What We Do
For more than three decades, the New Economics Foundation’s mission has been to transform the economy so it works for people and the planet. We work with people igniting change from a grassroots level and combine this with rigorous research to fight for change at the top.
Working at the heart of a growing ecosystem of organisations and institutions, we aim to ensure Britain will have a new economy by 2040 guided by six new economy principles:
- A thriving and healthy environment at the core of the new system: living within environmental limits and preventing further climate breakdown is a core purpose of our economic model;
- Better and more equal living standards: the basics for a decent quality of life (living income, housing, health, social care, education and childcare) are guaranteed for all and provided collectively, and income and wealth inequality are reduced with improvements in wellbeing, regardless of class, race or gender;
- Greater common and co-operative ownership: common ownership of public goods, essential infrastructure and services as the norm, with more businesses, assets and technologies in co-operative, mutual or employee ownership;
- Progressive businesses: businesses are incentivised to act for the long term and public good, with a much greater focus on social and environmental responsibility and strong voice and power for workers built into their business models; a financial sector that works in the interests of people and planet;
- Decentralised, active state: an active and enabling partner state that is significantly decentralised with strong local institutions that are rooted in and accountable to the communities they serve;
- Empowered and active communities: citizens are engaged in democracy and economy, with greater power to act collectively and make decisions within their communities, and the country, to improve their lives.
NEF has pioneered ideas and practices including co-production, local money flow analysis, social return on investment, ethical investment and social auditing. We have given birth to a range of organisations to carry on our work, including the Jubilee 2000 Debt Campaign, the Ethical Trading Initiative, AccountAbility, Time Banking UK, the Community Development Finance Association and the New Economy Organisers Network.
Find more details here: https://neweconomics.org/section/publications and here: https://neweconomics.org/section/campaigns
Our current programmes of work are focused on three missions to address the most pressing issues we face today while moving the economic system closer to our 2040 goals:
A New Social Settlement – ensuring we all have the basics of a decent quality of life.
A Green New Deal – cutting carbon emissions, boosting nature and creating good jobs.
Democratic Economy – Giving us an equal stake in the places where we live and work.
Examples include:
Incomes – securing adoption of Living Income policies and establishing social security reform as a mechanism for addressing the cost of living crisis.
Universal services – building support for universal provision of services such as social care and childcare.
Housing – addressing the housing crisis through Homes For Us, our grassroots campaign to build 3 million new social homes.
Transition to a green economy – how to fund net zero, ensuring the transition benefits the least well off in society and communication strategies to establish the green transition as a positive, not a cost.
Local transformation – work with community groups and local government to make practical improvements to local economies while pushing for greater devolution.