Moving away from cities
Tomas Diez, Executive Director of Fab City Foundation, engages in a thought-provoking conversation with Leonora Grcheva, Cities & Regions Lead at the Doughnut Economics Action Lab (DEAL), exploring the rich intersection between Doughnut Economics and the Fab City movement.
In his opening remarks, Tomas emphasised the shortcomings of our traditional profit-driven production model economy, which often disregards critical issues like climate change and systemic challenges, perpetuating an unjust and unsustainable relationship between humans and the environment.
Shifting towards transformative practices
Cities and communities worldwide are actively moving away from this outdated paradigm, embracing new transformative practices advocated by movements like the Fab City Global Initiative, Doughnut Economics Action Lab, and the Fab Lab Network.
On April 15th, Tomas hosted a roundtable discussion featuring urban planner, researcher, and participation practitioner Leonora Grcheva. During this conversation, Leonora delved into the underlying principles of the Doughnut Economics Action Lab (DEAL), which aims to shape new 21st-century economies prioritising safety and equity for all.
We are excited to share highlights from our engaging dialogue with Leonora in this blog post, offering valuable insights into innovative approaches to economic development.
Introducing the Doughnut Economics and rethinking economic growth metrics
“We should not aim to grow whether or not we thrive, but thrive whether or not we grow” — Kate Raworth
Leonora introduced the core principles of Doughnut Economics, stemming from Kate Raworth’s book ‘Doughnut Economics: Seven Ways to Think Like a 21st-Century Economist’. This approach advocates the transition from outdated 20th-century economic paradigms by embracing new perspectives outlined in the book.
Discussing the first principle, Leonora emphasised the need to reconsider how we measure and value economic growth. She highlighted that conventional metrics like GDP growth fail to adequately gauge success for industries, communities, cities, countries, and regions. This outdated economic measurement framework does not address the complex social and ecological challenges of the 21st century. The vision of doughnut economics aims to establish a new paradigm where both human well-being and planetary health are prioritised and balanced.
Shifting from the old ways of thinking and living
Leonora further emphasised the importance of recognising that humans are capable of sharing and caring, countering the notion of innate selfishness often assumed in economic models. She stressed that pursuing growth does not lead to equitable outcomes. Instead, cities should adopt distributive designs that share value and opportunity broadly, fostering regeneration.
To explain the concept of generative design, Leonora posed three critical questions that should be considered from the onset of the design process: how much can we get away with? How much do we have to do? How much can we possibly do?
Moreover, Leonora cautioned against narrowing the focus solely on circular economies, highlighting that while environmental impacts and material circulation are crucial, the social dimensions must also be integrated into the conversation. This underscores the need for a holistic approach that integrates social and environmental considerations.
From concepts to actions
DEAL, co-founded by Kate Raworth, is driving practical implementation of Doughnut Economics principles across cities worldwide. This initiative offers open source tools, resources, and support networks for practitioners committed to reshaping urban development.
In this conversation, Leonora Grcheva delves into DEAL’s unrolled doughnut, a core tool designed to support practitioners using Doughnut Economic principles. She discusses the four lenses that guide practical applications of the unrolled doughnut in real-world contexts.
Watch the full conversation to discover how Doughnut Economics is reshaping cities and communities!
Question from a participant — Mohammed, Saudi Arabia
The Doughnut Economics book was the reason I joined the MDDI program, and I enjoyed it even before enrolling.
With my background in finance and specialisation in business development and innovation, I focus on creating and developing new value propositions and companies within the region. Considering that small and medium enterprises (SMEs) are integral to our ecosystem, they can be viewed as the ‘neighbourhood’ within the scale of the Doughnut Economics model.
My question is: Are there tools available for corporations and organisations that can assist them in achieving a balance within ecological and social boundaries? I believe that certain terminologies and key performance indicators (KPIs) would naturally evolve due to the nature of their application. Implementing such tools could be very beneficial, not only for individual organisations but also for moving towards the ‘right’ side of the Doughnut Economics model at a systemic level, potentially impacting entire countries.
The second and final question is, I would like to understand successful tactics that cities can use to move towards the ‘right’ side of the Doughnut Economics model. Whether in the US or any part of the world, what kinds of tactics and policies would be effective at the neighbourhood, family, or city level to shift towards the ‘right’ side of the Doughnut Economics model? I am particularly interested in learning about any experiences at the organisational level regarding tactics and policies used to align with the principles of Doughnut Economics. Thank you.
Answer — Leonora Grcheva, DEAL
Thank you, Mohammed. I want to touch on the business side of things briefly, although it’s not my area of expertise. If you’re in the master’s program, you’ll soon hear from my colleague Erinch, our Business and Enterprise Lead, who will provide a comprehensive perspective on this topic. At the core of Doughnut Economics’ approach to business is a shift away from solely focusing on measuring the impact of businesses through social and ecological indicators. Instead, the focus is inward, examining how businesses and enterprises are designed across what we call the five design layers: purpose, networks, governance mechanisms, ownership structures, and financing models.
The idea is that unlocking the capacity of businesses and organisations to do impactful work within the safe and just space of the doughnut can be achieved through different approaches to designing governance, finance, and ownership structures. Unfortunately, many of the current organisational designs of businesses, companies, and corporations hinder this progress by their very nature.
I’ll refrain from going further into this topic as it’s outside my expertise, but I’ve noticed that someone in the chat has already shared useful links to core business tools and videos from my colleague.
Regarding practices and tactics, I’ve begun sharing some examples today, but there are numerous practical instances worldwide. Fab Labs, for instance, demonstrate what it looks like to put Doughnut Economics into practice. Additionally, many policies, projects, and practices — though unrelated to us or Doughnut Economics — adhere to the principles in action.
Specifically, I’ve observed the adoption of this holistic framework by local governments to design new compasses, progress indicators, and collaborative workshops internally and externally. This approach addresses a fundamental limitation of local governments: they are often organised based on outdated 20th-century ideas, operating in silos across sectors like environment, health, and transport, with limited collaboration. The holistic framework of Doughnut Economics is overcoming these obstacles, paving the way for numerous existing projects to thrive.
The Fab City Foundation offers numerous opportunities for engaging with thought leaders. Through our masters program, Master in Design for Distributed Innovation (MDDI), individuals and organisations can benefit from a range of online events and workshops designed to facilitate ongoing conversations and knowledge sharing.
