Thomas Diefenbach - Pentoutopia: Free individuals in a democratic, equal, just and sustainable society

PENTOUTOPIA

Free individuals in a democratic, equal, just and sustainable society

This book is about Pentoutopia the model of a good society. It shows how a society could be, how a society should be a society where everyone is as free as possible, where all institutions are as democratic as possible, where all people have (relatively) equal conditions, where life is just , and where systems and processes are sustainable . The book illustrates comprehensively and in detail how institutions, organisations, the economy and society can be based on, and function according to, the principles of freedom, democracy, equality, justice and sustainability . Moreover, it demonstrates how Pentoutopia works, how its people and institutions establish and maintain a society that is not just a distant utopia but a realistic , achievable and doable utopia.

Thomas Diefenbach is an independent social philosopher. He has degrees in social pedagogy (BA), economics and business administration (MSc, PhD), and has studied philosophy and other social sciences for most of his life. For many years, Thomas Diefenbach worked for institutions of further and higher education and other organisations, and as a self-employed in various countries. His books include Management and the Dominance of Managers (2009), Hierarchy and Organisation (2013), and The Democratic Organisation (2020). His opus is a critical reflection of his lifelong theoretical and empirical research as well as of his own personal experiences at work and of public and social life.

First published 2023

ISBN (paperback): 978-3-00-073491-5

2023 Thomas Diefenbach

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced, reprinted or utilised in any form or by any mechanical, electronic or other means, including photocopying and recording, or in any information storage or retrieval system, without permission in writing from the author.

One of the fundamental questions of and for humans and humankind is how a social system (like a society) needs to be designed and function so that all of its members are as free as possible and its institutions are as democratic, equal, just and sustainable as possible. What kind of social system, with what kind of institutions and mechanisms, policies and procedures, structures and processes can provide and guarantee such conditions (Bookchin 1971, p. 229, Held 1987, p. 264, Hahnel 2005, p. 4, Bogason & Musso 2006, p. 15)? What kind of institutions, organisations, economy, government and social sphere would constitute such a good society? How would, how should they be designed, work and function?

This book attempts to answer these questions. It outlines a society where every individual is as free as possible; where all organisations, the economy and the governance of the public sphere are fully democratic; where everyone has equal rights, equal opportunities, equal conditions and factual possibilities; where justice prevails and everything is in balance and sustainable. I call this society Pentoutopia.

In this book I outline a general model of a good society that is as comprehensive and at the same time as detailed and specific as possible. The concept describes what kind of people and institutions constitute and maintain Pentoutopia ( free individuals and legitimate institutions, Part I), how organisations are designed and function (as democratic organisations , Part II), what kind of economy Pentoutopia has and how it works (a democratic market economy , Part III), how the public sphere and society is governed (via civil democracy , Part IV), how (more) equality is achieved throughout (especially economic and social equality, Part V), how justice is guaranteed (both procedural and distributive justice , Part V), and how the system, processes and (economic) activities are sustainable (in the form of durability, balance and moderation , Part V). For each of these aspects I provide suitable concepts, theories and models (developed by me when no appropriate ones were available) and address the most relevant issues in order to show that Pentoutopia can work and function and how it works and functions.

Crucially, Pentoutopia is built on, committed to and functions according to the very same universal values and principles it aims for, i.e.: 1. Freedom (negative and positive freedom of individuals), 2. Democracy (democratic design, workings, governance and management of institutions, especially organisations, political institutions, the public and social sphere), 3. Equality (equal rights, opportunities and conditions for everyone), 4. Justice (procedural and distributive justice), and 5. Sustainability (durability, balance and moderation). These principles are so fundamental for any decent and legitimate social system that I call them the essential five. Pentoutopia is based on, upholds, maintains and defends these five essential principles and values comprehensively and robustly as a whole as well as in each and every one of its parts. And it does so at a level and to the extent no other society does or could do.

Freedom, democracy, equality, justice and sustainability are key for every social system and in every cultural context. Throughout history people have been willing to risk their lives for these ideas. When drafting the concept of the good society based on these principles the problem was not so much to provide definitions or concepts of these principles there are plenty around for each of them. What has been the challenge, and what is probably the problem in general, is to show how exactly organisations, the economy, government and society can be designed and function according to these principles; how these principles can be put into practice, how they can be applied to individuals and institutions in ways that serve both; and how to get these and other principles together into one comprehensive and (largely) consistent theoretical framework of the good society .

Some of the principles, for example (individual) freedom and (representative) democracy, so far have been institutionalised in many Western But it would be a mistake to portray or understand these principles as Western values. In most, if not all, human cultures and societies there are notions of and an urge for freedom, democracy, equality, justice and sustainability (even if they are not named as such) as it is evidenced by the countless struggles in Central and Eastern Europe, the Middle East, Central, South, East and Southeast Asia, in Africa, Oceania, Middle and South America. People, whoever and wherever they are , have the inalienable right to be free, and deserve to be so; to be involved in making individual and collective democratic decisions about (the conditions of) their work and lives, and the social systems they are part of; to have equal rights and to enjoy equal conditions; and to live in circumstances and social systems that are just, balanced, moderate and lasting. Most people actually want these things to be the case. In this sense, the essential five and their realisation are vital anywhere and everywhere in the world. The essential five are universal principles.

Pentoutopia is not only a society that is based on, and adheres to, these universal principles to the highest degree but applies the principles of freedom, democracy, equality, justice and sustainability to individuals and to institutions, organisations, the economy and (the governance of) the public and social sphere systematically, comprehensively and profoundly . This is new, and differentiates it from other concepts of (a good) society. Pentoutopia describes a society, is a society, never seen before. Its social and political spheres, economy and organisations are built on principles and policies, structures and processes that make every single person as free as possible, and on institutions that are fully democratic, equal, just and balanced as far as possible. Pentoutopia is an open, inclusive and dynamic society. The model of Pentoutopia provides a universal positive alternative. This model, hence, can serve as a blueprint for any larger social system or society, in East and West, in the Global North and the Global South. Thus, this book is for everyone who is, or wants to get, serious about having not only a fundamentally different , but a better society than the current ones, a much better society, anywhere in the world.