Building Social and Economic Units

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PROUT Institute of AustraliaCentral to Prout's (PROgressive Utilization Theory) concept of economicdemocracy is the building of socio-economic units. These take on someof the aspects of bio-regions which are common in the progressivesocio-economic literature. They form the thrust of local empowermentand the ongoing struggles for more democratic community control. Froman ecological perspective, they have been described as units or regionsthat "aims to inspire and stimulate the building of new, ecologicallysustainable cultures and communities in their myriad facets throughpresenting a broad spectrum of concerns ranging from how we view theworld and act within it, through efforts at restoring damagedecosystems or greening the cities, to the raising of new and hopefulgeneration." (Doug Aberly, Boundaries of Home: Mapping for LocalEmpowerment)An overall integral approach needs to be taken which takes into accountall social, economic, environmental and sentimental tendencies for anarea, to form proper socio-economic units which can then reform thepolitical landscape as well. This is explored below.SOCIO-ECONOMIC UNITSBy P.R. Sarkar The importance of society-------------------------"Society is the collective movement of a group of individuals who havemade a unanimous decision to move together towards a common goal."The meaning of the word society is to move together. People should makeevery effort to carry along those who are lagging behind with them.This is the spirit of societyWhen the members of some social order or groups come to a unanimousdecision, "We'll move together, we'll live together in good times or bad", then their collective movement is known as society. Some may havemoved far ahead; some may have lagged behind. Some may be unable towalk due to pain in their legs. Some may have fallen on their faces.Those who do not even care to look after their companions trailingbehind them are not acting as worthy members of society or care for itsmembership.The proper thing is for all members of the society to move in unison;and while moving together, each member should feel a responsibility for every other member of society. Those who are unable to move must becarried so that the rhythm of the collective movement remains unbroken.We will have to look upon this whole world as an integral entity. At

present, we do not yet look at things from a cosmological perspective.Socio-economic movements------------------------In nearly all countries of the world economically privileged or advanced groups are mercilessly exploiting other economically backwardgroups and sucking their vitality, gagging their voice and closing allthe doors of their future progress. To overcome this tyranny andexploitation, movements will have to be launched for those suppressedpeople so that they can stride boldly forward, fight against allexploitation and attain economic independence.Nobody can deny the need of such an approach, of such movements,because such an approach is truly humanistic. If such an approach isnot adopted, it is something unnatural and anti-human. In fact, tooppose such movements amounts to working as an agent to protect theinterests of the exploitative and reactionary forces.Prout always stands for the cause of exploited people, irrespective of race, nation, religion, etc, and always opposes all types of exploitation. But as poverty is the main problem in the world today,Prout gives top priority to opposing economic exploitation, as thisaffects the livelihood and existence of the people.To solve this problem and other pressing problems, popular movementsbased on anti-exploitation and universal sentiments should be launchedthroughout the world. Such movements should oppose all forms of economic, psychic, cultural and psycho-economic exploitation. Inaddition they should undertake appropriate practical programs toenhance the all-round welfare of the people.Criteria for groupification---------------------------While forming socio-economic units, several factors should beconsidered. These include same economic problems; uniform economicpotentialities; ethnic similarities; the sentimental legacy of thepeople; and similar geographical features.1. "Same economic problems" refers to the common economic problemsconfronting people in a particular unit and may include the lack of markets for locally produced goods, surplus or deficit labour problems,communication or transportation difficulties and lack of irrigationwater. Ascertaining whether or not a similar set of economic problemsexists in an area is the first thing, which should be clearly analysedwhen forming a socio-economic unit. The economic problems of thesocio-economic unit, and their solutions, should be well understood.2. Secondly, there should be uniform economic potentialities in theunit. Despite natural variations from place to place, overall thepeople throughout a unit should enjoy similar opportunities for economic prosperity. Disparity between the haves and the have-nots andthe rich and the poor will have to be progressively reduced so that the

collective wealth will increase and society will become bountiful.3. Thirdly, there should be ethnic similarities. In the past many racesand sub-races have been suppressed and exploited by powerful or dominant races. Those with evil designs in order to divide society andestablish their own pre-eminence have propagated racism. Society mustguard against such narrow and dangerous sentiments. This can be doneonly if every ethnic group has adequate scope for its expression anddevelopment. The multi-coloured garland of humanity will be enriched tothe extent diverse human groups blend together from a position of strength and independence out of a genuine love for each other, and arenot forced together through fear or compulsion.4. Fourthly, sentimental legacy includes factors such as language,historical traditions, literature, common usages and culturalexpressions. It is the common chord in the collective psychology of aparticular group of people, which gives them their unique identity, andsense of affinity. Human beings are predominantly sentimental bynature. They establish some kind of relationship with the many objectsof the world through their day-to-day activities. If the sentiment for a particular favourite object is adjusted with the collective sentimentthen that sentiment can be utilized for establishing unity in humansociety. The human sentiment for many objects may sometimes run counter to the collective sentiment and create great disunity, so thosesentiments, which are conducive to human unity, should be encouraged,and the sentiments which divide human society should be rejected. Thisis the approach adopted by Prout's socio-economic units.5. Finally, similar geographical features such as topography, river systems, rainfall and irrigation water should also be considered in theformation of a socio-economic unit.Socio-economic units will give expression to popular sentiments andfight against all forms of exploitation to meet the demands andaspirations of the local people. Movements will have to be launchedthroughout the world to establish self-sufficient socio-economic unitsbased on the maxim, "Know the area, prepare the plan and serve thepeople". Local people are those who have merged their individualsocio-economic interests with the socio-economic interests of thesocio-economic unit they live in.Socio-economic units--------------------Socio-economic units should be formed throughout the world on the basisof the same economic problems, uniform economic potentialities, ethnicsimilarities, common sentimental legacy and similar geographicalfeatures. Whole regions and the entire world can be reorganized intosocio-economic units based on these factors. These units should notmerely be geographical areas but self-sufficient socio-economicgroupifications. The fundamental basis of these groupifications issocial, cultural and economic, and not religious or linguistic(although language has some role to play in the sentimental legacycriteria for forming socio-economic units). Socio-economic units willhave to adopt economic decentralization so that the local people will

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