With support from:

This event is for you if: You are interested in co-creating conceivable and actionable new models for a low carbon economy together with economists around the world.

What if the future of economics is invented in science fiction?

The situation is clear. An economy’s inaction based on its certainties is creating a global deadlock. Permanent micro-adjustments are no longer enough. Fortunately, intellectuals on all sides reject the status quo and imagine more desirable futures. Among them, science fiction authors are now proposing radically new models and shaking up the established order.

To highlight the synergies between SF and the economy, the Edgeryders community and the Messina Community Foundation, supported by EIT Climate-KIC are organising a residency program to support creative work at the intersections of imaginary worlds and economics.

We are imagining an open source world against a backdrop of science fiction/ narrativized speculative futures.

The specificity of this world or these worlds : Economics is different.

We want to build a new society, because we see that the house is on fire.

But no society can work without an economy to support it. Economists would, in principle, be the right people to assist us in designing new economic models to support new kinds of society. They did it, in the past. Famous economists like Marx and Keynes dominated the academic debate, and visionary entrepreneurs and politicians like Charles Fourier, Robert Owen and Adriano Olivetti attempted to turn their ideas into viable businesses and policies, sometimes with spectacular successes.

But in recent times economics has let us down. Economists have major influence, but they use it to recommend preserving the status quo, with a few minor tweaks. They are not thinking about radical, system-level reorganizations, that could potentially preserve the planet’s ecological balance, and include everyone in a meaningful effort to be a successful, fair civilization.

But that work is necessary. Someone has to do it. . A small super-brainy patrol of science fiction authors has paved the way: Cory Doctorow. Bruce Sterling. Neal Stephenson, Ursula K. Le Guin, and others. We decided to build on their work, and forge from it a new alloy of science fiction world-building and economic thinking.

Academia, tied down in publish or perish, is uninterested: we need a new space. So, we partnered with EIT Climate-KIC, the European Union’s largest climate innovation initiative.

Together, we are running a Science Fiction Economics Lab program, to bring together SF authors, economists, technologists, activists and just ordinary citizens who care, to envision different economic systems. We are not interested in tweaks, one percentage point of budget deficit more or less. By “different” we mean radically different. And these systems need to be rock solid, not some kind of delusional fantasy good for another round of electoral promise.

This will create a template for re-energizing society’s capacity for designing paradigm-level reform; help raise the awareness of the climate crisis as a carrier of opportunity and hope, and not just of disruption and dismay; and embolden would-be reformers, especially in Europe. This space is what we are asking you to support.

In 2019 we prototyped the idea in a barebones format, and started building a community around it. Now we are running a residency program to continue this work.

16/10 at 14:00 CET: Online info session

Join us to learn about the Sci Fi Economics Lab residency program

This 1.5 month residency is dedicated to developing the story and the economic theory/theories underpinning it.

The selected participant will be flown to Messina, a beautiful seaside city in Sicily, for a 10 days sojourn during which they will write a number of skeleton scenarios for alternative economy worlds.

The participants will then publish the scenarios online and invite input from economists, social scientists and other domain experts to help flesh them out into full stories of conceivable and actionable futures supported by new economic theory.

By participating you do two things:

1. Help push economic thinking out of its box:

We want to build a new society, because we see that the house is on fire. But no society can work without an economy to support it. Famous economists like Marx and Keynes dedicated themselves to designing new economic models to support new kinds of society dominated the academic debate, and visionary entrepreneurs and politicians like Charles Fourier, Robert Owen and Adriano Olivetti attempted to turn their ideas into viable businesses and policies, sometimes with spectacular successes.

2. Show us, and the world, that you support this effort

If the Sci-Fi Economics Lab is successful, its impact would show in directly influencing the political agenda, at least in Europe. Please do not pass on this opportunity.

Come to this event on 0ctober 16th at 2pm CET to learn more about the new Science Fiction Economics Lab residency program.

The event is organised by Edgeryders as part of our work to extend the space of economic models that are conceivable and deployable to build a successful, fair civilisation, while preserving the planet’s ecological balance. It is conducted with support from EIT Climate-KIC ,the European Union’s largest climate innovation initiative. More info: http://scifieconomicslab.net More info

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Format

A Zoom meeting. We will send you the link after you register here.

A short presentation of the Sci Fi Economics Lab and our Residency Program, followed by an open, question and answer session. If you have a question to ask the speaker, ask it in the chat and the presenter will answer.

Everyone welcome.