Schumacher Institute

Description

The Schumacher Institute is a think tank. It believes that our planet faces complex social, economic and environmental crises that defy simple solutions, however, the institute is optimistic that positive changes can be made. It applies systems thinking to explore and test sustainable options, which acknowledge the complexity of our world. The Schumacher Institute sees social justice as integral to sustainability and look for answers that are fair to all, within the limits the Earth can sustain. The research objective for the institute is to discover what it means to make complex systems sustainable in the long term and in harmony with the natural world. It examines, assesses, and experiments with ways to change human activity towards this difficult and all-encompassing concept with the simple aim of “building enduring and appropriate scale systems where people matter”. The institute adds an independent voice, for the sustainability movement, to local, national, and global policy debates that are dominated by partisan interests. Its independence comes from sticking to its theoretical foundation, which is grounded in the work of Schumacher. This allows thinking to go beyond the normal, to consider radical approaches and to address taboo subjects. It seeks to reconcile differences by moving the debate into a whole system, long-term perspective.

Offers funding

Yes, this infrastructure provides funding in the following categories:

Founding year

2014

Contact details

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Categorisation

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Partner Universities

University of Bristol

University of the West of England, Bristol