It is striking how many concepts centered around the common good and human-centric development originate in the German-speaking world, particularly in Austria. From Systemic Consensing and initiatives within the Reflector network to the Common Good Economy framework itself—and even the roots of psychotherapy with Sigmund Freud—these methodologies share a distinct regional origin. Figures like Katrin Franke at Common Good Economy Germany e.V. continue to build on this foundation today.
By contrast, management tools like Agile or Scrum and prevailing market logics largely emerge from the Anglo-American sphere. This is no historical accident: the birth of modern capitalism through the enclosures 500 years ago, the Industrial Revolution 250 years ago, and the rise of Thatcherism and neoliberalism all began in Britain. Conversely, pivotal counter-frameworks—from Marx and Engels to the early social democratic and workers' movements spearheaded by Wilhelm and Karl Liebknecht—were deeply rooted in German-speaking Europe.
