About this work
The Associative Economics Institute was established in 2002 to promote a path from competition to association in economic life. With special emphasis on Rudolf Steiner’s contribution to economics and a focus on bridging from ideas into practice, the Institute offers seminars, publications and courses on a worldwide basis. It also conducts on-going research into the nature and tasks of modern economic life.
The associative approach to economics is based on the idea that economic life is the responsibility of every human being in collaboration with humanity as a whole. It proceeds from what we think and do, rather than by way of abstract forces. Associative economics is about making this responsibility conscious and finding ways to give it effect in practical life.
Concerned at the absence of associative economics from the debates about today's fast-moving developments, three colleagues - Marc Desaules, Anita Grandjean and Christopher Houghton Budd - felt it important to provide formal support for associative economics. To this end, a number of developments took place during the course of 1998:
29 September 1998 - As a worldwide project, a Quality Guarantee Mark was established and its logo - 
- was registered in Switzerland and internationally. The Mark is governed in accordance with a registered set of Rules and is intended to promote understanding for an associative approach to modern economic life.
20 November 1998 - The Associative Economics Fund was created to provide a channel for the financial support of these activities. It was launched with an initial contribution earmarked for the creation and registration of the Mark and to establish some basic organisational structure. Individuals or organisations who regard associative economics as a need of the times are encouraged to contribute to this fund either generally or for specific purposes.
6 December 1998 - To provide a legal home for this work, a public benefit body, the Associative Economics Association, was founded in England and registered in Switzerland, with the aim of encouraging research into the principles and applications of associative economics in the world as a whole. It is also the proprietor of the Quality Guarantee Mark.
