7 Billion Presidents Building the new

So far no alternative story managed to counter capitalism. Up until now...

Build the new and the old becomes obsolete
7 Billion Presidents started with a couple of friends who asked themselves the question: Why are we competing with each other to get jobs that create wealth for shareholders when we can collaborate and build an inclusive global society with a stable climate where there is well-being for all?

Aren’t we, the people, doing all the work everywhere already?

The last 25 years we have built companies like YouTube, Facebook, Uber, Wikipedia and Airbnb, where it is clear that we, the people, are doing all the work. But aren’t we, the people, doing all the work everywhere already? Within roughly 10 years time a small group of people built Wikipedia and, as everyone stopped using encyclopedias (this without anyone having to change their world or political views) replaced a whole industry. Why wouldn’t we be able to do the same with capitalism? This question led to what we have now named the 7 Billion Presidents regenerative economy.  A society without shareholders where 100% of the profit companies make go to build more regenerative companies and communities.

The best way to communicate is by doing.
The 7 Billion Presidents economy entails a holistic approach to the trading of goods and services. Instead of buying a product where the profit goes to third parties such as shareholders, we envision a system where 100% of the profit generated from selling a product goes back into society.
To reach the vision of an inclusive society with a stable climate, 7 Billion Presidents either partner up with existing fair trade and sustainable companies or we build them ourselves. To put our words into action, last February, 7 Billion Presidents partnered with Sander from Bruutbeer to make the first 7 Billion Presidents product, namely; Beer For Humankind. It is a challenge to grow without money from investors and it took some time to build up the network but the community and the story grows stronger every day. The phrase: ‘We might not have it all together but if we work together, we can have it all’, might just turn out to be true.

All the people and companies that join decide collectively what project to start with the profit made. This could be a club, a regenerative farm or buying a piece of land where revenue can be generated through, for example, organising festivals, that in turn will generate revenue that can be reinvested in buying another piece of land and building another community in another place.

Over the next year we aim to partner with a tea, coffee and chocolate company. This while we are also waiting for the right moment to start with IT projects like a car sharing platform, a ticket selling system or a regenerative Airbnb. Part of the profit goes to build a 7 Billion Presidents community in a low-income country. As more regenerative companies and communities emerge the transition to an inclusive society with a climate fit for humans speeds up.

How we aim to grow this movement can best be explained by this extract of an article named ‘Using Emergence to take social innovations to scale’ written by Margaret Wheatley and Deborah Frieze.
“In spite of current ads and slogans, the world doesn’t change one person at a time.  It changes as networks of relationships form among people who discover they share a common cause and vision of what’s possible. Rather than worry about critical mass, our work is to foster critical connections.  We don’t need to convince large numbers of people to change; instead, we need to connect with kindred spirits.
Emergence has a life-cycle. It begins with networks, shifts to intentional communities of practice and evolves into powerful systems capable of global influence.

While keeping the above in mind 7 Billion Presidents aims to become a radical inclusive movement, a ‘movement of movements’ so to speak. Besides it being the right thing to do, writer Charles Eisenstein states that there are multiple reasons why social healing is indispensable in ecological healing.

First and most obviously, it is indispensable because it is hard to effectively enact love for others when one is hurting desperately oneself. A hurting person usually passes on that hurt to those they love, helplessly. As with a hurting person, so with a hurting society. We cannot expect a miserable, oppressed populace to exercise much care for anything outside its immediate survival and security.

Second, we will continue to abuse our fellow human beings, even our own Mother Earth, as long as we carry unhealed social traumas. This does not mean “heal our traumas first before we try to heal the environment.” It means to recognize that social healing and ecological healing are the same work. Neither is to be privileged over the other; neither can succeed without the other.

A movement that stands shoulder to shoulder with people from all backgrounds and build a new society where there is well-being for all, together.

7 Billion Presidents aims to build an alternative story, one powerful enough to replace capitalism. A story where people from all backgrounds and movements feel inspired and a sense of belonging. A movement that stands shoulder to shoulder with people from all backgrounds and build a new society where there is well-being for all, together.

Amsterdam Climate Week 12 - 18 September
7 Billion Presidents and Green revolution have joined forces to organize the first edition of the Amsterdam Climate Week. This week is the first step in building a ‘movement of movements’ to build an inclusive global society for all together and second, to show what is already happening in Amsterdam. Assembling grassroots initiatives is a key factor in our fight against climate change.

This week offers greenwashing free panel discussions, workshops, dinners, and parties all centered around one goal to inspire the people to join in Building The New.

On Tuesday at De Sering Amsterdam Climate Week offers a space for groups and people from all backgrounds. These groups are given the opportunity to join and work together in order to build a revolution that is inclusive, fair, and takes a holistic approach when it comes to its relationship with nature.

We are hereby warmly inviting you to join. If you have any ideas on how to improve, a place that might be interested to sell Beer For Humankind or a company that might be interested in joining, please don’t hesitate to reach out and send an email to: outreach(at)7billionpresidents.org or via our insta.

Radical Love,
We Build The New
To be WE, we need YOU.