In this chapter, Mook and Whitman provide a critique of the dominant three-sector paradigm, which categorizes organizations into distinct public, private, and social sectors based on their legal status. The critique is inspired by the social economy perspective that focuses attention on the dynamic intersection of the sectors as part of a mixed economy. The social-economy model acknowledges the blending of sectoral elements and the evolution of different types of organizations in the political economy. The authors explain this perspective, contrast it with the three-sector paradigm, and provide an example of how it allows us to reexamine societies and better conceptualize the work of organizations with social objectives. The closing calls for a movement to balance the political economy in favor of humanity and the world.

This chapter addresses the benefits both to society and to prison inmates3 of equitable access, inclusion, and empowerment afforded by intellectual property (IP) protection extended to people in detention who constitute one of the most marginalized populations in the modern history of the United States.