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Ernst Friedrich Schumacher (16 August 1911 – 4 September 1977) was a German-British
statistician A statistician is a person who works with theoretical or applied statistics. The profession exists in both the private and public sectors. It is common to combine statistical knowledge with expertise in other subjects, and statisticians may w ...
and
economist An economist is a professional and practitioner in the social sciences, social science discipline of economics. The individual may also study, develop, and apply theories and concepts from economics and write about economic policy. Within this ...
who is best known for his proposals for human-scale,
decentralised Decentralization or decentralisation is the process by which the activities of an organization, particularly those regarding planning and decision making, are distributed or delegated away from a central, authoritative location or group. Conce ...
and appropriate technologies.Biography on the inner dustjacket of ''
Small Is Beautiful ''Small Is Beautiful: A Study of Economics As If People Mattered'' is a collection of essays published in 1973 by German-born British economist E. F. Schumacher. The title "Small Is Beautiful" came from a principle espoused by Schumach ...
''
He served as Chief Economic Advisor to the British
National Coal Board The National Coal Board (NCB) was the statutory corporation created to run the nationalised coal mining industry in the United Kingdom. Set up under the Coal Industry Nationalisation Act 1946, it took over the United Kingdom's collieries on "ve ...
from 1950 to 1970, and founded the Intermediate Technology Development Group (now known as Practical Action) in 1966. In 1995, his 1973 book '' Small Is Beautiful: A Study of Economics As If People Mattered'' was ranked by ''
The Times Literary Supplement ''The Times Literary Supplement'' (''TLS'') is a weekly literary review published in London by News UK, a subsidiary of News Corp. History The ''TLS'' first appeared in 1902 as a supplement to ''The Times'' but became a separate publication ...
'' as one of the 100 most influential books published since World War II.The Times Literary Supplement, 6 October 1995, p. 39 In 1977 he published ''
A Guide for the Perplexed ''A Guide for the Perplexed'' is a short book by E. F. Schumacher, published in 1977. The title is a reference to Maimonides's '' The Guide for the Perplexed''. Schumacher himself considered ''A Guide for the Perplexed'' to be his most important ...
'' as a critique of materialistic
scientism Scientism is the opinion that science and the scientific method are the best or only way to render truth about the world and reality. While the term was defined originally to mean "methods and attitudes typical of or attributed to natural scientis ...
and as an exploration of the nature and organisation of
knowledge Knowledge can be defined as awareness of facts or as practical skills, and may also refer to familiarity with objects or situations. Knowledge of facts, also called propositional knowledge, is often defined as true belief that is distin ...
.


Early life

Schumacher was born in
Bonn The federal city of Bonn ( lat, Bonna) is a city on the banks of the Rhine in the German state of North Rhine-Westphalia, with a population of over 300,000. About south-southeast of Cologne, Bonn is in the southernmost part of the Rhine-Ru ...
, Germany in 1911. His father was a professor of
political economy Political economy is the study of how economic systems (e.g. markets and national economies) and political systems (e.g. law, institutions, government) are linked. Widely studied phenomena within the discipline are systems such as labour ...
. The younger Schumacher studied in Bonn and
Berlin Berlin ( , ) is the capital and largest city of Germany by both area and population. Its 3.7 million inhabitants make it the European Union's most populous city, according to population within city limits. One of Germany's sixteen constitu ...
, then from 1930 in England as a
Rhodes Scholar The Rhodes Scholarship is an international postgraduate award for students to study at the University of Oxford, in the United Kingdom. Established in 1902, it is the oldest graduate scholarship in the world. It is considered among the world' ...
at
New College, Oxford New College is one of the constituent colleges of the University of Oxford in the United Kingdom. Founded in 1379 by William of Wykeham in conjunction with Winchester College as its feeder school, New College is one of the oldest colleges at ...
, and later at
Columbia University Columbia University (also known as Columbia, and officially as Columbia University in the City of New York) is a private research university in New York City. Established in 1754 as King's College on the grounds of Trinity Church in Manhatt ...
in
New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...
, earning a diploma in economics. He then worked in business, farming and journalism. His sister, Elizabeth, was the wife of the physicist
Werner Heisenberg Werner Karl Heisenberg () (5 December 1901 – 1 February 1976) was a German theoretical physicist and one of the main pioneers of the theory of quantum mechanics. He published his work in 1925 in a Über quantentheoretische Umdeutung kinematis ...
.


Economist


Protégé of Keynes

Schumacher moved back to England prior to the outbreak of
World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the World War II by country, vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great power ...
. For a period during the war, he was interned on an isolated English farm as an "enemy alien". In these years, Schumacher captured the attention of
John Maynard Keynes John Maynard Keynes, 1st Baron Keynes, ( ; 5 June 1883 – 21 April 1946), was an English economist whose ideas fundamentally changed the theory and practice of macroeconomics and the economic policies of governments. Originally trained in ...
with a paper entitled "Multilateral Clearing" that he had written between sessions working in the fields of the internment camp. Keynes recognised the young German's understanding and abilities, and he was able to have Schumacher released from internment. Schumacher helped the
British government ga, Rialtas a Shoilse gd, Riaghaltas a Mhòrachd , image = HM Government logo.svg , image_size = 220px , image2 = Royal Coat of Arms of the United Kingdom (HM Government).svg , image_size2 = 180px , caption = Royal Arms , date_est ...
mobilise economically and financially during World War II, and Keynes found a position for him at
Oxford University Oxford () is a city in England. It is the county town and only city of Oxfordshire. In 2020, its population was estimated at 151,584. It is north-west of London, south-east of Birmingham and north-east of Bristol. The city is home to the ...
. According to Leopold Kohr's obituary for Schumacher, when "Multilateral Clearing" "was published in the spring of 1943 in ''
Economica ''Economica'' is a peer-reviewed academic journal of generalist economics published on behalf of the London School of Economics by Wiley-Blackwell. Established in 1921, it is currently edited by Nava Ashraf, Oriana Bandiera, Tim Besley, France ...
'', it caused some embarrassment to Keynes who, instead of arranging for its separate publication, had incorporated the text almost verbatim in his famous " Plan for an International Clearing Union", which the British government issued as a
White Paper A white paper is a report or guide that informs readers concisely about a complex issue and presents the issuing body's philosophy on the matter. It is meant to help readers understand an issue, solve a problem, or make a decision. A white paper ...
a few weeks later."


Adviser to the Coal Board

After the War, Schumacher worked as an economic advisor to, and later Chief Statistician for, the British Control Commission, which was charged with rebuilding the German economy. From 1950 to 1970 he was Chief Economic Adviser to the
National Coal Board The National Coal Board (NCB) was the statutory corporation created to run the nationalised coal mining industry in the United Kingdom. Set up under the Coal Industry Nationalisation Act 1946, it took over the United Kingdom's collieries on "ve ...
, one of the world's largest organisations, with 800,000 employees. In this position, he argued that coal, not petroleum, should be used to supply the energy needs of the world's population. He saw oil as a finite resource, fearing its depletion and eventually prohibitive
price A price is the (usually not negative) quantity of payment or compensation given by one party to another in return for goods or services. In some situations, the price of production has a different name. If the product is a "good" in the ...
, and viewed with alarm the reality that "the richest and cheapest reserves are located in some of the world's most unstable countries". His position on the Coal Board was often mentioned later by those introducing Schumacher or his ideas. It is generally thought that his farsighted planning contributed to Britain's post-war economic recovery. Schumacher predicted the rise of
OPEC The Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC, ) is a cartel of countries. Founded on 14 September 1960 in Baghdad by the first five members (Iran, Iraq, Kuwait, Saudi Arabia, and Venezuela), it has, since 1965, been headqua ...
and many of the problems of
nuclear power Nuclear power is the use of nuclear reactions to produce electricity. Nuclear power can be obtained from nuclear fission, nuclear decay and nuclear fusion reactions. Presently, the vast majority of electricity from nuclear power is produced b ...
.


Thinking outside the box

In 1955 Schumacher travelled to
Burma Myanmar, ; UK pronunciations: US pronunciations incl. . Note: Wikipedia's IPA conventions require indicating /r/ even in British English although only some British English speakers pronounce r at the end of syllables. As John C. Wells, Joh ...
as an economic consultant. While there, he developed the set of principles he called "
Buddhist economics Buddhist economics is a spiritual and philosophical approach to the study of economics. It examines the psychology of the human mind and the emotions that direct economic activity, in particular concepts such as anxiety, aspirations and self-a ...
", based on the belief that individuals need good work for proper
human development Human development may refer to: * Development of the human body * Developmental psychology * Human development (economics) * Human Development Index, an index used to rank countries by level of human development * Human evolution Human evoluti ...
. He also proclaimed that "production from local resources for local needs is the most rational way of economic life." He travelled throughout many
Third World The term "Third World" arose during the Cold War to define countries that remained non-aligned with either NATO or the Warsaw Pact. The United States, Canada, Japan, South Korea, Western European nations and their allies represented the " First ...
countries, encouraging local governments to create self-reliant economies. Schumacher's experience led him to become a pioneer of what is now called
appropriate technology Appropriate technology is a movement (and its manifestations) encompassing technological choice and application that is small-scale, affordable by locals, decentralized, labor-intensive, energy-efficient, environmentally sustainable, and loca ...
: user-friendly and
ecologically Ecology () is the study of the relationships between living organisms, including humans, and their biophysical environment, physical environment. Ecology considers organisms at the individual, population, community (ecology), community, ecosy ...
suitable technology applicable to the scale of the community; a concept very close to
Ivan Illich Ivan Dominic Illich ( , ; 4 September 1926 – 2 December 2002) was an Austrian Roman Catholic priest, theologian, philosopher, and social critic. His 1971 book ''Deschooling Society'' criticises modern society's institutional approach to edu ...
's conviviality. He founded the Intermediate Technology Development Group (now Practical Action) in 1966. His theories of development have been summed up for many in catch phrases such as " intermediate size", and "
intermediate technology Appropriate technology is a movement (and its manifestations) encompassing technological choice and application that is small-scale, affordable by locals, decentralized, labor-intensive, energy-efficient, environmentally sustainable, and loca ...
". He was a
trustee Trustee (or the holding of a trusteeship) is a legal term which, in its broadest sense, is a synonym for anyone in a position of trust and so can refer to any individual who holds property, authority, or a position of trust or responsibility to ...
of
Scott Bader Commonwealth Ernest Bader (24 November 1890 – 5 February 1982) and his wife, Dora Scott, founded a chemical company, Scott Bader, and gave it to the employees under terms of Common ownership, forming the Scott Bader Commonwealth in 1951. Scott Bader Ltd. wa ...
and in 1970 the president of the Soil Association. E. F. Schumacher was greatly influenced by
Mahatma Gandhi Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi (; ; 2 October 1869 – 30 January 1948), popularly known as Mahatma Gandhi, was an Indian lawyer, anti-colonial nationalist Quote: "... marks Gandhi as a hybrid cosmopolitan figure who transformed ... anti- ...
and J. C. Kumarappa and Gandhi's concepts of "economy of permanence" and appropriate technology. While delivering the Gandhi Memorial Lecture at the Gandhian Institute of Studies at
Varanasi Varanasi (; ; also Banaras or Benares (; ), and Kashi.) is a city on the Ganges river in northern India that has a central place in the traditions of pilgrimage, death, and mourning in the Hindu world. * * * * The city has a syncretic t ...
(India) in 1973, Schumacher described Gandhi as the greatest "people's economist" whose economic thinking was compatible with spirituality as opposed to materialism.


Influence

Schumacher was influenced by
Richard Henry Tawney Richard Henry Tawney (30 November 1880 – 16 January 1962) was an English economic historian, social critic, ethical socialist,Noel W. Thompson. ''Political economy and the Labour Party: the economics of democratic socialism, 1884-2005''. 2nd ...
,
Mahatma Gandhi Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi (; ; 2 October 1869 – 30 January 1948), popularly known as Mahatma Gandhi, was an Indian lawyer, anti-colonial nationalist Quote: "... marks Gandhi as a hybrid cosmopolitan figure who transformed ... anti- ...
, Leopold Kohr,
Gautama Buddha Siddhartha Gautama, most commonly referred to as the Buddha, was a wandering ascetic and religious teacher who lived in South Asia during the 6th or 5th century BCE and founded Buddhism. According to Buddhist tradition, he was born in L ...
,
Karl Marx Karl Heinrich Marx (; 5 May 1818 – 14 March 1883) was a German philosopher, economist, historian, sociologist, political theorist, journalist, critic of political economy, and socialist revolutionary. His best-known titles are the 1848 ...
,
John Ruskin John Ruskin (8 February 1819 20 January 1900) was an English writer, philosopher, art critic and polymath of the Victorian era. He wrote on subjects as varied as geology, architecture, myth, ornithology, literature, education, botany and pol ...
and the
Catholic Church The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the List of Christian denominations by number of members, largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics Catholic Church by country, worldwide . It is am ...
throughout his life. He and his solutions to the great economic problems influence the E. F. Schumacher Society, The Arche, George McRobie, William Schweke, and many others.


Schumacher as writer

Schumacher wrote on economics for London's ''
The Times ''The Times'' is a British daily national newspaper based in London. It began in 1785 under the title ''The Daily Universal Register'', adopting its current name on 1 January 1788. ''The Times'' and its sister paper '' The Sunday Times'' ( ...
'' and became one of the paper's chief editorial writers. At this post he was assigned the task of compiling information for the obituary of John Maynard Keynes. He also wrote for ''
The Economist ''The Economist'' is a British weekly newspaper printed in demitab format and published digitally. It focuses on current affairs, international business, politics, technology, and culture. Based in London, the newspaper is owned by The Eco ...
'' and '' Resurgence''. He served as adviser to the
India Planning Commission The Planning Commission was an institution in the Government of India, which formulated India's Five-Year Plans, among other functions. In his first Independence Day speech in 2014, Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced his intention to dissol ...
, as well as to the governments of Zambia and Burma – an experience that led to his much-read essay "Buddhist Economics". The 1973 publication of '' Small Is Beautiful: A Study of Economics As If People Mattered'', a collection of essays, finished in the house of his friend Leopold Kohr, brought his ideas to a wider audience. One of his main arguments in ''Small Is Beautiful'' is that we cannot consider the problem of technological production solved if it requires that we recklessly erode our finite
natural capital Natural capital is the world's stock of natural resources, which includes geology, soils, air, water and all living organisms. Some natural capital assets provide people with free goods and services, often called ecosystem services. All of t ...
and deprive future generations of its benefits. Schumacher's work coincided with the growth of ecological concerns and with the birth of environmentalism, and he became a hero to many in the
environmental movement The environmental movement (sometimes referred to as the ecology movement), also including conservation and green politics, is a diverse philosophical, social, and political movement for addressing environmental issues. Environmentalists a ...
and
community movement The Community Movement was an Italian political organization founded by Piedmontese progressive entrepreneur Adriano Olivetti in 1947. Olivetti had previously established a cultural group, which only subsequently began a political activity at l ...
. In 1976, he was awarded the Prix Européen de l'Essai Charles Veillon for ''Small Is Beautiful''. His 1977 work ''
A Guide for the Perplexed ''A Guide for the Perplexed'' is a short book by E. F. Schumacher, published in 1977. The title is a reference to Maimonides's '' The Guide for the Perplexed''. Schumacher himself considered ''A Guide for the Perplexed'' to be his most important ...
'' is both a critique of materialistic
scientism Scientism is the opinion that science and the scientific method are the best or only way to render truth about the world and reality. While the term was defined originally to mean "methods and attitudes typical of or attributed to natural scientis ...
and an exploration of the nature and organisation of knowledge.


Question of Size

Just like his mentor Leopold Kohr, Schumacher discusses the problems of
separatism Separatism is the advocacy of cultural, ethnic, tribal, religious, racial, governmental or gender separation from the larger group. As with secession, separatism conventionally refers to full political separation. Groups simply seeking greate ...
and regionalism in ''Small Is Beautiful'', which he called "the question of size". Just like Kohr, Schumacher calls for separatism and decentralisation of humanity into smaller nations and communities. However, instead of focusing on the cultural and social aspects of separatism, he discusses the economic perspective. He criticises the belief that history is based on unification - that tribes formed a nation, which then formed a union of nations, and that now one could look foward to a
world government World government is the concept of a single political authority with jurisdiction over all humanity. It is conceived in a variety of forms, from tyrannical to democratic, which reflects its wide array of proponents and detractors. A world gove ...
. He notes that the opposite process is taking place as the number of countries worldwide is growing, as large nations break up into smaller ones, and states that ''
Balkanisation Balkanization is the fragmentation of a larger region or state into smaller regions or states, which may be hostile or uncooperative with one another. It is usually caused by differences of ethnicity, culture, and religion and some other factor ...
'' should not have negative connotations. He questions the idea of "the bigger the better", arguing that in fact smaller nations perform better economically than bigger nations, and points out that German-speaking parts of Switzerland and Austria were able to become prosperous without the need to join Germany. According to Schumacher, the German unification was not responsible for German economical success, and most of the world's wealthiest nations on a per capita basis are small, while the largest countries are poor in comparison. He asserts that the smaller internal market area of a small country is not a hindrance, but rather the basis of great economic potential and development. Schumacher then notes that the myth of "bigness" also appears in case of corporations, as it's "generally told that gigantic organisations are inescapably necessary". For Schumacher, however, as soon as an organisation of a great size is created, it inevitably entails "a strenuous attempt to attain smallness within bigness" in order to remain efficient; he argues that the
General Motors The General Motors Company (GM) is an American Multinational corporation, multinational Automotive industry, automotive manufacturing company headquartered in Detroit, Michigan, United States. It is the largest automaker in the United States and ...
was organised as a federation of medium-sized firms, and recalls his experience in the British
National Coal Board The National Coal Board (NCB) was the statutory corporation created to run the nationalised coal mining industry in the United Kingdom. Set up under the Coal Industry Nationalisation Act 1946, it took over the United Kingdom's collieries on "ve ...
, which was decentralised into a "federation of numerous quasi-firms" under Lord Robens. Schumacher asserts that while many still engage in "idolatry of large size", in practice nobody can deny the "convenience, humanity, and manageability of smallness". He repeats the arguments of Leopold Kohr - when any body grows too big, it also becomes unmanageable and highly dysfunctional, naming
London London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary dow ...
,
New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...
and
Tokyo Tokyo (; ja, 東京, , ), officially the Tokyo Metropolis ( ja, 東京都, label=none, ), is the capital and largest city of Japan. Formerly known as Edo, its metropolitan area () is the most populous in the world, with an estimated 37.46 ...
examples of overgrown cities, where "the millions do not add to the city's real value but merely create enormous problems and produce human degradation". He also discusses
globalisation Globalization, or globalisation (Commonwealth English; see spelling differences), is the process of interaction and integration among people, companies, and governments worldwide. The term ''globalization'' first appeared in the early 20t ...
, identifying the "idolatry of gigantism" as a harmful belief steming from technological progress - the highly developed communications system greatly increased
labor mobility Labor or worker mobility is the geographical and occupational movement of workers. Impediments to mobility are easily divided into two distinct classes with one being personal and the other being systemic. Personal impediments include physical loc ...
, rendering people "footloose". He notes that everything needs a structure, and while before the advent of mass transport people were relatively immobile, one was still able to move, such as the Irish immigrants in the United States. Once everything has become extremely mobile, all structures are more vulnerable and threatened than ever. For him, fast transport ended up destroying freedom rather than providing it, given how it made every structure vulnerable and made actions that would mitigate the destructive effects of this technological development necessary. He argues that this problem affects both large and small countries, and that the now extremely high labour mobility might not only destroy social cohesion (resulting in alienation and
anomie In sociology, anomie () is a social condition defined by an uprooting or breakdown of any moral values, standards or guidance for individuals to follow. Anomie is believed to possibly evolve from conflict of belief systems and causes breakdow ...
), but also cause instability:
The factor of footlooseness is, therefore, the more serious, the bigger the country. Its destructive effects can be traced both in the rich and in the poor countries. In the rich countries such as the United States of America, it produces, as already mentioned, 'megalopolis'. It also produces a rapidly increasing and ever more intractable problem of 'drop-outs', of people, who, having become footloose, cannot find a place anywhere in society. Directly connected with this, it produces an appalling problem of crime, alienation, stress, social breakdown, right down to the level of the family. In the poor countries, again most severely in the largest ones, it produces mass migration into cities, mass unemployment, and, as vitality is drained out of the rural areas, the threat of famine. The result is a 'dual society' without any inner cohesion, subject to a maximum of political instability.
Schumacher then moves his attention to nation-states, which he also considers endangered by "bigness", defined as annexation or unification into larger states. He notes that Denmark or Belgium being annexed to Germany and France respectively would stunt their growth, cause their economic potential to be completely neglected, threaten their language and culture, and lastly cause their separatist cause to be dismissed by modern media and politicians:
Imagine that in 1864 Bismarck had annexed the whole of Denmark instead of only a small part of it, and that nothing had happened since. The Danes would be an ethnic minority in Germany, perhaps struggling to maintain their language by becoming bilingual, the official language of course being German. Only by thoroughly Germanising themselves could they avoid becoming second-class citizens. There would be an irresistible drift of the most ambitious and enterprising Danes, thoroughly Germanised, to the mainland in the south, and what then would be the status of Copenhagen? That of a remote provincial city. Or imagine Belgium as part of France. What would be the status of Brussels? Again, that of an unimportant provincial city. I don't have to enlarge on it. Imagine now that Denmark a part of Germany, and Belgium a part of France, suddenly turned what is now charmingly called 'nats' wanting independence. There would be endless, heated arguments that these 'non-countries' could not be economically viable, that their desire for independence was, to quote a famous political commentator, 'adolescent emotionalism, political naivety, phoney economics, and sheer bare-faced opportunism'.
Schumacher continues - nations and states are composed of people, and people are only "viable" when they "can stand on their own feet and earn their keep". He notes that people won't become viable when forced into one huge community, and that they likewise won't become "non-viable" when divided into smaller, more coherenent and manageable communities. He argues that separatism should be applauded rather than mocked, as it entails the desire to become a free and self-reliant region. He also mocks unionism, arguing that "if a country wishes to export all over the world, and import from all over the world, it has never been held that it had to annex the whole world in order to do so". He identifies the question of regionalism as the "most important problem", but stressed that regionalism does not mean combining states into free-trade systems, but rather developing all the regions within each country. Schumacher calls separatism a "logical and rational response to the need for regional development" and argues that there is no hope for the poor communities beyond successful regional development. He states that most modern developments only result in widening the gap between the rich and the poor, as they almost exclusively focus on the capital or already wealthy areas instead, as these yield the most profit. Thus modern industrialists seek to make the already very profitable regions even richer, while the poor regions remain miserable. This keeps the poor in the "weakest possible bargaining position", as the impoverished regions see no development despite needing it the most. Schumacher considers the "economics of gigantism" to be a "a left-over of nineteenth-century conditions and nineteenth-century thinking" which no longer applies to modern problems. He argues that modern technological and scientific potential must focus on fighting human degredation, in "intimate contact" with individuals and small groups rather than large states. For Schumacher, democracy is a matter of people, who can only "be themselves" in small and comprehensible groups. He argues that economic thinking is useless if it only engages in "vast abstractions" such as "the national income, the rate of growth, capital/output ratio, input-output analysis, labour mobility, capital accumulation" instead of addressing "the human realities of poverty, frustration, alienation, despair, breakdown, crime, escapism, stress, congestion, ugliness and spiritual death."


Later life

As a young man, Schumacher was a dedicated atheist, but his later rejection of materialist, capitalist, agnostic modernity was paralleled by a growing fascination with religion. He developed an interest in Buddhism, but beginning in the late-1950s,
Catholicism The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...
heavily influenced his thinking. He noted the similarities between his own economic views and the teaching of papal
encyclical An encyclical was originally a circular letter sent to all the churches of a particular area in the ancient Roman Church. At that time, the word could be used for a letter sent out by any bishop. The word comes from the Late Latin (originally fr ...
s on socio-economic issues, from
Leo XIII Pope Leo XIII ( it, Leone XIII; born Vincenzo Gioacchino Raffaele Luigi Pecci; 2 March 1810 – 20 July 1903) was the head of the Catholic Church from 20 February 1878 to his death in July 1903. Living until the age of 93, he was the second-ol ...
's "
Rerum novarum ''Rerum novarum'' (from its incipit, with the direct translation of the Latin meaning "of revolutionary change"), or ''Rights and Duties of Capital and Labor'', is an encyclical issued by Pope Leo XIII on 15 May 1891. It is an open letter, pa ...
" to
Pope John XXIII Pope John XXIII ( la, Ioannes XXIII; it, Giovanni XXIII; born Angelo Giuseppe Roncalli, ; 25 November 18813 June 1963) was head of the Roman Catholic Church, Catholic Church and sovereign of the Vatican City, Vatican City State from 28 Oc ...
's ''
Mater et magistra ''Mater et magistra'' is the encyclical written by Pope John XXIII on the topic of "Christianity and Social Progress". It was promulgated on 15 May 1961. The title means "mother and teacher", referring to the role of the church. It describes a ...
'', as well as with the
distributism Distributism is an economic theory asserting that the world's productive assets should be widely owned rather than concentrated. Developed in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, distributism was based upon Catholic social teaching prin ...
supported by the Catholic thinkers G. K. Chesterton,
Hilaire Belloc Joseph Hilaire Pierre René Belloc (, ; 27 July 187016 July 1953) was a Franco-English writer and historian of the early twentieth century. Belloc was also an orator, poet, sailor, satirist, writer of letters, soldier, and political activist. ...
, and
Vincent McNabb Vincent McNabb, O.P. (8 July 1868 – 17 June 1943) was an Irish Catholic scholar and Dominican priest based in London, active in evangelisation and apologetics. Early life McNabb was born in Portaferry, County Down, Ireland, the ...
. Philosophically, he absorbed much of
Thomism Thomism is the philosophical and theological school that arose as a legacy of the work and thought of Thomas Aquinas (1225–1274), the Dominican philosopher, theologian, and Doctor of the Church. In philosophy, Aquinas' disputed questions ...
, which provided an objective system in contrast to what he saw as the self-centered
subjectivism Subjectivism is the doctrine that "our own mental activity is the only unquestionable fact of our experience", instead of shared or communal, and that there is no external or objective truth. The success of this position is historically attribute ...
and
relativism Relativism is a family of philosophical views which deny claims to objectivity within a particular domain and assert that valuations in that domain are relative to the perspective of an observer or the context in which they are assessed. Ther ...
of modern philosophy and society. He also was greatly interested in the tradition of
Christian mysticism Christian mysticism is the tradition of mystical practices and mystical theology within Christianity which "concerns the preparation f the personfor, the consciousness of, and the effect of ..a direct and transformative presence of God" ...
and read deeply such writers as St.
Teresa of Avila Teresa (also Theresa, Therese; french: Thérèse) is a feminine given name. It originates in the Iberian Peninsula in late antiquity. Its derivation is uncertain, it may be derived from Greek θερίζω (''therízō'') "to harvest or rea ...
and
Thomas Merton Thomas Merton (January 31, 1915 – December 10, 1968) was an American Trappist monk, writer, theologian, mystic, poet, social activist and scholar of comparative religion. On May 26, 1949, he was ordained to the Catholic priesthood and g ...
. These were all interests that he shared with his friend, the Catholic writer
Christopher Derrick Christopher Hugh Derrick (12 June 1921 – 2 October 2007) was an English author, reviewer, publisher's reader and lecturer. All his works are informed by wide interest in contemporary problems and a lively commitment to Catholic teaching. Li ...
. In 1971, he converted to Catholicism. Schumacher gave interviews and published articles for a wide readership in his later years. He also pursued one of the loves of his life: gardening. He died of a
heart attack A myocardial infarction (MI), commonly known as a heart attack, occurs when blood flow decreases or stops to the coronary artery of the heart, causing damage to the heart muscle. The most common symptom is chest pain or discomfort which ma ...
on 4 September 1977, on arrival at Billens hospital in
Romont Romont (; frp, Remont ) is a municipality and capital of the district of Glâne in the canton of Fribourg in Switzerland. History Romont is first mentioned in 1177 as ''in Rotundo Monte''. In 1244 it was mentioned as ''Romont''. The municip ...
, Switzerland; after falling ill on a train in Zurich during a
lecture tour A public lecture (also known as an open lecture) is one means employed for educating the public in the arts and sciences. The Royal Institution has a long history of public lectures and demonstrations given by prominent experts in the field. In t ...
.


Legacy

Schumacher's personal collection of books and archives is held by the
Schumacher Center for a New Economics The Schumacher Center for a New Economics (formerly the E. F. Schumacher Society) is a tax exempt nonprofit organization based in Great Barrington, Massachusetts. The Schumacher Center promotes the ' new economy', which includes the concepts bu ...
library in
Great Barrington, Massachusetts Great Barrington is a town in Berkshire County, Massachusetts, United States. It is part of the Pittsfield, Massachusetts, Metropolitan Statistical Area. The population was 7,172 at the 2020 census. Both a summer resort and home to Ski Butternut, ...
. The center continues the work of Schumacher by maintaining a research library, organising lectures and seminars, publishing papers, developing model economic programs, and providing technical assistance to groups all for the purpose of linking people, land, and community to build strong, diverse local economies.


Schumacher Circle

The Schumacher Circle is a family of organisations which were founded in Schumacher's memory or were inspired by his work, and which co-operate to support each other. The circle includes the
Schumacher College Schumacher College is a college near Totnes, Devon, England which offers ecology-centred degree programmes, short courses and horticultural programmes. The College is internationally renowned for its experiential approach to learning, encouragi ...
in
Totnes Totnes ( or ) is a market town and civil parish at the head of the estuary of the River Dart in Devon, England, within the South Devon Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty. It is about west of Paignton, about west-southwest of Torquay and abo ...
, Devon, ''Resurgence Magazine'' (now '' Resurgence & Ecologist''), publishing company Green Books, international non-governmental organisation Practical Action, the
New Economics Foundation The New Economics Foundation (NEF) is a British think-tank that promotes "social, economic and environmental justice". NEF was founded in 1986 by the leaders of The Other Economic Summit (TOES) with the aim of working for a "new model of wealth ...
in the UK, the
Schumacher Center for a New Economics The Schumacher Center for a New Economics (formerly the E. F. Schumacher Society) is a tax exempt nonprofit organization based in Great Barrington, Massachusetts. The Schumacher Center promotes the ' new economy', which includes the concepts bu ...
(heir to the legacy programs of the former E. F. Schumacher Society) founded in
New England New England is a region comprising six states in the Northeastern United States: Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, and Vermont. It is bordered by the state of New York to the west and by the Canadian provinces ...
, the Soil Association, the educational
Centre for Alternative Technology The Centre for Alternative Technology (CAT) ( cy, Canolfan y Dechnoleg Amgen) is an eco-centre in Powys, mid- Wales, dedicated to demonstrating and teaching sustainable development. CAT, despite its name, no longer concentrates its efforts exc ...
(CAT) North Wales, the Jeevika Trust, and the research organisation the Schumacher Institute in
Bristol Bristol () is a City status in the United Kingdom, city, Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county and unitary authority in England. Situated on the River Avon, Bristol, River Avon, it is bordered by the ceremonial counties of Glouces ...
.


Selected bibliography

* '' Small Is Beautiful: A Study of Economics As If People Mattered'' (1973, ); a 25th anniversary edition was published () * ''
A Guide for the Perplexed ''A Guide for the Perplexed'' is a short book by E. F. Schumacher, published in 1977. The title is a reference to Maimonides's '' The Guide for the Perplexed''. Schumacher himself considered ''A Guide for the Perplexed'' to be his most important ...
'' (1977, ; still in paperback, ) * ''This I Believe and Other Essays'' (1977; reissued, ) * ''Good Work'' (1979, )


See also

*
Community development The United Nations defines community development as "a process where community members come together to take collective action and generate solutions to common problems." It is a broad concept, applied to the practices of civic leaders, activists ...
*
Distributism Distributism is an economic theory asserting that the world's productive assets should be widely owned rather than concentrated. Developed in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, distributism was based upon Catholic social teaching prin ...
*
Grameen Bank Grameen Bank ( bn, গ্রামীণ ব্যাংক) is a microfinance organisation and community development bank founded in Bangladesh. It makes small loans (known as microcredit or "grameencredit") to the impoverished without requi ...
*
John Papworth John Papworth (12 December 1921 – 4 July 2020) was an English clergyman, writer and activist against big public and private organizations and for small communities and enterprises. Life and work Born in London in December 1921, Papworth was ...
* Leopold Kohr *
Kirkpatrick Sale Kirkpatrick Sale (born June 27, 1937) is an American author who has written prolifically about political decentralism, environmentalism, luddism and technology. He has been described as having a "philosophy unified by decentralism" and as being " ...
*
Microcredit :''This article is specific to small loans, often provided in a pooled manner. For direct payments to individuals for specific projects, see Micropatronage. For financial services to the poor, see Microfinance. For small payments, see Micropa ...
*
Social entrepreneurship Social entrepreneurship is an approach by individuals, groups, start-up companies or entrepreneurs, in which they develop, fund and implement solutions to social, cultural, or environmental issues. This concept may be applied to a wide range of ...
*
Schumacher College Schumacher College is a college near Totnes, Devon, England which offers ecology-centred degree programmes, short courses and horticultural programmes. The College is internationally renowned for its experiential approach to learning, encouragi ...
*
Sustainable development Sustainable development is an organizing principle for meeting human development goals while also sustaining the ability of natural systems to provide the natural resources and ecosystem services on which the economy and society depend. The ...
*
Worldwatch Institute The Worldwatch Institute was a globally focused environmental research organization based in Washington, D.C., founded by Lester R. Brown. Worldwatch was named as one of the top ten sustainable development research organizations by Globescan Su ...


References


Further reading

* Kirk, Geoffrey, ed. ''Schumacher on Energy'' (London: Sphere Books, 1983) * Wood, Barbara
''E.F. Schumacher: His Life and Thought''
(New York: Harper & Row, 1984) * Etherden, Peter
"The Schumacher Enigma"
''Fourth World Review'', 1999 * Pearce, Joseph, ''Small is Still Beautiful'', (Wilmington: ISI Books, 2006)


External links


New Economy Coalition
(following the merger of the New Economics Institute and New Economy Network)
Schumacher Center for a New Economics
(formerly The E.F. Schumacher Society) in Great Barrington, Massachusetts, which houses his personal library and archives.
Schumacher pic

Intermediate Technology Development Group / Practical Action

About E. F. Schumacher, from British Schumacher Society website

The Schumacher Institute for Sustainable Systems
is an independent research organisation working to continue Schumacher's legacy.
Essay on Buddhist Economics




with
Joseph Pearce Joseph Pearce (born February 12, 1961), is an English-born American writer, and Director of the Center for Faith and Culture at Aquinas College in Nashville, Tennessee, before which he held positions at Thomas More College of Liberal Arts in ...
by Angelo Matera, ''
Godspy ''Godspy'' is a dormant English-language online magazine "for Catholics and other seekers" launched in 2003, dealing with subjects from "politics to the arts, science to the economy, sexuality to ecology," and exploring the "ideas and experiences ...
'', 2004
Economics as if People Mattered, E. F. Schumacher observed

Dialogue with E.F Schumacher
and
Fritjof Capra Fritjof Capra (born February 1, 1939) is an Austrian-born American physicist, systems theorist and deep ecologist. In 1995, he became a founding director of the Center for Ecoliteracy in Berkeley, California. He is on the faculty of Schumacher ...

E.F. Schumacher: A Retrospect and Reflection After September 11, 2001

Interview with E. F. Schumacher
published in ''
Manas Journal ''MANAS'' was an eight-page philosophical fortnightly written, edited, and published by Henry Geiger from 1948 until December 1988. Each issue typically contained several short essays that reflected on the human condition, examining in particular e ...
'', May 19, 1976
The world improvement plans of Fritz Schumacher
by John Toye. Published in ''
Cambridge Journal of Economics The ''Cambridge Journal of Economics'' is a peer-reviewed academic journal of economics. The journal was founded in 1977 by the ''Cambridge Political Economy Society'' with the aim of publishing articles that followed the economic traditions est ...
'', 36,2: 387–403
Fifty Possible Ways to Challenge Over-Commercialism

Beyond Simplicity: Tough Issues For A New Era
by Albert J. Fritsch, SJ, PhD
Introduction to Schumacher (MP3)

Watch the documentary ''Small Is Beautiful: Impressions of Fritz Schumacher''

ef-schumacher.org
site set up by Schumacher's family to mark his centenary * {{DEFAULTSORT:Schumacher, Ernst Friedrich 1911 births 1977 deaths Alumni of New College, Oxford Appropriate technology advocates 20th-century British economists British Roman Catholics British statisticians British philosophers Catholic philosophers Critics of atheism Christian humanists Converts to Roman Catholicism Converts to Roman Catholicism from atheism or agnosticism Development specialists Ecological economists Environmental economists Environmental philosophers German emigrants to the United Kingdom Columbia University alumni Commanders of the Order of the British Empire German Rhodes Scholars German Roman Catholics German statisticians Green thinkers Keynesian economics Non-fiction environmental writers Scientists from Bonn People from the Rhine Province Simple living advocates Sustainability advocates University of Bonn alumni Decentralization Anti-consumerists 20th-century German economists People who emigrated to escape Nazism Philosophers of technology