Doctoral defense: Sustainable development in emerging markets requires active market organising
Sustainable development refers to a balance between the social, ecological and economical. In her doctoral dissertation “Early-phase market organizing in subsistence settings”, Sara Lindeman studies how informal trade in urban slum areas is gradually organised into markets. The empirical work is done in East-Africa, India and Brazil. The studies examine when market organising can lift people out of poverty, and provides insight into market organising for sustainable development at large.
Established economic theories claim that markets are best organised through a “laissez-faire”- attitude. My research shows that empowerment of disadvantaged groups to actively participate in market organising processes is necessary for sustainable development, says Lindeman.
Current power structures benefit from the fact that market organising processes tend to remain invisible and unspoken. This makes it more difficult to do the reforms of the economic system that are needed for sustainable development. Lindeman develops conceptual tools to understand and influence market organising at an early stage
Path dependence is strong in market organising. Steering the process towards greater power-distribution and sustainable development from the outset is easier than changing established institutions. There is a potential for innovative and sustainable market organising in emerging markets, says Lindeman.
The research is based on several ethnographic studies and published in three journals. The public defens takes place on Friday the 19th of January, 2018, as part of Marketing research at Hanken School of Economics.
Time: 19.1.2018 kl. 12.00
Place: Futurum, Hanken, Arkadiagatan 22, Helsingfors
Opponent: Professor Hans Kjellberg, Stockholm School of Economics
Kustos: Professor Veronica Liljander, Hanken School of Economics
More information:
Sara Lindeman, + 358 50 448 5040
Background materials:
https://newglobal.aalto.fi/sara-lindemans-doctoral-defense-links-and-ph…