Resonant Organizing and Thriving in the Post-growth Era: Diffractive entanglements in a case of social organizing

Abstract

This paper formulates an affirmative non-binary conceptual basis for rethinking the growth/‘post-growth’ binary in the context of repair thinking. We propose the twin notions of resonant organizing and thriving as new imageries of a ‘hopeful’ organizing for a better world in transitional times. These notions arise from our diffractive engagement with Anna Tsing’s reflections on frictions and Hartmut Rosa’s notion resonance, which we brought into dialogue with a case of a solidarity initiative that sprang up in Italy during the Covid-19 pandemic – SpesaSospesa. Our findings contribute to the current post-growth debate by: (1) shifting post-growth organizing’s focus from trying to overcome capitalist expansionist striving toward contaminating its building blocks; (2) theorizing ways in which post-growth organizations may thrive in space and time, relationally; and (3) proposing resonant organizing as a form of reflexive and transformative thriving that expands by constantly rethinking its basic elements. Our research thus contributes to the broader political project of repair crystallizing in organization studies that seeks to help alternative economies exit their marginal role and accomplish their transformative potential.