Turns out… capitalism is not inevitable.

Growing up in the United States—and studying at the University of Chicago, famously associated with free‑market economics—it can be hard to imagine an economy that isn’t capitalism. We’re taught refrains like “competition drives efficiency” or “humans are innately competitive.” Over time, these ideas can make capitalism feel less like a choice and more like a law of nature.

But it isn’t.

Alternative economic frameworks exist—and they have existed for a long time.

While studying at the Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona, in a course called Political Ecology, Feminism, and Environmental Justice, Arpita Bisht introduced me to one such framework: Gandhian Economics. I’m not arguing that we should adopt this framework wholesale. Instead, I find it powerful as a form of “guerrilla narrative”—a term coined by Marco Armiero—because it disrupts the dominant story that capitalism is inevitable by offering a coherent alternative.

So, here’s one alternative worth turning over together.

Gandhian Economics: Six Core Tenets

Gandhian ideology emerged from ideas Gandhi developed in South Africa (1893–1914) and later in India, blending moral, social, and economic principles. 

Rejecting both capitalism and communism, Gandhi advocated a decentralized form of socialism rooted in village self-rule and cooperative economies. He imagined a network of self-reliant villages that balanced market activity with social equity, while preserving personal freedom and dignity.

How would we get there? Gandhi thought this could happen through moral change rather than conflict. Instead of workers taking wealth by force, he believed the rich could choose to consume less and share more. His approach was rooted in faith in people’s ability to grow ethically and in nonviolent change.

Has it been tested?   As a unified framework, Gandhian Economics has not been adopted, or even tested, at a large scale. However it has influenced the governance of India during and after Independence and we continue to see echoes of it India’s post-independence planning with an emphasis on panchayati raj institutions (a system of local self-governance in rural areas), and today in the widespread prevalence of cooperatives promoted by the Multi-state Cooperative Societies Act of 2002 and the establishment of the Ministry of Cooperation in 2021.

So what’s the framework? It’s defined by 6 tenets, described below.

Source: GeeksforGeeks. (n.d.). Mahatma Gandhi ideologies. Retrieved January 8, 2026, from https://www.geeksforgeeks.org/social-science/mahatma-gandhi-ideologies/

1. Swadeshi (Self‑rule and self‑restraint)

Produce and consume locally made goods.  And, we should shape our preferences around what is made locally.  

This isn’t isolationism—it’s about grounding economies in place, reducing dependence on distant markets, and shaping our preferences based on what can be accessed in our local surroundings.  

From 1905 to 1911, the Swadeshi movement under Gandhi’s leadership called on Indians to reject imported goods in favor of locally made ones. This approach weakened economic reliance on Britain, generated local employment, and strengthened faith in India’s own productive capacity.

2. Bread Labour

Everyone should contribute labor to meet their basic needs. Work is not something to be outsourced entirely to others; it is tied to dignity, ethics, and equality.

• People should choose to work, motivated by a sense of responsibility. We should create a culture where people associate the process to meet their needs (i.e. food on their table) with morals — to work for one’s bread is a moral act.  

• Men must do housework too. Essential labor for one’s own wellbeing (like housework) should not be offloaded onto others.  It can be equally distributed within a household or care structure.

• Eliminating work that sustains violence, war, or torture is a moral imperative.

3. Aparigraha (Non‑possession / Possession by all)

Accumulation beyond one’s needs is a form of injustice.

• If you have a huge surplus of leisure time or excess money, it may be the result of someone else’s exploitation.  (But still, everyone deserves some rest! #RestAsResistance)

• Individual wellbeing depends not only on consuming goods, but also on producing something useful to others.

4. Trusteeship

You have the right to earn a livelihood—but not to hoard wealth.

• Huge excesses of surplus wealth belong to the community.

• Those with more resources hold them in trust and are responsible for using them for collective benefit.

5. Equality and Valuing Labor

Extreme income gaps are incompatible with a just society.

• Income differences should be minimal.

• All forms of labor—especially care and reproductive labor—must be valued.

6. Sarvodaya (The Welfare of All)

An economy should be evaluated by whether it advances collective flourishing, not aggregate growth.

• Privilege must be acknowledged and accounted for.

• High income often reflects historical advantage, not individual merit.

• Easy opportunities are frequently the result of past and present oppression.

• Those who benefit from these structures have a responsibility to repair harm.

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Gandhian Economics doesn’t ask us to romanticize scarcity or reject modern life. Instead, it invites us to ask different questions: What is enough? Who benefits? Who bears the cost? Most importantly, it reminds us that economies are made by people—and that means they can be remade.

Capitalism is not inevitable. It’s just one story we’ve been telling for a long time.

Sources: 

• Bisht, A. (2025, November 7). Lecture on political ecology and degrowth [Unpublished lecture]. Master’s in Political Ecology, Environmental Justice, and Degrowth, Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona.

• Diwan, R. (1987). Mahatma Gandhi and the economics of non-exploitation. International Journal of Social Economics, 14(2), 39–52. https://doi.org/10.1108/eb014039

• GeeksforGeeks. (n.d.). Mahatma Gandhi ideologies. Retrieved January 8, 2026, from https://www.geeksforgeeks.org/social-science/mahatma-gandhi-ideologies/