The Institute for Compassionate Capitalism was founded to further the ideal that capitalism as an economic model only realizes its intended potential when it delivers on the promise enshrined by Adam Smith in 1776 in his classic book
The Wealth of Nations.

 

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Specifically, that promise was one of increasing wealth for all guided by what Smith called the "invisible hands" of enlightened self interest.

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The notion of the invisible hands was informed by an earlier book Smith wrote
titled The Moral Imperative in which he undertook to articulate a move away from the prevailing Cartesian philosophy of scientific rationalism that was predicated on a perspective of separation.

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The philosophical, psychological, and physiological underpinnings of Compassionate Capitalism are built upon a foundation of non-duality. We specifically declare and assert that everything on this planet and in this Universe are connected in fundamental ways and that all economic activity must take this into account.

 

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There can be no "trade offs" between stakeholders. All stakeholders have an intrinsic value that is undifferentiated from that of other stakeholders and that intrinsic value must be honored. As a consequence, we further assert that business has the moral as well as the fiduciary obligation to take responsibility for the whole of the planet.