When we talk about the economy of the future, most optimistic visions have a green tinge. Achieving sustainable growth has been the great challenge of the 21st century, and the green economy represents an unprecedented opportunity for the kind of sustainable development and business growth that reflects our own mission as a company. However, we want to go further; we also want to think purple.
The purple economy model, popularized by economist Ipek Ilkkaracan, presents a more ambitious vision of the future. This model focuses on the cultural dimension of the economy, seeking to place the vision of an equitable environment for men and women at the heart of the green economy.
Just as mainstream economics neglected the environmental impact of widespread development for many decades, another important area that has also remained absent from the conventional paradigm is the care economy, driven largely by women.
The care economy encompasses both the reproduction and care work of our society as a whole: cooking, washing, cleaning, shopping, caring for babies, the sick, the disabled, and the elderly. This largely taken-for-granted work consists of millions of hours of labor, constituting approximately 42% (almost half) of total global working hours; three-quarters of this is unpaid work by women (International Women’s Rights Action Watch Asia Pacific, 2018).
Although the gender pay gap is its biggest challenge, the Purple Model advocates for systematically addressing inequalities in the care economy to improve women’s economic development prospects. Furthermore, it offers solutions through the recognition, reduction, and redistribution of unpaid care work, with the aim of increasing equity and efficiency in the economy.
To achieve this, the purple economy proposes a path towards inclusive and sustainable growth supported by four pillars:
- The commitment to a universal infrastructure of social assistance services.
- Regulating the labor market to facilitate work-life balance with equal incentives for men and women.
- Implement a gender-sensitive macroeconomic policy to generate decent jobs and inclusive and sustainable growth.
- Creating time-saving physical infrastructure in low-income rural contexts (World Economic Forum, April 2019).
From a growth perspective, perhaps the most valuable aspect of this model is the business advantage derived from both considering this dimension of work and acting accordingly. Creating diverse, inclusive, and equitably compensated work environments leads to greater employee engagement and retention, as well as higher financial returns, according to studies by the World Economic Forum.
So when you think about what the economy of the future will look like, we encourage you to think not only in green, but also in purple.
References
- “Care is an Economic Issue: Addressing Gender Inequalities in Care Work”, (International Women’s Rights Action Watch Asia Pacific, 2018), Learn more.
- Vijay Eswaran, “The business case for diversity in the workplace is now overwhelming” (The World Economic Forum, April 2019), Learn more.
