about

The starting point for me is this: if we want a new kind of economic system, then we must create the conditions for new economic actors, relationships and models to emerge and thrive. So, what new kinds of new actors and relationships are we talking about and what are the conditions needed to bring them into being? This line of inquiry has been fruitful over the last several years, even if it wasn’t clear in the beginning, leading to productive projects and networks. What is emerging is a path to catalysing local and regional economic innovation, entreprenuerial culture, and new enterprise ecosytems. ‘Enterprising Ecosystems‘ may be a boring mouthful of syllables, but it provides a useful frame for this approach.

EnterprisingEcosystems.org is an independent platform for me to share what we’ve learned developing this approach, so far, as well as to continue to develop the inquiry through projects, collaborations, and independent research.

Jay Tompt
@jaytompt

For the past 20 years, Jay has been an active participant in the movement toward ‘regenerative economics’. He’s a co-founding member of the Totnes REconomy Project. Since 2011, the Totnes REconomy Project has launched innovative economic regeneration and resilience building projects, such as the Local Entrepreneur Forum and the REconomy Centre. Jay has also co-developed the Local Economic Blueprint course and handbook, advising community groups developing their own local blueprints. He has also been leading workshops and giving talks about this work on citizen-led economics – in 15 countries, so far. And he’s a core member of the international REconomistas Community of Practice.

For the past 6 years, Jay has been part-time associate lecturer in economics at Plymouth University, where he’s contributed to a number of courses, including Economics in Society, Perspectives in Economics, International Environmental Economics, Introduction to Economics and the new Challenge Module which focuses on the Sustainable Development Goals.

In 2018, Jay co-founded Local Spark: Torbay Community Enterprise CIC, a social enterprise aiming to catalyse citizen-led economic change in a challenging coastal/urban context. 

And in 2020, Jay accepted a post as lecturer at Schumcher College, co-teaching the Regenerative Economics post-graduate programme.

Prior to moving to the UK from San Francisco, Jay spent 8 years as entrepreneur and consultant in the ‘green business movement’ after a 12-year career in Silicon Valley. Jay holds an MBA from the Middlebury Institute of International Studies in Monterey and a BA in Philosophy from San Jose State University.