Markets as a peace lab

The potential for a lasting peace is conveyed throughout Kenneth Boulding’s extensive, multidisciplinary work. We get a clear sense, from Boulding, of the factors that influence how we deal with conflict and a deep understanding of why our interactions generate peace in some contexts and war in others. In his writings, however, there is arguably an underemphasized background condition for peace: that is, for a stable peace to emerge people must believe in the potential of peace and have experience peacefully associating with others. An active stable peace relies on people having had positive interactions with others, including others outside their borders, and not just the absence of violent conflict. Stated another way, our experimenting with peaceful interactions in a “peace lab” is a prerequisite for an active stable peace. Markets are arguably a peace lab where we demonstrate the possibility and potential for an active stable peace, and experiment with peace in our daily lives. Although there is no consensus over whether trade leads to peace, or is a consequence of peace, markets can nonetheless give us a reason to believe in the efficacy of peace.

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