Prout strongly advocates for economic democracy for all, not mere political democracy. Common people are unable to make proper decisions about their socio-economic circumstances in political democracies due to the lack of education, socio-economic consciousness, and morality among the electorate. In the absence of any of these aforementioned factors, political democracy becomes a farce. Such a system is a tool in the hands of a few politicians with vested interests who form a nexus with capitalists and make false promises of ending economic exploitation to win elections.

Economic Democracy, on the other hand, requires that ordinary people be made guardians of their own economic destiny. In an economic democracy, there is a bifurcation of political and economic power. Ordinary people are empowered to make their own economic decisions and draw up economic plans to meet local needs. Political leaders, as administrators, legislate policies to remove obstacles in the way of implementing economic democracy. The primary goal of economic democracy is to build and grow strong self-reliant local communities.

When local people assume control of managing their economic needs, they are guided by an intimate knowledge of local natural resources available to them. They are better judges of the economic potentialities of their region. Also, they are very likely to plan economic activities to use these resources in a sustainable and responsible manner, due to a sentimental bond they have with the natural ecosystem of the region, such as the rivers, mountains, and forests. Thus, economic democracy ensures economic activities of a region cause minimal impact on natural ecosystems. This will provide the flora and fauna a greater opportunity to thrive and offer a  solution to many man-made crises like deforestation, depletion of natural resources, climate change, and extinction of species.

 Prout’s economic democracy is based on the fulfilment of the following requirements:

1. Guarantee of minimum requirements
2. Increasing purchasing capacity
3. Local economic decision making
4. Curbing outflows of capital and raw materials

We will deal with these requirements in the next lessons.