Distributism is an economic philosophy that seeks to spread the ownership of productive property—such as land, homes, workshops, farms, and businesses—as widely as possible throughout society rather than concentrating it in either large corporations or the state. Developed chiefly by GK Chesterton and Hilaire Belloc, and inspired by the social teachings of the Catholic Church, particularly Rerum Novarum, distributism favors family-owned businesses, cooperatives, guilds, small farms, and local en