Economic Democracy
The extension of democratic principles into economic institutions — ownership structures, corporate governance, and the distribution of economic power — rather than limiting democracy to political institutions alone.
Distinct from Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR): CSR asks corporations to behave well within their existing governance structure; economic democracy asks whether that structure itself should be democratic.
The main forms in practice are cooperatives (worker-owned, consumer-owned, or multi-stakeholder), mutuals, and employee ownership trusts.
Presented at a 2020 Designing Open Democracy podcast by Antony McMullen of Co-operative Bonds, in the context of the Australian banking royal commission.
Further reading
- Co-operative Bonds — Antony McMullen's consultancy
- Business Council of Co-operatives and Mutuals
- Economic democracy — Wikipedia