Following the last blog about my work on banking systems change in Scotland, it’s been a good ol’ whirlwind. Between trying to pin down my full first draft (nearly there!), meet with colleagues about the on-going strategy around the SNIB process, looking after my wee boy, preparing for some freelance work on green finance and … Continue reading
Latest Entries
The Scottish National Investment Bank is Announced
In August 2015 I began a three month placement with Friends of the Earth Scotland (supported by the ESRC), who have been working on the intersection of finance and the economy in Scotland. I initially reached out to Common Weal, a leading think tank in Scotland who have been doing stellar work on the economy, … Continue reading
We cant afford NOT to…
I wrote this over at Bright Green about the election. 30,000 excess deaths a year: what this election is really about Continue reading
Banking for the Common Good
Earlier this year I launched a report I authored with Friends of the Earth Scotland, Common Weal, New Economics Foundation and Move Your Money in the Scottish Parliament. The report calls for ambitious whole-scale reform of the Scottish banking sector by creating a Scottish National Investment Bank and a network of locally controlled “People’s Banks” … Continue reading
The Monster behind Debt and Deficit: The Great Vampire Squid.
Utterly dismayed by the Coalition Government’s attempt to put into law the obligation to reduce the structural deficit by 2017-18, I thought I would repost the BBC’s excellent explanation of the difference between all the types of debt in the UK that the politicians talk about. http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-25944653 Basically, “the debt” is the running total of … Continue reading
Second Article Published – The Democracy Project Book Review
Yes, it’s about David Graeber, again. Yes, he’s a bit of an inspiration, but I am not obsessed, this one came to me. I got asked to review his book for a Journal because I do work in that area and I clearly loved Debt, the First 5,000 years. This is about his book “The … Continue reading
Transforming Finance Film
Watch the Finance Innovation Lab’s film. It’s a great introduction to the problems of finance and banking and a taster of some of the relatively easy things that we could be doing right now to make the financial system working better for people and planet. There are certainly more radical options too, but we need … Continue reading
The problem…in quotes…
The very character of world order, which served elites very well during the modernizing and colonizing project initially in Europe, is now dysfunctional so far as serving fundamental human needs is concerned. Richard Faulk (2010) “Climate Change and the Threat of Nuclear Weapons” Globalizations Vol 7:1&2 The failure of the previous set of ideas, institutions, … Continue reading
Monty Python Banker Sketch
A video on Monty Python’s view of the potential for socially useful banking. Continue reading
David Graeber Debt: the first 5,000 years
In short – one of the best books I have read. Well written, intriguing, well researched, rich and colourful and important. Highly recommend. Warning This is a long review, my future ones will be shorter, but I just found so much in this book to talk about, and I will keep coming back to this … Continue reading
Political Economy 