690 points the highest new entry in Common Good Certification. The conference hotel of the owner Michael Stober is characterized by exemplary action in the interests of society. You wonder how to do that? Summarized very briefly: Just the last and remaining part of the company’s profits belongs to the owner. The employees receive higher salaries and social benefits, a fixed portion of the profits is donated to charitable institutions and reinvested and another part is used for special loan repayments.
For further reading: Special places for a special day
Biohotel Grafenast: Mankind and nature in the center of action
Sustainable management is the aim and main goal of this hotel, Biohotel Grafenast, too: This can be seen from the fact that it has set itself the goal to improve the relationship management with suppliers, to make the balance sheet results more transparent even for guests and to integrate the operating environment into the process of the Common Good balance sheet. People and nature are top priority to the founding family: In cooperation with two other Tyrolean bio-hotels they have produced after more than 80 hours of analysis and work their first Common Good report for the business year 2015/2016 and have evaluated the hotel – entirely voluntarily and without profit.
Read more: Sustainability pioneers: Peter Unterlechner from Biohotel Grafenast
Bio Kinder- und Familienhotel Gut Nisdorf: Sustainability as the primary goal
“Everything is questioned. Is what I buy and do fair, ecologically sound and sustainable?”, describes Jürg Gloor and Sabine Stange, the owners of Gut Nisdorf, the procedure for preparing the balance sheet. This can be seen from the fact that they buy from companies that also have an ECG balance sheet and that they renounce a product and the implementation of a project if there is no sustainable solution for that. Of course, the financial aspect is secondary. Solidarity and social action have priority over the economy :-).
For further reading: A hotel for everyone: Arrive and unwind at Gut Nisdorf
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A central concern of the Economy for the Common Good ( ECG ) is to end the confusion between means and ends in our economic system. Money and capital should no longer be the end or the goal of economic activity, but rather the means to reach a higher goal, namely to improve the common good. This is by no means a new concept. The Greek philosopher Aristotle differentiated between “oikonomia,” the art of sustainably managing the house” (economy for the common good) and “chrematistike,” the art of making money (capitalism). In his concept of “oikonomia,” money only serves as a means. In “chrematistike,” as in capitalism, money and profit maximization become the bottom line. In an Economy for the Common Good, improving the well-being of everyone and of nature is the bottom line.
A central concern of the Economy for the Common Good ( ECG ) is to end the confusion between means and ends in our economic system. Money and capital should no longer be the end or the goal of economic activity, but rather the means to reach a higher goal, namely to improve the common good. This is by no means a new concept. The Greek philosopher Aristotle differentiated between “oikonomia,” the art of sustainably managing the house” (economy for the common good) and “chrematistike,” the art of making money (capitalism). In his concept of “oikonomia,” money only serves as a means. In “chrematistike,” as in capitalism, money and profit maximization become the bottom line. In an Economy for the Common Good, improving the well-being of everyone and of nature is the bottom line.