CREATIVE CAPITALISM
Fighting poverty is our business
In his address at the World Economic Forum, Bill Gates described what he calls “creative capitalism,” which, as he sees it, “...takes this interest in the fortunes of others and ties it to our interest in our own fortunes – in ways that help advance both. This hybrid engine of self-interest and concern for others serves a much wider circle of people than can be reached by self-interest or caring alone.”
Most of the media coverage surrounding Gates’ speech and his announcement of over $300 million for agricultural development focused on one interpretation of creative capitalism – that we can make money helping the poor. This has been true for high-profile campaigns like Bono’s (RED) brand, which sells computers, iPods and watches with the promise that a portion of the proceeds will go toward fighting AIDS. Certainly many businesses – including Microsoft – have learned that they can do more business by doing good.
What has characterized IDE’s mission over the past 25 years is the belief that we can do more good by doing business.
While several firms have taken it upon themselves to do business for poor people by finding innovative ways to raise funds for charitable causes, we have been urging companies to do business with the poor – creating opportunities through the market.
We will not succeed in our mission to raise the income of subsistence farmers if we continue to treat them as consumers of charity. Instead, we see subsistence farmers as producers of value: customers and entrepreneurs
The recently announced grant from the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation - $27 million to support IDE’s work in India – is a huge boost to our program, not only because it will significantly raise the incomes of 250,000 subsistence farmers, but also because it signals a growing recognition of IDE’s brand of creative capitalism, which has been quietly lifting subsistence farmers out of poverty for the past 25 years.