Jon Alexander on citizens vs consumers

In this episode special guest Jon Alexander, author of Citizens: Why the Key to Fixing Everything is All of Us, shares why we need to change our 'consumer' culture to a 'citizen' one and what we can accomplish if our businesses and institutions work to empower active citizens rather than continue to drive consumerism. For a decade Jon worked in advertising, until he realised that he was a part of the problem. He was selling a the story of consumerism, which he no longer believed in. So in 2014 he left to co-found the New Citizenship Project to support organisations interested in involving people in the decisions that affect their lives as citizens. NCP has partnered with organisations and institutions including the Co-op, National Trust, BBC, European Central Bank and many more. Jon discusses the frameworks from the book including the 3 principles of participatory organisations, which are Purpose, People, Prototype. And why he believes that a citizen mindset 'can meet the world where we are, but also take us where we need to go'. This episode was hosted by Claire Eades, founder of Marmalade Film and Media, and Paul Skinner, founder of MarketingKind, Director of The Agency of the Future and author of The Purpose Upgrade and Collaborative Advantage.