Reimagining Care: Accounting, Political Economy, and the Financialization of Life

Care economies have always been shaped by forces that extend far beyond the intimate spaces of caregiving. Financialization has reorganised care provision, transformed relationships and redistributed power. Now, new financial interests are extracting value from care infrastructures and new technologies offer the promise to reshape social reproduction, often under the guise of efficiency and sustainability. This comes at a time when public and collective forms of care, and those working to provide such care, are increasingly under attack from the political right. This workshop brings together critical research across political economy, interdisciplinary social sciences and accounting to interrogate these dynamics and explore alternative futures.

We will examine three interlinked themes. First, how financialization structures care economies today: What mechanisms enable capital to flow through (and away from) care systems, and how do these processes redefine notions of value and responsibility?   

Second, the role of right-wing authoritarian politics in shaping the political economy of care: How do austerity, nationalism, and moral conservatism intersect with market logics to constrain or reconfigure care provision?    

Third, the intersections of accounting, technology and political economy in understanding and reimagining care: How do technologies and calculative practices like budgets, audits, performance metrics—mediate care relations? How can we resist and reclaim technologies against the marketization of care infrastructures?

By convening scholars across disciplines, this event seeks to move beyond critique toward envisioning care economies that resist extraction and prioritise human flourishing. Through dialogue, we aim to uncover how accounting and political economy can inform transformative practices, offering pathways for care that are equitable, democratic, and sustainable.  

Confirmed speakers:

Event hosted by Drs Ulrike Marx, Nick Taylor and Claudine Grisard (for AARG)