Why ‘The Relationist’ ?

Relationists approach politics and economics starting from two simple observations.

(1) That human ideals (freedom, equality, rights, sustainability) can only be realized in the context of real relationships.

(2) That in today’s globalized world, most relationships are governed not by individuals but by the networks that join them together – economic, political, social and digital.

How those networks operate is crucial to our collective wellbeing. The rules embedded within them mean they powerfully affect the mutual visibility, and therefore the behaviour, of the people who populate large-scale systems – but in ways that are usually not recognised. As a result, such systems often work to erode and undermine the very relationships on which they depend.

Relationists argue that this relational dimension needs to be made explicit: that the determinative value of relationships needs to be recognised, and our networks need to be designed to promote and enhance relationships rather than damaging and destroying them.

In terms of political ideology, this approach is new. It doesn’t rely on a binary choice between rights and obligations. It belongs to neither Left nor Right. It can be multi-faith or secular in application, yet draws on, and brings to life, a tradition of Christian thought deeply rooted across Europe. It values liberty and equality but addresses these through the third virtue of fraternity – because societies and organisations stand or fall on the ability of their stakeholders to work in concert.