Creating countervailing coalitions

Max Wilbert writes: 

As the climate crisis accelerates, as the 6th mass extinction spirals further, as chemical pollution reaches record levels day after day, as our overshoot predicament worsens, as more land is paved and more wild places bulldozed, bank accounts continue to rise. We — that is, anyone with a retirement or investment account, and anyone who cheers when the economy booms and groans when it falls — have become business partners in the apocalypse. We’ve Become Business Partners in the Apocalypse, Max Wilbert, 'Counterpunch', 21 August 2025 

We are, effectively, all part of a coalition that has a vested interest in an economy that takes no account of things that are not, or cannot, be measured: the environment and social cohesion, most importantly. Regulation can help, but it's usually too late and is itself influenced by powerful players in the economy, often with the goal of resisting changes that, while benefiting society as a whole, would diminish their income or influence. 

Social Policy Bonds could be a way of creating a countervailing coalition, with goals that explicitly and inextricably linked to societal and environmental well-being. By rewarding the achievement of, say, a cleaner environment they would channel funds into that goal and away from activities that currently pay well, but have little, no or negative social benefit. It's not about raising the incomes of those currently engaged in cleaning up the environment - though they would probably do that, at least at first: it's also about raising the level of resources pumped into improving the environment. There are hard-working organisations that are dedicated to improving our environment, but they operate at too small a scale and are not rewarded in ways commensurate with their efficiency - not financially, that is, and financial resources are necessary: simply, more funding means that could do more. By applying the Social Policy Bond concept to the environment we could create a coalition with a shifting cast of characters, dedicated to the long-term improvement of human, animal and plant life. The bonds would encourage diverse, adaptive approaches, all with a decades-long perspective, to the targeted environmental goals. The way the bonds work would ensure that only the most promising approaches would be pursued, while failing approaches would be terminated.