{"id":196079,"date":"2026-02-12T11:44:06","date_gmt":"2026-02-12T10:44:06","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.erasmusmagazine.nl\/en\/?p=196079"},"modified":"2026-02-12T11:44:10","modified_gmt":"2026-02-12T10:44:10","slug":"why-the-economy-doesnt-belong-to-economists","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.erasmusmagazine.nl\/en\/2026\/02\/12\/why-the-economy-doesnt-belong-to-economists\/","title":{"rendered":"Why the economy doesn\u2019t belong to economists"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p class=\"has-intro-font-size\">Economists often describe the economy in terms of what is visible and measurable. But what if the work that actually holds societies together, work that is usually unseen and undervalued, forms its true foundation? For Wendy Harcourt, a single image was enough to connect a lifetime of feminist and environmental research into a radically different way of understanding what the economy really is.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1600\" height=\"1067\" src=\"https:\/\/www.erasmusmagazine.nl\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/8\/Wendy-Harcourt_ISS_DenHaag_EUREKA_11022026_Pien-Duthmann-1600x1067.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-196113\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.erasmusmagazine.nl\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/8\/Wendy-Harcourt_ISS_DenHaag_EUREKA_11022026_Pien-Duthmann-1600x1067.jpg?image-crop-positioner-ts=1770889000 1600w, https:\/\/www.erasmusmagazine.nl\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/8\/Wendy-Harcourt_ISS_DenHaag_EUREKA_11022026_Pien-Duthmann-875x583.jpg?image-crop-positioner-ts=1770889000 875w, https:\/\/www.erasmusmagazine.nl\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/8\/Wendy-Harcourt_ISS_DenHaag_EUREKA_11022026_Pien-Duthmann-300x200.jpg?image-crop-positioner-ts=1770889000 300w, https:\/\/www.erasmusmagazine.nl\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/8\/Wendy-Harcourt_ISS_DenHaag_EUREKA_11022026_Pien-Duthmann-1280x854.jpg?image-crop-positioner-ts=1770889000 1280w, https:\/\/www.erasmusmagazine.nl\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/8\/Wendy-Harcourt_ISS_DenHaag_EUREKA_11022026_Pien-Duthmann-1536x1024.jpg?image-crop-positioner-ts=1770889000 1536w, https:\/\/www.erasmusmagazine.nl\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/8\/Wendy-Harcourt_ISS_DenHaag_EUREKA_11022026_Pien-Duthmann-2048x1366.jpg?image-crop-positioner-ts=1770889000 2048w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1600px) 100vw, 1600px\" \/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\"><p data-component=\"image-credits\" class=\"flex flex-wrap gap-2 items-center text-base\">\n\t<span aria-hidden=\"true\"><svg width=\"24\" height=\"24\" viewBox=\"0 0 24 24\" fill=\"none\" xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\">\n<path d=\"M19.5 5.25H16.9012L15.6234 3.33375C15.555 3.23114 15.4623 3.147 15.3535 3.08879C15.2448 3.03057 15.1233 3.00007 15 3H9C8.87665 3.00007 8.75522 3.03057 8.64648 3.08879C8.53773 3.147 8.44502 3.23114 8.37656 3.33375L7.09781 5.25H4.5C3.90326 5.25 3.33097 5.48705 2.90901 5.90901C2.48705 6.33097 2.25 6.90326 2.25 7.5V18C2.25 18.5967 2.48705 19.169 2.90901 19.591C3.33097 20.0129 3.90326 20.25 4.5 20.25H19.5C20.0967 20.25 20.669 20.0129 21.091 19.591C21.5129 19.169 21.75 18.5967 21.75 18V7.5C21.75 6.90326 21.5129 6.33097 21.091 5.90901C20.669 5.48705 20.0967 5.25 19.5 5.25ZM15.375 12.375C15.375 13.0425 15.1771 13.695 14.8062 14.25C14.4354 14.8051 13.9083 15.2376 13.2916 15.4931C12.6749 15.7485 11.9963 15.8154 11.3416 15.6852C10.6869 15.5549 10.0855 15.2335 9.61351 14.7615C9.14151 14.2895 8.82007 13.6881 8.68985 13.0334C8.55962 12.3787 8.62646 11.7001 8.88191 11.0834C9.13735 10.4667 9.56993 9.93964 10.125 9.56879C10.68 9.19794 11.3325 9 12 9C12.8951 9 13.7535 9.35558 14.3865 9.98851C15.0194 10.6214 15.375 11.4799 15.375 12.375Z\" fill=\"currentColor\"\/>\n<\/svg>\n<\/span>\n\t<span class=\"sr-only\">Image by:<\/span>\n\n\t\t\t<span>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<a href=\"https:\/\/www.erasmusmagazine.nl\/en\/persons\/pien-duthmann\/\" class=\"underline hocus:no-underline decoration-1 underline-offset-2\">Pien D\u00fcthmann<\/a>\t\t\t\t\t<\/span>\n\t<\/p>\n<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>The wonder<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cI grew up surrounded by economists as my father, brother and husband were economists. They talked about markets, firms, and finance. That made me believe that the economy was something for experts, and I felt that it wasn\u2019t a place for me.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cI\u2019m a trained historian, and I always kept an eye for the history of ideas. Later I became active in feminist and ecological movements. I was interested in how people make a living, survive in difficult circumstances, and live together in community. I\u2019ve studied inspiring examples of how inventive people can make ends meet, and to set up alternative ways of living. Domestic and emotional labour, and community and care work, all usually fall on the shoulders of women. Such reproductive work is essential to keep a society going. And yet all those activities were seen as not \u2018real work\u2019. Moreover, with big societal issues and crises, it is still economists who ultimately shape decisions, even when the issues are cultural, social or environmental.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\t<div data-name=\"acf\/featured-text\" class=\"md:mt-6 p-4 md:p-6 lg:p-8 bg-sand-300 theme-sand:bg-white theme-violet:bg-white theme-mocha:bg-white wysiwyg *:last:mb-0!\" >\n\t\t<p>Wendy Harcourt is professor of Gender, Diversity and Sustainable Development at the International Institute of Social Studies. As a feminist political economist and critical development scholar, her work explores how care, gender and community-based practices reshape our understanding of the economy.<\/p>\n\n\t<\/div>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>The eureka moment<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cWhen I started teaching post-development at the ISS, I went looking for ways to conceptualise community work and informal labour. That search led me to the work of JK Gibson Graham. When I read their work on post-capitalism economics and saw the diagram of the \u2018diverse economies iceberg\u2019, I had a true eureka moment.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cWhat we usually recognise and measure as economic activity occupies only the visible surface, while beneath it lies the much larger body of diverse economic activities that actually sustains society and life. The iceberg image was incredibly liberating for me. It gave me a language to articulate what I had long observed but couldn\u2019t name: that this invisible work, largely carried out by women, is not separate from the formal economy but the very foundation on which it rests.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1600\" height=\"1067\" src=\"https:\/\/www.erasmusmagazine.nl\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/8\/Wendy-Harcourt_ISS_DenHaag_EUREKA_detail2_11022026_Pien-Duthmann-1600x1067.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-196114\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.erasmusmagazine.nl\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/8\/Wendy-Harcourt_ISS_DenHaag_EUREKA_detail2_11022026_Pien-Duthmann-1600x1067.jpg?image-crop-positioner-ts=1770889020 1600w, https:\/\/www.erasmusmagazine.nl\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/8\/Wendy-Harcourt_ISS_DenHaag_EUREKA_detail2_11022026_Pien-Duthmann-875x583.jpg?image-crop-positioner-ts=1770889020 875w, https:\/\/www.erasmusmagazine.nl\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/8\/Wendy-Harcourt_ISS_DenHaag_EUREKA_detail2_11022026_Pien-Duthmann-300x200.jpg?image-crop-positioner-ts=1770889020 300w, https:\/\/www.erasmusmagazine.nl\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/8\/Wendy-Harcourt_ISS_DenHaag_EUREKA_detail2_11022026_Pien-Duthmann-1280x854.jpg?image-crop-positioner-ts=1770889020 1280w, https:\/\/www.erasmusmagazine.nl\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/8\/Wendy-Harcourt_ISS_DenHaag_EUREKA_detail2_11022026_Pien-Duthmann-1536x1024.jpg?image-crop-positioner-ts=1770889020 1536w, https:\/\/www.erasmusmagazine.nl\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/8\/Wendy-Harcourt_ISS_DenHaag_EUREKA_detail2_11022026_Pien-Duthmann-2048x1366.jpg?image-crop-positioner-ts=1770889020 2048w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1600px) 100vw, 1600px\" \/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\"><p data-component=\"image-credits\" class=\"flex flex-wrap gap-2 items-center text-base\">\n\t<span aria-hidden=\"true\"><svg width=\"24\" height=\"24\" viewBox=\"0 0 24 24\" fill=\"none\" xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\">\n<path d=\"M19.5 5.25H16.9012L15.6234 3.33375C15.555 3.23114 15.4623 3.147 15.3535 3.08879C15.2448 3.03057 15.1233 3.00007 15 3H9C8.87665 3.00007 8.75522 3.03057 8.64648 3.08879C8.53773 3.147 8.44502 3.23114 8.37656 3.33375L7.09781 5.25H4.5C3.90326 5.25 3.33097 5.48705 2.90901 5.90901C2.48705 6.33097 2.25 6.90326 2.25 7.5V18C2.25 18.5967 2.48705 19.169 2.90901 19.591C3.33097 20.0129 3.90326 20.25 4.5 20.25H19.5C20.0967 20.25 20.669 20.0129 21.091 19.591C21.5129 19.169 21.75 18.5967 21.75 18V7.5C21.75 6.90326 21.5129 6.33097 21.091 5.90901C20.669 5.48705 20.0967 5.25 19.5 5.25ZM15.375 12.375C15.375 13.0425 15.1771 13.695 14.8062 14.25C14.4354 14.8051 13.9083 15.2376 13.2916 15.4931C12.6749 15.7485 11.9963 15.8154 11.3416 15.6852C10.6869 15.5549 10.0855 15.2335 9.61351 14.7615C9.14151 14.2895 8.82007 13.6881 8.68985 13.0334C8.55962 12.3787 8.62646 11.7001 8.88191 11.0834C9.13735 10.4667 9.56993 9.93964 10.125 9.56879C10.68 9.19794 11.3325 9 12 9C12.8951 9 13.7535 9.35558 14.3865 9.98851C15.0194 10.6214 15.375 11.4799 15.375 12.375Z\" fill=\"currentColor\"\/>\n<\/svg>\n<\/span>\n\t<span class=\"sr-only\">Image by:<\/span>\n\n\t\t\t<span>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<a href=\"https:\/\/www.erasmusmagazine.nl\/en\/persons\/pien-duthmann\/\" class=\"underline hocus:no-underline decoration-1 underline-offset-2\">Pien D\u00fcthmann<\/a>\t\t\t\t\t<\/span>\n\t<\/p>\n<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>The research<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cI used this approach in a large EU Research project. As part of the Wellbeing Ecology Gender cOmmunity (WEGO) network, I worked closely with cooperatives and local groups, and we explored how people organise their livelihoods for instance through care, bartering, and local food production. The iceberg image makes it possible to take these practices seriously, even when they don\u2019t fit neatly into conventional economic models. It allowed me to place diverse economics activities that recognised the crucial importance of care, women\u2019s work and environment at the centre of economic life.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cAlso for teaching this concept of the iceberg works very well. When they see it, students have a moment of recognition. I invited them to create their own iceberg diagrams based on their lives and contexts. Suddenly the economy is no longer distant or technical, but something rooted in their everyday experiences. The PhDs in the WEGO network were inspired by diverse economies looking at the activities below the iceberg tip. One PhD project, for instance, focused on older women in depopulated areas of Japan, where men and younger generations had left. By making and selling noodles gleaned from their local area, these women sustained themselves, preserved local knowledge and built a community economy alongside the capitalist one.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1600\" height=\"1066\" src=\"https:\/\/www.erasmusmagazine.nl\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/8\/Wendy-Harcourt_ISS_DenHaag_EUREKA_detail3_11022026_Pien-Duthmann-1600x1066.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-196115\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.erasmusmagazine.nl\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/8\/Wendy-Harcourt_ISS_DenHaag_EUREKA_detail3_11022026_Pien-Duthmann-1600x1066.jpg?image-crop-positioner-ts=1770889041 1600w, https:\/\/www.erasmusmagazine.nl\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/8\/Wendy-Harcourt_ISS_DenHaag_EUREKA_detail3_11022026_Pien-Duthmann-875x583.jpg?image-crop-positioner-ts=1770889041 875w, https:\/\/www.erasmusmagazine.nl\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/8\/Wendy-Harcourt_ISS_DenHaag_EUREKA_detail3_11022026_Pien-Duthmann-300x200.jpg?image-crop-positioner-ts=1770889041 300w, https:\/\/www.erasmusmagazine.nl\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/8\/Wendy-Harcourt_ISS_DenHaag_EUREKA_detail3_11022026_Pien-Duthmann-1280x853.jpg?image-crop-positioner-ts=1770889041 1280w, https:\/\/www.erasmusmagazine.nl\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/8\/Wendy-Harcourt_ISS_DenHaag_EUREKA_detail3_11022026_Pien-Duthmann-1536x1024.jpg?image-crop-positioner-ts=1770889041 1536w, https:\/\/www.erasmusmagazine.nl\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/8\/Wendy-Harcourt_ISS_DenHaag_EUREKA_detail3_11022026_Pien-Duthmann-2048x1365.jpg?image-crop-positioner-ts=1770889041 2048w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1600px) 100vw, 1600px\" \/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\"><p data-component=\"image-credits\" class=\"flex flex-wrap gap-2 items-center text-base\">\n\t<span aria-hidden=\"true\"><svg width=\"24\" height=\"24\" viewBox=\"0 0 24 24\" fill=\"none\" xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\">\n<path d=\"M19.5 5.25H16.9012L15.6234 3.33375C15.555 3.23114 15.4623 3.147 15.3535 3.08879C15.2448 3.03057 15.1233 3.00007 15 3H9C8.87665 3.00007 8.75522 3.03057 8.64648 3.08879C8.53773 3.147 8.44502 3.23114 8.37656 3.33375L7.09781 5.25H4.5C3.90326 5.25 3.33097 5.48705 2.90901 5.90901C2.48705 6.33097 2.25 6.90326 2.25 7.5V18C2.25 18.5967 2.48705 19.169 2.90901 19.591C3.33097 20.0129 3.90326 20.25 4.5 20.25H19.5C20.0967 20.25 20.669 20.0129 21.091 19.591C21.5129 19.169 21.75 18.5967 21.75 18V7.5C21.75 6.90326 21.5129 6.33097 21.091 5.90901C20.669 5.48705 20.0967 5.25 19.5 5.25ZM15.375 12.375C15.375 13.0425 15.1771 13.695 14.8062 14.25C14.4354 14.8051 13.9083 15.2376 13.2916 15.4931C12.6749 15.7485 11.9963 15.8154 11.3416 15.6852C10.6869 15.5549 10.0855 15.2335 9.61351 14.7615C9.14151 14.2895 8.82007 13.6881 8.68985 13.0334C8.55962 12.3787 8.62646 11.7001 8.88191 11.0834C9.13735 10.4667 9.56993 9.93964 10.125 9.56879C10.68 9.19794 11.3325 9 12 9C12.8951 9 13.7535 9.35558 14.3865 9.98851C15.0194 10.6214 15.375 11.4799 15.375 12.375Z\" fill=\"currentColor\"\/>\n<\/svg>\n<\/span>\n\t<span class=\"sr-only\">Image by:<\/span>\n\n\t\t\t<span>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<a href=\"https:\/\/www.erasmusmagazine.nl\/en\/persons\/pien-duthmann\/\" class=\"underline hocus:no-underline decoration-1 underline-offset-2\">Pien D\u00fcthmann<\/a>\t\t\t\t\t<\/span>\n\t<\/p>\n<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>The aftermath<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cThese insights are sometimes met with resistance by some students, and in conferences discussing sustainable development. Mainstream economists can find it romantic, or fluffy. They see my research on gender, alternative economics and care as sociology or anthropology. And implicitly, as less important.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cI\u2019ve become more confident in pushing back against that view. Precisely because this type of research is so empowering. When the economy is framed as something abstract, managed by distant experts, it becomes hard to imagine that you\u2019re part of it and that you have the power to change things. But if you recognise care, community and everyday practices as economic activities, people can reclaim the economy as their own.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cAnd diverse economies are already there. We don\u2019t need to wait for a revolution to change things. Of course that doesn\u2019t mean capitalism will disappear, or that we do need to study how it disappears. The tip of the iceberg still matters. But it\u2019s not the whole story. Economic alternatives don\u2019t have to be invented from scratch. We just need to understand them better, and create more space for these communities and ways of living to flourish. That matters enormously in a time of climate crisis and deep inequality.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n\t","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Economists often describe the economy in terms of what is visible and measurable. But what if the work that actually holds societies together, work that is usually unseen and undervalued, forms its true foundation? For Wendy Harcourt, a single image was enough to connect a lifetime of feminist and environmental research into a radically different [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":311,"featured_media":196113,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_trash_the_other_posts":false,"editor_notices":[],"footnotes":""},"categories":[24205],"em_content_type":[24779],"class_list":["post-196079","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-eureka","em_content_type-rubriek"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v27.3 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>Why the economy doesn\u2019t belong to economists<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Economists often describe the economy in terms of what is visible and measurable. 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