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The world of opportunities that we live in requires revolutionary thinking
paulschapman
Posts: 35,536 Forum Member
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http://bigthink.com/design-for-good/should-businesses-make-money-from-poor-people
read about a number of projects which work by allowing those locally to produce products (cheaper) meaning that their neighbours also can afford them, improve productivity.
In a way some of the microfinancing markets work the same way - locals effectively lending each other money - less bad debts because in many cases it is your neighbour who is lending you the money.
see http://www.smartermoney.nl/?p=73
Taking the time to listen to the needs of the poor, Polak came up with a solution - increase the farmers' income by reducing the cost they paid for tools and equipment, and help improve their farming practices through better access to information. To achieve this his company started developing radically affordable products for the farmers' needs - an $8 treadle pump, compared to a $500 diesel pump, a $25 artificial knee, a $400 hospital lamp for treating neo-natal jaundice, instead of a $4,000 one, a $250 microscope to help diagnose malaria and tuberculosis, instead of a $1000 one.
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rather than simply giving out the treadle pumps (in the way a charity organization would), Polak's company trained local businesses to produce them, village dealers to sell them and well drillers to install them, thus recruiting about 70 manufacturers, 2,000 to 3,000 dealers and 3,000 well drillers, all of whom earned a living.
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read about a number of projects which work by allowing those locally to produce products (cheaper) meaning that their neighbours also can afford them, improve productivity.
In a way some of the microfinancing markets work the same way - locals effectively lending each other money - less bad debts because in many cases it is your neighbour who is lending you the money.
see http://www.smartermoney.nl/?p=73
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Interesting and worthwhile, best of luck to them, but it won't cause a revolution.
Think of Britain in the nineteenth century. There were bottom up enterprises designed to empower the poor, like the Co-op, credit unions, building societies and more. Some thought that would bring about a radically different society, and as we know, they didn't. Did some good, but no revolution.
Eh whats in it for the millionaires.
These are the millionaires who have made enough to set them up for life and are now looking for challenging things to do (usually engineers and technologists), they aren't the millionaires who work for banks and made their money doing very little of any real worth.
I wouldn't say that. Co-ops led to people owning property. People who worked the land of a nobleman couldn't dream of owning the land, so dire were their circumstances. If enough trust could be fostered between a hundred individuals, those hundred individuals could each own a home.
Co-ops led to the revolution of homeownership for peasants.