The Finance Innovation Lab presents Manifest
Many of us have sat through endless debates and ‘talk-shops’ which aim to solve the broader challenges facing our current economic system. However these are increasingly leading people to agree that still more action needs to happen if we are to begin shifting the current financial system towards one that better serves the needs of everyone in society and the planet’s environmental limits. To help address this, at the Finance Innovation Lab, we are continually seeking to act and working collaboratively across the financial sector to bring about disruptive innovation.
We continue to hear stories that the on-going lack of trust and poor access to services in mainstream banking is leading the public to explore other financial services, from crowd-funding to local currencies. What is clear to us is the need to join forces and work collaboratively to develop new and inclusive financial solutions. So by using a systemic approach, we are bringing together communities of different people, creating inspired action in order to improve the financial system.
Spotting Positive Trends
We believe that if certain parts of the financial ‘system’ are positively influenced it will trigger greater positive change. Manifest is our most recent report outlining the top trends which we see are currently changing finance in the UK. We created Manifest using our bird’s-eye view and using the collective community intelligence gathered over the past five years. It is a series of interviews with leading advocates which illustrate the ‘groundswells of change’ that are gaining momentum.
The report shows where these changing trends are appearing, such democratising finance through technology and peer-to-peer platforms with Bruce Davis who writes on the Abundance Generation, on local investment and banking services with Tony Greenham of nef, and Ben Dyson looks at monetary reform in a piece on Positive Money.
Innovation with Purpose
If necessity is the mother of all innovation, it seems like a good time to start experimenting with the current financial system, especially with an alternative finance movement that could better meet society’s needs. However, there are no easy answers to the challenges we face; complex problems require innovation across the entire system.
For the last 5 years we have been independently building trusting communities of social innovators, academia, government, investors, civil society, and mainstream business who are working together to change finance. These communities are developing solutions for establishing a more fit-for-purpose financial system. At the Lab we remain true to our intention to help develop a financial system that works for people and planet, which we do bringing together different voices, looking at the bigger picture, and painting an increasingly clear and inspiring vision of what a better system could look like.
We hope that Manifest will help to educate and inspire more people to join forces and work collaboratively on disruptive innovation aimed at bringing about a finance system for people and planet. Please share.
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