{"id":2644,"date":"2015-02-16T16:53:35","date_gmt":"2015-02-16T16:53:35","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/tommusrhodus.wpengine.com\/?page_id=44"},"modified":"2022-03-15T21:19:39","modified_gmt":"2022-03-16T01:19:39","slug":"home-startup","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/www.theworkingworld.org\/us\/","title":{"rendered":"Home"},"content":{"rendered":"[vc_row content_placement=&#8221;top&#8221; machine_padding=&#8221;no-pad&#8221; background_style=&#8221;full&#8221; css=&#8221;.vc_custom_1496331458434{margin-top: 0px !important;margin-bottom: 0px !important;padding-right: 0px !important;padding-left: 0px !important;}&#8221;][vc_column css=&#8221;.vc_custom_1496331440886{padding-right: 0px !important;padding-left: 0px !important;}&#8221;]<section class=\"hero-slider centered-text-slider  \"><ul class=\"slides\"><li class=\"overlay \"><div class=\"background-image-holder\"><img width=\"1024\" height=\"425\" src=\"https:\/\/www.theworkingworld.org\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/04\/Desde-el-Pie-Cropped.jpg\" class=\"background-image\" alt=\"\" loading=\"lazy\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.theworkingworld.org\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/04\/Desde-el-Pie-Cropped.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/www.theworkingworld.org\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/04\/Desde-el-Pie-Cropped-300x125.jpg 300w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/><\/div><div class=\"container vertical-align\"><div class=\"row\"><div class=\"col-sm-12 text-center ebor-slider-content\"><p class=\"super-lead\" style=\"text-align: center;\">Looking for TWW&#8217;s national lending work? \u00a0Find it as <em><a href=\"https:\/\/seedcommons.org\">Seed Commons<\/a><\/em><\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<h2 style=\"text-align: center;\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.theworkingworld.org\/us\/\"><img loading=\"lazy\" class=\"aligncenter size-full wp-image-3418\" src=\"https:\/\/www.theworkingworld.org\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/03\/TWW-Logo-White-300x100-1.png\" alt=\"The Working World Logo White\" width=\"300\" height=\"100\" \/><\/a><\/h2>\n<h3 style=\"text-align: center;\"><span style=\"color: #ffffff;\">Investing in the workers who are transforming our world.<\/span><\/h3>\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><a class=\"btn btn-white\" title=\"Donate Now\" href=\"https:\/\/www.theworkingworld.org\/us\/our-mission\/\">Learn More<\/a>\u00a0<a class=\"btn btn-filled\" title=\"Loans\" href=\"https:\/\/www.theworkingworld.org\/us\/donate-now\/\">Donate now<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div><\/div><\/div><\/li><\/ul><\/section>[\/vc_column][\/vc_row][vc_row machine_padding=&#8221;no-pad&#8221; css=&#8221;.vc_custom_1471382277407{margin-bottom: 0px !important;border-top-width: 100px !important;padding-top: 100px !important;padding-bottom: -10px !important;background-color: #ffffff !important;}&#8221;][vc_column][vc_column_text css_animation=&#8221;top-to-bottom&#8221;]\n<h2 style=\"text-align: center;\">Our system is in crisis.<\/h2>\n[\/vc_column_text][\/vc_column][\/vc_row][vc_row css=&#8221;.vc_custom_1471382301081{background-color: #ffffff !important;}&#8221;][vc_column width=&#8221;1\/3&#8243;][vc_single_image image=&#8221;3533&#8243; img_size=&#8221;400&#215;400&#8243; alignment=&#8221;center&#8221; style=&#8221;vc_box_shadow&#8221; css_animation=&#8221;top-to-bottom&#8221; css=&#8221;.vc_custom_1442264720226{padding-top: 1px !important;padding-right: 1px !important;padding-bottom: 1px !important;padding-left: 1px !important;}&#8221;][vc_column_text css_animation=&#8221;top-to-bottom&#8221;]\n<h4>A Crisis of Inequality<\/h4>\n[\/vc_column_text][vc_column_text css_animation=&#8221;top-to-bottom&#8221; css=&#8221;.vc_custom_1441206046363{margin-top: -20px !important;}&#8221;]\n<div>In what is being called &#8220;The Great Divide&#8221;,\u00a0we are facing an\u00a0historic chasm of inequality that defies common understanding. Since 2008, the number of billionaires in the world has doubled, and yet a quarter of\u00a0Americans have less than $10 to their name. In the globe as a whole, a mere eighty people own as much wealth as 3.6 billion people, more than\u00a0half the world combined. The drive for profit has become the extraction from the many for the benefit of the few.\u00a0<em>Sources: <a href=\"http:\/\/opinionator.blogs.nytimes.com\/category\/the-great-divide\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">[a]<\/a>, <a href=\"http:\/\/www.scientificamerican.com\/article\/economic-inequality-it-s-far-worse-than-you-think\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">[b]<\/a>, <a href=\"http:\/\/www.forbes.com\/sites\/timworstall\/2014\/10\/30\/oxfams-new-report-number-of-billionaires-has-doubled-since-the-crash\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">[c]<\/a>, <a href=\"http:\/\/www.politifact.com\/truth-o-meter\/statements\/2012\/jul\/31\/bernie-s\/sanders-says-walmart-heirs-own-more-wealth-bottom-\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">[d]<\/a>\u00a0<\/em><\/div>\n[\/vc_column_text][vc_empty_space height=&#8221;16px&#8221;][\/vc_column][vc_column width=&#8221;1\/3&#8243;][vc_single_image image=&#8221;3502&#8243; img_size=&#8221;400&#215;400&#8243; alignment=&#8221;center&#8221; style=&#8221;vc_box_shadow&#8221; css_animation=&#8221;top-to-bottom&#8221;][vc_column_text css_animation=&#8221;top-to-bottom&#8221;]\n<h4>A Crisis of Exclusion<\/h4>\n[\/vc_column_text][vc_column_text css_animation=&#8221;top-to-bottom&#8221; css=&#8221;.vc_custom_1441206063500{margin-top: -20px !important;}&#8221;]History books\u00a0used to teach that the economic effects\u00a0of racism were\u00a0in the past, but we are finally facing the truth that the\u00a0wealth and income divide is happening along racial and ethnic lines. Despite decades of civil rights activism, people of color continue to face extreme economic exclusion, and income and wealth inequality between whites and other races has largely remained unchanged\u00a0and\u00a0even increased in recent years.\u00a0<em>Sources:\u00a0<a href=\"http:\/\/www.latimes.com\/opinion\/topoftheticket\/la-na-tt-history-hinders-black-americans-20140908-story.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">[a]<\/a>,\u00a0<a href=\"http:\/\/www.forbes.com\/sites\/laurashin\/2015\/03\/26\/the-racial-wealth-gap-why-a-typical-white-household-has-16-times-the-wealth-of-a-black-one\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">[b]<\/a>,\u00a0<a href=\"http:\/\/www.pewresearch.org\/fact-tank\/2014\/12\/12\/racial-wealth-gaps-great-recession\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">[c]<\/a><\/em>[\/vc_column_text][vc_empty_space height=&#8221;16px&#8221;][\/vc_column][vc_column width=&#8221;1\/3&#8243;][vc_single_image image=&#8221;3506&#8243; img_size=&#8221;400&#215;400&#8243; alignment=&#8221;center&#8221; style=&#8221;vc_box_shadow&#8221; css_animation=&#8221;top-to-bottom&#8221;][vc_column_text css_animation=&#8221;top-to-bottom&#8221;]\n<h4>A Crisis of Extraction<\/h4>\n[\/vc_column_text][vc_column_text css_animation=&#8221;top-to-bottom&#8221; css=&#8221;.vc_custom_1442442826454{margin-top: -20px !important;}&#8221;]\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\">We are faced with the destruction of our planet in way never before known in history. Scientists have sounded the alarm\u00a0that our economic activity is having an extremely dangerous effect on the climate, and yet despite decades of awareness, we have remained unable to change, and the crisis has only continued to deepen. The drive for short-term profit is literally destroying our chances for long-term survival.\u00a0<em>Sources:\u00a0<a href=\"http:\/\/www.ucsusa.org\/global_warming#.VcwnPHjTqeY\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">[a]<\/a>,\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Global_warming\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">[b]<\/a>,\u00a0<a href=\"http:\/\/www.theguardian.com\/environment\/2015\/mar\/08\/how-will-everything-change-under-climate-change\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">[c]<\/a><\/em><\/p>\n[\/vc_column_text][vc_empty_space height=&#8221;16px&#8221;][\/vc_column][\/vc_row][vc_row machine_padding=&#8221;no-pad&#8221; css=&#8221;.vc_custom_1442259498076{margin-top: 0px !important;border-top-width: 0px !important;padding-top: 50px !important;padding-bottom: 20px !important;}&#8221;][vc_column width=&#8221;1\/4&#8243;][vc_column_text][\/vc_column_text][\/vc_column][vc_column width=&#8221;1\/2&#8243;][vc_column_text css_animation=&#8221;bottom-to-top&#8221;]\n<h2 style=\"text-align: center;\">These historic crises have a common root:\u00a0<em><strong>the\u00a0extractive\u00a0economy<\/strong><\/em><\/h2>\n<h5 style=\"text-align: center;\">\u00a0Our system makes profit for a\u00a0few by\u00a0extracting from people and planet.<\/h5>\n<h5 style=\"text-align: center;\">We can transform this into a <em><strong>democratic economy<\/strong><\/em> which is built to serve the needs of people and the communities they live in.<\/h5>\n<h4 style=\"text-align: center;\">Here&#8217;s how we do it:<\/h4>\n[\/vc_column_text][\/vc_column][vc_column width=&#8221;1\/4&#8243;][vc_column_text][\/vc_column_text][\/vc_column][\/vc_row][vc_row css=&#8221;.vc_custom_1471460074007{margin-bottom: -40px !important;padding-top: 0px !important;background-color: #ffffff !important;}&#8221;][vc_column width=&#8221;1\/3&#8243;][vc_single_image image=&#8221;3357&#8243; img_size=&#8221;300&#215;300&#8243; alignment=&#8221;center&#8221; css_animation=&#8221;bottom-to-top&#8221;][vc_column_text css_animation=&#8221;bottom-to-top&#8221;]\n<h3 style=\"text-align: left;\">1. Recreate\u00a0Finance<\/h3>\n<h5 style=\"text-align: left;\">Finance is the engine that drives our economy, and it\u00a0is the place to begin transforming it. We recreate\u00a0finance so it is a tool for the benefit of people and planet, rather than using people and planet as a tool to make profit. <a href=\"https:\/\/www.theworkingworld.org\/us\/loans\">The Working World has\u00a0made over a thousand successful investments<\/a> into\u00a0people and has\u00a0never extracted a penny.<\/h5>\n[\/vc_column_text][\/vc_column][vc_column width=&#8221;1\/3&#8243; css=&#8221;.vc_custom_1432068350475{margin-top: 0px !important;margin-bottom: 0px !important;}&#8221;][vc_single_image image=&#8221;3354&#8243; img_size=&#8221;300&#215;300&#8243; alignment=&#8221;center&#8221; css_animation=&#8221;bottom-to-top&#8221;][vc_column_text css_animation=&#8221;bottom-to-top&#8221;]\n<h3 style=\"text-align: left;\">2.\u00a0Add in Pragmatic Training<\/h3>\n<h5 style=\"text-align: left;\">Once we\u00a0democratize capital, we need to democratize knowledge and\u00a0include everyone in the process of running our economy. <a href=\"https:\/\/www.theworkingworld.org\/us\/about-us\/\">Our team and our partners have decades of experience<\/a> helping ordinary people build extraordinary businesses.<\/h5>\n[\/vc_column_text][\/vc_column][vc_column width=&#8221;1\/3&#8243;][vc_single_image image=&#8221;3295&#8243; img_size=&#8221;full&#8221; alignment=&#8221;center&#8221; css_animation=&#8221;bottom-to-top&#8221;][vc_column_text css_animation=&#8221;bottom-to-top&#8221;]\n<h3 style=\"text-align: left;\">3.\u00a0Put People in Charge<\/h3>\n<h5 style=\"text-align: left;\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.theworkingworld.org\/us\/some-field-observations-on-the-applicability-of-elinor-ostroms-work-to-contemporary-cooperative-practice\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">When communities control resources, they care for them<\/a>, and our society and our planet can be stewarded for generations to come when the people are in charge. We have worked with hundreds of worker and community owned businesses across the globe that build wealth and use it to meet the needs of people, and more are created every day.<\/h5>\n[\/vc_column_text][\/vc_column][\/vc_row][vc_row css=&#8221;.vc_custom_1442261894774{margin-top: -20px !important;margin-bottom: -100px !important;}&#8221;][vc_column][vc_single_image image=&#8221;3362&#8243; img_size=&#8221;full&#8221; alignment=&#8221;center&#8221; css_animation=&#8221;bottom-to-top&#8221;][\/vc_column][\/vc_row][vc_row css=&#8221;.vc_custom_1442261914515{margin-top: 0px !important;background-color: #ffffff !important;}&#8221;][vc_column width=&#8221;1\/6&#8243;][vc_column_text][\/vc_column_text][\/vc_column][vc_column width=&#8221;2\/3&#8243;][vc_column_text]\n<h3 style=\"text-align: center;\">4.\u00a0Grow virally and transform\u00a0the world<\/h3>\n<h5 style=\"text-align: center;\">People create their own jobs, build their own economic power, and steward their own communities. As projects are successful, investments are repaid and money and knowledge are\u00a0shared with new communities, allowing the whole system to spread like a network and allow local control to go global.<\/h5>\n<hr \/>\n<h5 style=\"text-align: center;\">How can any organization change the world? \u00a0It can\u2019t \u2014 but people can. The hardest part of any plan is who will execute it. In our plan to transform the economy, we all do it together.<\/h5>\n[\/vc_column_text][\/vc_column][vc_column width=&#8221;1\/6&#8243;][vc_column_text][\/vc_column_text][\/vc_column][\/vc_row][vc_row machine_padding=&#8221;no-pad&#8221; background_style=&#8221;full&#8221;][vc_column]<section class=\"hero-slider centered-text-slider  \"><ul class=\"slides\"><li class=\"overlay \"><div class=\"background-image-holder\"><img width=\"946\" height=\"520\" src=\"https:\/\/www.theworkingworld.org\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/02\/Arizona-EOY-brightened.png\" class=\"background-image\" alt=\"\" loading=\"lazy\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.theworkingworld.org\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/02\/Arizona-EOY-brightened.png 946w, https:\/\/www.theworkingworld.org\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/02\/Arizona-EOY-brightened-300x165.png 300w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 946px) 100vw, 946px\" \/><\/div><div class=\"container vertical-align\"><div class=\"row\"><div class=\"col-sm-12 text-center ebor-slider-content\"><h2 style=\"text-align: center;\"><\/h2>\n<h2 style=\"text-align: center;\"><\/h2>\n<h2 style=\"text-align: center;\"><\/h2>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<h2 style=\"text-align: center;\"><span style=\"color: #ffffff;\">&#8220;People say to me they don&#8217;t think us workers can be owners. But I say to them, believe it, because here we are. Now that we&#8217;ve done this, who knows what&#8217;s possible.&#8221; &#8212; Arizona Stingley, New Era Windows Cooperative<\/span><\/h2>\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\">\u00a0<a class=\"btn btn-filled\" title=\"Loans\" href=\"https:\/\/www.theworkingworld.org\/us\/meet-arizona-stingley\/\">Read Arizona&#8217;s Story<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div><\/div><\/div><\/li><\/ul><\/section>[\/vc_column][\/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column][vc_row_inner css=&#8221;.vc_custom_1441207257126{padding-top: -30px !important;padding-bottom: -30px !important;}&#8221;][vc_column_inner][vc_column_text css_animation=&#8221;left-to-right&#8221;]\n<h3 style=\"text-align: center;\"><span style=\"color: #000000;\">\u00a0Arizona is not alone:<\/span><\/h3>\n[\/vc_column_text][\/vc_column_inner][\/vc_row_inner][vc_empty_space height=&#8221;24px&#8221;]<div class=\"skills-wrapper\"><div class=\"skill\">\n\t\t<i class=\"pe-7s-repeat\"><\/i>\n\t\t<span class=\"number\">98%<\/span>\n\t\t<span class=\"sub\">repayment rate just from profits we helped generate<\/span>\n\t<\/div><div class=\"skill\">\n\t\t<i class=\"pe-7s-graph2\"><\/i>\n\t\t<span class=\"number\">1000+<\/span>\n\t\t<span class=\"sub\">investments in worker and community owned businesses<\/span>\n\t<\/div><div class=\"skill\">\n\t\t<i class=\"pe-7s-share\"><\/i>\n\t\t<span class=\"number\">210+<\/span>\n\t\t<span class=\"sub\">companies democratically owned and managed by workers<\/span>\n\t<\/div><div class=\"skill\">\n\t\t<i class=\"icon_minus-06\"><\/i>\n\t\t<span class=\"number\">$0<\/span>\n\t\t<span class=\"sub\">extracted from the economy through our zero-debt loans<\/span>\n\t<\/div><\/div>[\/vc_column][\/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text css_animation=&#8221;right-to-left&#8221;]\n<h3 style=\"text-align: center;\">You can make a difference.<\/h3>\n<h4 style=\"text-align: center;\">Your donation can\u00a0help build more cooperatives that create real wealth for local communities.<\/h4>\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><a class=\"btn btn-filled\" href=\"https:\/\/www.theworkingworld.org\/us\/donate-now\/\">Donate Now<\/a><\/p>\n[\/vc_column_text][\/vc_column][\/vc_row][vc_row background_style=&#8221;full&#8221; css=&#8221;.vc_custom_1436903145872{padding-top: 150px !important;padding-bottom: 150px !important;background-image: url(https:\/\/www.theworkingworld.org\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/02\/7-de-September-Cooperative.jpg?id=3095) !important;}&#8221;][vc_column width=&#8221;1\/3&#8243;][vc_column_text][\/vc_column_text][\/vc_column][vc_column width=&#8221;1\/3&#8243;][vc_column_text]\n<h3><span style=\"color: #ffffff;\">Join our movement:<\/span><\/h3>\n[\/vc_column_text][vc_column_text]\n<div id=\"mc_embed_signup\">\n<form id=\"mc-embedded-subscribe-form\" class=\"validate\" action=\"\/\/theworkingworld.us4.list-manage.com\/subscribe\/post?u=95008681c58e7f4b1c2c0cb8b&amp;id=09a318b95a\" method=\"post\" name=\"mc-embedded-subscribe-form\" novalidate=\"\" target=\"_blank\">\n<div id=\"mc_embed_signup_scroll\"><input id=\"mce-EMAIL\" class=\"email\" name=\"EMAIL\" required=\"\" type=\"email\" value=\"\" placeholder=\"email address\" \/><\/div>\n<div><!-- real people should not fill this in and expect good things - do not remove this or risk form bot signups--><\/p>\n<div style=\"position: absolute; left: -5000px;\"><input tabindex=\"-1\" name=\"b_95008681c58e7f4b1c2c0cb8b_09a318b95a\" type=\"text\" value=\"\" \/><\/div>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<div class=\"clear\"><input id=\"mc-embedded-subscribe\" class=\"button\" name=\"subscribe\" type=\"submit\" value=\"Subscribe\" \/><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/form>\n<\/div>\n<p><!--End mc_embed_signup-->[\/vc_column_text][\/vc_column][vc_column width=&#8221;1\/3&#8243;][vc_column_text][\/vc_column_text][\/vc_column][\/vc_row]\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>[vc_row content_placement=&#8221;top&#8221; machine_padding=&#8221;no-pad&#8221; background_style=&#8221;full&#8221; css=&#8221;.vc_custom_1496331458434{margin-top: 0px !important;margin-bottom: 0px !important;padding-right: 0px !important;padding-left: 0px !important;}&#8221;][vc_column css=&#8221;.vc_custom_1496331440886{padding-right: 0px !important;padding-left: 0px !important;}&#8221;][\/vc_column][\/vc_row][vc_row machine_padding=&#8221;no-pad&#8221; css=&#8221;.vc_custom_1471382277407{margin-bottom: 0px&#8230;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":2506,"parent":0,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.theworkingworld.org\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/2644"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.theworkingworld.org\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.theworkingworld.org\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/page"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.theworkingworld.org\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.theworkingworld.org\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2644"}],"version-history":[{"count":273,"href":"https:\/\/www.theworkingworld.org\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/2644\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":5134,"href":"https:\/\/www.theworkingworld.org\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/2644\/revisions\/5134"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.theworkingworld.org\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2506"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.theworkingworld.org\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2644"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}