We’re starting a Divest > Invest #HackingCapitalism Challenge!!
Today, on Black Friday, the nadir (apex?) of swarming shopified zombie dollar-dropping lust in the US, we’re looking at divesting from corporate shopping, and investing in businesses that are run by and for the good of humans, not shareholders. Businesses that you and your friends probably run. Businesses that employ anywhere from one to a few hundred people. Businesses that are about more than a profit-driven bottom line.
They’re out there, and you’re probably already spending money with them. How can you know?
CHECK YOUR SPEND WITH SWICH
Find out how your spending is impacting the environment, workers, and other humans anyway? Here’s an app that is super smart – and will calculate the social and environmental impact of your current spend for you, using ESG ratings and localization.
Swich.to gives you a score on your spending, and recommendations for more eco- and human-friendly places to shop. You can log in, add your recent spending, and it’ll calculate a score for you. Even though I was totally honest and included a recent Whole Foods and Amazon purchase, along with my local grocery, gym, restaurant etc, I got this score which felt reinforcing:
I got a chance to meet Gerald Mitchell, the brainiac and developer behind Swich earlier this year, and he was kind enough to sit down with me for an interview. Listen to it here:
Check out YOUR Swich score, and follow them on Twitter for updates and more.
CHALLENGE
A lot of my Swich points were based on my local-as-heck spending, and naming our local business spending as investment is important – keeping money circulating in our neighborhoods is a small thing that makes a BIG difference to our local economies.
I wanted to start the Divest < Invest #HackingCapitalism challenge with an easy step, so this is your challenge, friends: buy from a local, small business, for at least $20.
Yes, buying from a local artisan at a holiday bazaar counts.
Share it using #hackingcapitalism – or just be stoked that you’re spending money close to home, where it matters more.
Each day for the next 10 days, I’ll share a live video or interview on fb and my blog for you to learn ways to use your money that are smart, strategic, and matter. The event lineup is below. You can get started with a free course on bank divesting, and I’m encouraging folks to take at least three actions over the next 10 days. Share your progress with #HackingCapitalism to win!