A collective instrument to inform debates on contemporary social and environmental challenges

Sustainable consumption, responsible investment, CSR, social innovation… Over the last 30 years, citizens and companies gave form to new concepts while environmental and ethical fully became part of the public debate.

Impacts of our production and consumption models on climate, biodiversity, health or even socio-economic inequalities are always more thoroughly documented. But nonetheless, they continuously expand.

Citizens as well as public and private decision-makers are buried under an ever-expanding and sometimes even contradictory flow of information on the potential causes and solutions.

The alternatives that might be able to address the main environmental and social issues are still side-lined. The imperatives of short-term economic return and the perpetual search for the lowest prices remain at the very core of our economic system and our societies.

Since 2013, Basic analyses the production and consumption models, their social and environmental impact, and assesses the societal costs* related to those impacts.

Through its many activities, Basic aims to pinpoint unsustainable models and shed light upon their existing alternatives, in order to support better informed choices for individuals and organisations.

Basic is a cooperative social company (SCIC – société cooperative d’intérêt collectif) since the 1^st of January 2017. A wide variety of stakeholders take part in its governance: employees, academics and researcher, civil society organisations, journalists and supporters.