Is Localism Itself a Social Enterprise?

Understanding the difference between enterprise and social enterprise is simple enough; the later has a social mission central to its purpose. Kiva is an easily identifiable example of an organization whose founding principles are socially oriented. Kiva's financial model serves, not to grow or compound wealth, but to provide economic sustenance for its social mission; in this case, poverty alleviation through entrepreneurship.

The establishment of most social enterprises is predicated upon one generally unspoken, but widely held belief among social entrepreneurs; that absent a socially-centric mission, enterprise will invariably erode the larger social systems in which it is embedded. I have to concede that in many regards this belief rings true. Corporate economic globalization is widely understood as the most socially, culturally and environmentally destructive force in human history. In a world of BP and Monsanto and Walmart, how could we not, in good conscience, limit enterprise to a vehicle for social ends?

Pundits might argue that free enterprise was simply not designed to be a social medium, and as Bill McDonough might point out, one just can't overcome flawed design. I'm of the opinion that reigning in or correcting or punishing capitalism is misdirected; we're just trying to complete it.

Capitalism is incomplete because in originated in an era of unlimited resources. It grew up, subsidized by the natural world's inexhaustible capacity to bear its externalities. In a world without limits, scale was irrelevant.

Artifacts from this mindset are everywhere today. Transnational corporations pursue unrestrained economic growth while peak oil, climate change and nuclear threats are poised on the horizon. Maybe an even more disturbing artifact is that over 120 different toxins and heavy metals have been identified in the umbilical cord blood of newborn babies. At what point does the human immune system begin to fail us?

Sustainability 1.0 has effectively been about mitigating these threats from enterprise, through measures like CSR, eco-efficiency and "greening" the supply chain. But as this new generation of limiting factors comes to bear on 21st century business, the question of scale is becoming undeniable. We are entering a world where "too big to fail" is rapidly becoming, "too big to succeed;" a post-globalization era where enterprise must be scaled to address the needs of communities, localities and bioregions if business is to survive at all.

Here in Grand Rapids, Michigan we have Local First; a BALLE organization which serves as a support structure to over 600 local businesses. Local First provides these businesses a terrific branding opportunity while redeveloping social linkages in the community. To scale an authentically biomimetic economy on a local level requires social innovations like Local First.

Wendell Berry has said, "The exploiter typically serves an institution or organization; the nurturer serves land, household, community, place." For capitalism to become complete, it must become a nurturer. Appropriately scaled nurturer businesses become social enterprises by design.