EcoPraxis is something unique - part community learning laboratory, part grassroots research collaborative.  It has evolved from the efforts of one person (myself) to identify solutions to the problem of over-consumption as a root cause of impending ecological and economic collapse into a shared resource for discovering the possibilities of cultivating healthy community economies.

The idea of EcoPraxis grew out of my many years work in knowledge and technology resource development.  In the 1990s, I led the planning and start-up of two manufacturing extension centers that helped hundreds of small companies and community-based organizations achieve their goals.  One of these centers - the Recycling Technology Assistance Partnership (ReTAP) - became a national resource for recycling technology-related tools and information.  Watching small enterprises struggle to grow to compete made me question the wisdom of the industrial growth model.

Shortly after receiving my PhD in economics in 2003, I began laying the groundwork for EcoPraxis.  My doctoral thesis, Speed, Scale, and Sustainability, looked at over-consumption in the advanced industrialized countries in relation to the “economies of speed” that came from the introduction of information technology into production.   Towards the end of writing my thesis, I began to see the opportunity to reorganize production for the promotion of our collective well-being through economic re-localization.  Influenced by the great economist Karl Polanyi,  I adopted the term “community economies”, coined by the Marxist geographers Julie Graham and Katherine Gibson, to describe the focus of my work.

In 2004 and 05, I led a number of community workshops on economics as if community matters and began building relationships.  Each project with others has offered a wealth of insights into the conviction that it takes us all.  As a result, EcoPraxis has placed a deliberate emphasis on developing frameworks and processes that are inclusive of diverse experiences and perspectives.

It’s been highly rewarding work.  One particular highlight has been the Local Food Economy Study I undertook for Sustainable Seattle which marked a turning point for EcoPraxis.  It was the first full-scale community-based participatory or grassroots research project I had undertaken, a definite departure from the research approach my economics professors taught!

In the last few years I have been particularly gratified by the growth of EcoPraxis’ network of collaborators.  EcoPraxis has benefited hugely from a strong and supportive board.  Our impassioned conversations have made us realize that EcoPraxis’ work is also about creating spaces for community learning to take place.  The next stage of EcoPraxis’ development will involve seeding experiments in sustainble community economic devolpment.

It is also hoped that the inception of this blog opens EcoPraxis to wider participation by creating a platform for meaningful conversations about how we can reorganize the production-consumption system for greater economic justice and sustainability.  Please join us in this conversation.

deep bows, Viki Sonntag, Founding Director