Schumacher Center for New Economics

The Schumacher Center for New Economics is a US-based nonprofit organization based in Great Barrington, Massachusetts. In 2012, the legacy programs of the then E.F. Schumacher Society were reorganized as the Schumacher Center for New Economics. The other work of the original society was continued under the name New Economics Institute, which later became the New Economy Coalition. The E.F. Schumacher Society was founded in 1980 by Robert Swann and Susan Witt.
The Schumacher Center combines theoretical research with practical application at the local, regional, national, and international levels—deliberately designing transformative systems and communicating clearly the principles that guide them. The Schumacher Center for a New Economics is a 501(c)3 tax-exempt organization.
Schumacher Library
Housed in a 2,000 square foot building on the side of Jug End Mountain in the Berkshire region of Massachusetts, this research library includes the books and papers of E.F. Schumacher and other new economists as well as collections on worker ownership, community supported agriculture, local currencies, the commons, and appropriate technology. Its catalogue is searchable online.
BerkShares
The BerkShares program seeks to foster collaboration among producers, retail businesses, non-profit organizations, service providers and consumers. It is an attempt to strengthen the local economy. The program also seeks to increase public awareness of the importance of local economies and to foster optimism for the prospect of gaining local economic self-sufficiency. The New York Times referred to the BerkShares program as a "great socioeconomic experiment."
SHARE Micro-credit Program
The Self-Help Association for a Regional Economy (SHARE) is a model community-based nonprofit that offers a simple way for citizens to create a sustainable local economy by supporting businesses that provide products or services needed in the region. SHARE makes micro-credit loans available at manageable interest rates to businesses that are often considered "high risk" by traditional lenders—usually because of their credit ratings or the unique nature of their business ideas. Local SHARE members make interest-earning deposits in a local bank, which are used to collateralize loans for local businesses with a positive community impact. SHARE depositors live in the same community as the business owners they support—bringing a human face back to lending decisions. The SHARE program of the Southern Berkshire region existed from 1981 to 1992, and collateralized 23 loans with a 100% rate of repayment.
Community Land Trusts
Robert Swann, founder of the E.F. Schumacher Society, is known as a pioneer of the Community Land Trust movement. The E.F. Schumacher Society provided technical assistance towards the formation of the Community Land Trust in the Southern Berkshires in 1980.
E.F. Schumacher Lectures
From 1981 to 2012, the E.F. Schumacher Society hosted an annual lecture in honor of E.F. Schumacher. The Lectures continue to be hosted by the Schumacher Center for New Economics. The E.F. Schumacher Lectures capture some of the most visionary voices regarding the urgent need to transform our economic, social, and cultural systems in a way that supports both the planet and its citizens. Past presenters include:
* Gar Alperovitz
* Donald Anderson
* Benjamin Barber
* Dan Barber
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* Chris Bedford
* Thomas Berry
* Wendell Berry
* Elise Boulding
* David Brower
* Christopher Houghton Budd
* Majora Carter
* Marie Cirillo
* David Ehrenfield
* William Ellis
* Sally Fallon Morell
* John Fullerton
* Chellis Glendinning
* Edward Goldsmith
* Neva Goodwin
* Hunter Hannum
* Alanna Hartzok
* Richard Heinberg
* Hazel Henderson
* Ivan Illich
* Dana Lee Jackon
* Wes Jackson
* Jane Jacobs
* Andrew Kimbrell
* David Korten
* Winona LaDuke
* Anna Lappé
* Frances Moore Lappé
* Thomas Linzey
* Amory Lovins
* Kevin Lyons
* Oren Lyons
* Jerry Mander
* John McClaughry
* Bill McKibben
* John McKnight
* George McRobie
* Deborah Meier
* Stephanie Mills
* Stacy Mitchell
* David Morris
* John Mohawk
* Helena Norberg-Hodge
* Richard Norgaard
* David W. Orr
* Will Raap
* Kirkpatrick Sale
* William Schambra
* Michael H. Shuman
* Cathrine Sneed
* James Gustave Speth
* Joseph Stanislaw
* Robert Swann
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* Nancy Jack Todd
* Chuck Turner
* Jakob von Uexkull
* Stewart Wallis
* Greg Watson
* Judy Wicks
* Susan Witt
* Arthur Zajonc

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