What kinds of change are possible or desirable in the face of an imminent climate crisis? Can climate change be solved with economic system change - or are we too late for that? How deep are the trade-offs between values like democracy, efficiency, equity and sustainability? All these questions are discussed in this episode of PEP Talk. Support the show Website: https://www.ParticipatoryEconomy.org YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/c/ParticipatoryEconomy Twitter: https://twitter.com/pareconomy Fa...
Apr 23, 2025•46 min•Season 1Ep. 23
The popular What’s Left of Philosophy podcast reviewed the post-capitalist model of a Participatory Economy in a recent episode. What did they think? What did they get right? What did they miss? Mitchell, Robin and Antti respond. Their original podcast episode: 76 | For and Against Participatory Planning & Economics https://pod.link/1544487624/episode/31482463f30a531308e53796a8e75250 What’s Left of Philosophy podcast is described as a theory podcast from the left. Four friends discuss philos...
Feb 14, 2024•50 min•Season 1Ep. 22
It’s an age-old question: reform or revolution? Or, to put it another way, can welfare states be a laboratory for social change? in this episode of PEP talk we discuss the Meidner plan in Sweden in the 1970s, the Finnish welfare state and any lessons we can draw for establishing a full scale Participatory Economy. Support the show Website: https://www.ParticipatoryEconomy.org YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/c/ParticipatoryEconomy Twitter: https://twitter.com/pareconomy Facebook: https://www.fac...
Dec 06, 2023•34 min•Season 1Ep. 21
Does climate change mean the end of economic growth? How is value even measured and what does the term ‘economic throughput’ mean? Do we need to de-growth or a steady state economy? Do we need system change and to replace capitalism in order to prevent cataclysmic climate change? All these questions are discussed in this episode of PEP Talk. Support the show Website: https://www.ParticipatoryEconomy.org YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/c/ParticipatoryEconomy Twitter: https://twitter.com/parecono...
Nov 22, 2023•44 min•Season 1Ep. 20
Second of a two-part episode recorded in London, UK. Mitchell interviews Robin Hahnel about a variety of different topics relating to a Participatory Economy. Support the show Website: https://www.ParticipatoryEconomy.org YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/c/ParticipatoryEconomy Twitter: https://twitter.com/pareconomy Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ParticipatoryEconomy Support Us: https://www.paypal.com/donate/…...
Sep 13, 2023•58 min•Season 1Ep. 19
First of a two-part episode recorded in London, UK. Mitchell interviews Robin Hahnel about a variety of different topics relating to a Participatory Economy. Support the show Website: https://www.ParticipatoryEconomy.org YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/c/ParticipatoryEconomy Twitter: https://twitter.com/pareconomy Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ParticipatoryEconomy Support Us: https://www.paypal.com/donate/…...
Aug 30, 2023•58 min•Ep. 18
PEP Talk host Mitchell interviews games designer Michael Hicks about his new game ‘Dissent on Mars’, where players can choose and experiment with the economic system they want for their colony on planet Mars. Players can choose between capitalism, central planning and democratic planning, which is based on and inspired by the Participatory Economy model. Wishlist Now on Steam: https://store.steampowered.com/app/2138560/ Official Website: https://dissentonmars.com Support the show Website: https:...
Aug 16, 2023•32 min•Ep. 17
Why do we need prices in an economy and how are they generated differently in a Participatory Economy compared to a Capitalist Economy? This episode of PEP Talk is all about prices. What are “indicative prices'' in the annual participatory planning procedure? What are opportunity costs, social costs and “externalities”? What’s the problem with prices generated in capitalist economies and how are they more accurate in a Participatory Economy? Support the show Website: https://www.ParticipatoryEco...
Aug 02, 2023•37 min•Ep. 16
Karl Marx is the most cited author in the world. But what would Marx think of our post-capitalist vision of a Participatory Economy? In this episode Robin and Mitchell look at what Marxism is and how Marx relates to a Participatory Economy, an economy where workers self-manage their workplaces and keep the fruits of their labour. Support the show Website: https://www.ParticipatoryEconomy.org YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/c/ParticipatoryEconomy Twitter: https://twitter.com/pareconomy Facebook:...
Apr 19, 2023•33 min•Ep. 15
Can a post-Capitalist socialist Economy exist without numbers? There are those who think it can. In this episode Mitchell, Robin and Antti are joined by accountant Anders Sandström (Author of Anarchist accounting) to discuss the topic of numbers in a socialist economy. Do we need numbers to measure the true social costs and opportunity costs of goods and services? Can everything be quantified, are there some things that simply can’t? Or are we doomed as Mark Twain once said to know ‘The Price of...
Apr 05, 2023•37 min•Ep. 14
Mitchell and Antti talk with Sean Michael Wilson about his graphic novel about a Participatory Economy, called “PareComic: The Story of Michael Albert and Participatory Economics”. 2023 marks the 10th anniversary of PareComic. What inspired him to write it? How has it faired? And what have been people’s reactions to it? Introduction by Noam Chomsky: “Parecomic is a graphic novel about something that affects us all: the system we live in—what’s wrong with it, and how we might be able change it fo...
Mar 22, 2023•46 min•Ep. 13
In terms of strategy, how can we move towards a Participatory Economy? Robin, Mitchell and Antti discuss strategy to move towards a post-capitalist economy that’s free, greener and fairer, we call a Participatory Economy. What do you think the best strategy or the best strategies are? leave a comment below and let us know. Support the show Website: https://www.ParticipatoryEconomy.org YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/c/ParticipatoryEconomy Twitter: https://twitter.com/pareconomy Facebook: https:...
Mar 08, 2023•45 min•Ep. 12
The book A Participatory Economy (AK Press, Hahnel) was released in October 2022. It presents a coherent alternative to capitalism. Thomas Piketty describes it as: “ A key contribution to the on-going debate on democratic and participatory socialism. A must read !” This is the final part of a three-part interview with the author, economist and activist, Robin Hahnel, discussing the final chapters of his book on long-term participatory planning, including investment, development planning and the ...
Dec 14, 2022•48 min•Ep. 11
The book A Participatory Economy (AK Press, Hahnel) was released in October 2022. It presents a coherent alternative to capitalism. Thomas Piketty describes it as: “ A key contribution to the on-going debate on democratic and participatory socialism. A must read !” This is part two of a three part interview with the author, economist and activist, Robin Hahnel, discussing the middle third of the book on work and income, balanced jobs, annual planning, externalities and reproductive labour. The b...
Nov 30, 2022•1 hr 3 min•Ep. 10
The book A Participatory Economy (AK Press, Hahnel) was released in October 2022. It presents a coherent alternative to capitalism. Thomas Piketty describes it as: “ A key contribution to the on-going debate on democratic and participatory socialism. A must read !” This is part one of a three part interview with the author, economist and activist, Robin Hahnel, discussing the first chapters in the book on his motivation for writing the book, clarifying the goals of a desirable economy and why vi...
Nov 16, 2022•36 min•Ep. 9
Project Cybersyn, or ‘Cyber Socialism’, was an early attempt at democratic planning in Chile from 1971 to 1973 during the Salvador Allende government. The main goal was to use computers to do allocation of resources and to devolve decision-making power within industries to workplaces. How does Project Cybersyn relate to a Participatory Economy, and what lessons can we learn? Support the show Website: https://www.ParticipatoryEconomy.org YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/c/ParticipatoryEconomy Twi...
Nov 02, 2022•40 min•Ep. 8
What we now call a Participatory Economy has gone through various names over the years. Some call the post-capitalist system ‘Parecon’ for short, others ‘Participatory Economics’. What’s the history of these names, which are better or worse, and why does a name even matter? Support the show Website: https://www.ParticipatoryEconomy.org YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/c/ParticipatoryEconomy Twitter: https://twitter.com/pareconomy Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ParticipatoryEconomy Support Us...
Oct 19, 2022•36 min•Ep. 7
Any future socialist economy, like a Participatory Economy, would still need to do trade with other countries. By what rules would a Participatory Economy engage in trade and investment with other capitalist or non-capitalist economies? How would trade be organised in a way that is consistent with our values of equity, self-management, solidarity and ecological sustainability? Support the show Website: https://www.ParticipatoryEconomy.org YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/c/ParticipatoryEconomy T...
Oct 05, 2022•43 min•Ep. 6
Is a Participatory Economy really practical or is it just a pipe dream? Can citizens through their workers’ councils and neighbourhood councils really cooperate in annual planning to coordinate their activities themselves, without any markets, or without central planning? Support the show Website: https://www.ParticipatoryEconomy.org YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/c/ParticipatoryEconomy Twitter: https://twitter.com/pareconomy Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ParticipatoryEconomy Support Us: ...
Sep 21, 2022•47 min•Ep. 5
Many socialists are cautious about developing too detailed visions of a post-capitalist system and prefer to leave it to future citizens to work out. Is the Participatory Economy model a blueprint? Does it go into too much detail about things that we can’t yet know about? Support the show Website: https://www.ParticipatoryEconomy.org YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/c/ParticipatoryEconomy Twitter: https://twitter.com/pareconomy Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ParticipatoryEconomy Support Us: ...
Sep 07, 2022•22 min•Ep. 4
What would an alternative to capitalism actually look like? A Participatory Economy (also known as Parecon) is a model for a new democratic, fair and green economic system based on democratic planning of the productive commons by self-managing workplaces and neighbourhoods. In this podcast, co-creator and economist, Robin Hahnel, is joined by fellow advocates Mitchell Szczepanczyk and Antti Jauhiainen to discuss questions and topics relating to a Participatory Economy, post-capitalism and how we...
Aug 04, 2022•1 min0
Why do we need to think about vision for a postcapitalist economy? What are the benefits of thinking through how a new economic system might work, and what are the possible drawbacks of doing so? Support the show Website: https://www.ParticipatoryEconomy.org YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/c/ParticipatoryEconomy Twitter: https://twitter.com/pareconomy Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ParticipatoryEconomy Support Us: https://www.paypal.com/donate/…...
Aug 04, 2022•39 min•Season 1Ep. 3
What is the story behind the creation of a Participatory Economy? Robin Hahnel, talks about his student days and how he came to work alongside fellow co-creator Michael Albert to devise the Participatory Economy post-captialist economic model. Robin is also joined by other Participatory Economy supporters who talk about some of the reasons why they became interested in the model and why they devote time to promote it. Support the show Website: https://www.ParticipatoryEconomy.org YouTube: https:...
Aug 04, 2022•31 min•Season 1Ep. 2
A Participatory Economy (sometimes known as ‘Parecon’) is a model for a new democratic, fair and green economic system. What are its goals and key features? Robin Hahnel, co-creator of the model, introduces a basic overview of a Participatory Economy. Support the show Website: https://www.ParticipatoryEconomy.org YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/c/ParticipatoryEconomy Twitter: https://twitter.com/pareconomy Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ParticipatoryEconomy Support Us: https://www.paypal.co...
Aug 04, 2022•38 min•Season 1Ep. 1
