In this episode of Me, Myself & AI, Casey B dives into the growing wealth divide in Canada, where the richest 1% now control more wealth than the bottom 40% of families combined, and asks: is there a better way to structure our economy?
Through examples like Spain’s Mondragón cooperatives, Italy’s Emilia-Romagna co-op network, and the Nordic nations’ balance of innovation and equality, we explore what democratic socialism really means — and how it could work in a modern Canadian context.
Spoiler: it’s not about the government owning everything. It’s about people owning part of everything — through worker cooperatives, shared public wealth funds, and policies that make prosperity collective, not concentrated.
Casey breaks down:
• What “democratic socialism” actually means vs. common misconceptions
• Real-world proof that worker ownership can thrive
• Why innovation and equality aren’t opposites
• How countries like Sweden, Finland, and Norway turned equity into strength
• Practical next steps Canada could take right now
This isn’t about tearing down capitalism — it’s about fixing what’s broken and building an economy that works for everyone, not just the top 1%.
🧾 Show-Notes Sources
• Canadian Wealth Concentration: Parliamentary Budget Officer & Statistics Canada data — top 1% hold ~24% of national wealth; bottom 40% hold ~3.3%.
• Employee Ownership Trusts (Canada, 2023+): Canada Budget 2023 / Bill C-59 framework.
• Mondragón Cooperative Corporation: Federation of ~80,000 worker-owners, CEO-to-worker pay ratios typically 6:1 (range 3–9:1); survival rate ~97% over 30 years.
• Emilia-Romagna, Italy: Co-ops produce ≈ ⅓ of regional GDP; two-thirds of residents are members.
• Nordic Innovation & Equity: World Intellectual Property Organization – Global Innovation Index 2024 (Sweden #2 globally); OECD / UN data on inequality and productivity.
• World Happiness Report 2025: Finland #1 for 7 consecutive years; Denmark & Iceland follow closely.
• Norway Sovereign Wealth Fund: ~US $2 trillion assets; owns 1–2% of European equities; profits from publicly-owned oil reinvested for citizens.
• Research on Employee-Owned Firms: U.S. NCEO & UK Employee Ownership Association find higher productivity, wage equality, and survival rates.