A buddhist economics approach to innovation and capacity building: The case of Siam hands

• Main Authors: Wanna Prayukvong, James Hoopes
• Other Authors: Babson College
• Format: Review
• Published: 2019
• Subjects: Business, Management and Accounting; Economics, Econometrics and Finance; Social Sciences
• Online Access: https://repository.li.mahidol.ac.th/handle/123456789/45345
• Institution: Mahidol University

© 2018 Akadémiai Kiadó, Budapest. The prevailing view of capacity building is summed up in the adage: “Give a man a fish and you feed him for a day; teach a man to fish and you feed him for a lifetime.” In other words, simple compassion is counterproductive; utilitarian measures of effectiveness are the best standard for evaluating a social innovation. This paper will explore the alternative possibility that practicing simple compassion as the highest virtue, as did the Buddha, can be so productive that the aphorism should be: “Give a woman a fish, and she may help you build a fish farm.” This argument is illustrated by an exploratory case study of a Thai firm, Siam Hands. The company exemplifies a Buddhist economics approach to social innovation and capacity building, as opposed to mainstream Western utilitarianism.