A New Business for an Integrative Economy
Where will we work? That’s the primary question everyone is asking as it is such a fundamental driver of all of our lives. Where we work and how we produce the income necessary to live our lives sets the cornerstone of every economy—agrarian, industrial, service and knowledge. Today, a large majority of our economy remains tethered to a shrinking industrial/service economy resulting in huge unemployment. Unfortunately, there is no end in sight. How can we replace many of these lost jobs?
Integrative Community Ventures
We are proposing a new business called Integrative Community Ventures (ICV). This type of business is a necessary infrastructure unit for a successful Integrative Economy An Integrative Economy will need high functioning humans to create and design a “quality of life” economy. To achieve this change we propose “Local Community Capacity (LCC)” be added to the current employment sectors of Markets, Government, and Illegal sectors. ICV would be one of these businesses within this new employment sector.
ICV will hire, train and manage Human Capacity Development Professionals. Networked in teams, HCDPs will work from their homes with their children, children or adults with disabilities and senior elderly family members to ensure optimal human development for this community group. HCDPs are professionals trained to the highest levels to maximize optimum outcomes for all.
ICV’s Rationale
In the 20th century’s Industrial consumer-driven economy, the transportation system was the infrastructure for success; planes, trains, trucks, automobiles, road and railway systems. We invested in transportation through the creation of businesses such as General Motors, Southern Pacific Railroad and Standard Oil. They employed millions around the world. For an equivalent success in the 21st century’s Integrative Economy, we must invest in a new infrastructure of high functioning humans.
We imagine Integrative Community Ventures (ICV) as the “GM or Standard Oil” of a new, transformative Integrative Economy. At this stage, ICV is a proposed pilot project but with the intention of it being replicated in hundreds of local communities; establishing thousands of similar small, local businesses throughout the US. As a business, ICV is an integral part of ensuring the success of a thriving Integrative Economy. It will provide high functioning humans who can further an Integrative economy based on a “quality of life” focus. Integrative Community Ventures growth like GM’s once did, will result in the creation of thousands of suppliers and small businesses interconnected for success as communities work together to support a “quality of life” for all, humans, animals and the planet.
ICV’s Human Capacity Development Role
Human development does not just happen. People must be supported to achieve optimum outcomes of physical, emotional, cognitive, sexual and spiritual wholeness. Then people can move into adulthood as high functioning, autonomous human beings. ICV’s Human Capacity Development Professionals provide on a daily basis the integrated teamwork necessary to ensure optimum development of all. A team of 30 HCDPs may have a workload of 67 children, 5 adults and 8 children with disabilities and 11 seniors. As trained professionals HCDPs use an extensive knowledge base to do their work. This would include knowledge areas such as nutrition, exercise, preventive health care, community gardening, financial responsibility, relationships, communication, and emotional well-being. Applied at the highest skill level HCDPs use their knowledge to build human and community capacity within their local community. As a business ICV is an integral part of ensuring the success of a thriving Integrative Economy by providing high functioning humans who can further an Integrative Economy based on a quality of life for humans and the planet.