Written by John Lounsbury
What happens if an economy runs out of “running room”? If the growth of an economy can no longer be sustained bcause of resource limitations, what options are there? These are questions considered this week in a short lecture by Prof. Dan O’Neill from the University of Leeds. Clearly one undesirable option is economic and societal collapse. But that is not the only possibility.
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From YouTube (written by Prof. O’Neill):
Ecological economists argue that the continued pursuit of economic growth in wealthy nations is neither sustainable nor desirable. But if the goal isn’t growth, then what is it? Two possible alternatives include degrowth and a steady-state economy. In this lecture, I explore Herman Daly’s idea of a steady-state economy. I discuss what a steady-state economy would look like, and the changes that would be needed to achieve it. These include policies to limit resource use, stabilise population, limit inequality, reduce working hours, reform the monetary system, change the way we measure progress, and rethink how businesses create value.
Many of the policies mentioned are from my book Enough Is Enough. You can find a short documentary on Enough Is Enough here: https://youtu.be/jgo-eTTmuLk
About Dan O’Neill from University of Leeds website:
- Position: Associate Professor in Ecological Economics
- Areas of expertise: ecological macroeconomics; policies for sustainability; environmental, social, and economic indicators; relationships between resource use and human well-being; planetary health
- Location: 11.113 School of Earth and Environment
- Websites: YouTube | A Good Life For All Within Planetary Boundaries | Twitter | Googlescholar | ORCID
I am an Associate Professor within the Sustainability Research Institute, and the leader of the Economics and Policy for Sustainability Research Group. My research focuses on the changes that would be needed to achieve a sustainable economy within planetary boundaries, and the relationships between resource use and human well-being.
One of the ideas that I have explored in depth is the concept of a ‘steady-state economy’. Simply put, this is an economy where resource use and waste emissions are stabilised, and kept within ecological limits. Stabilising resource use may have important consequences for national economies, and I investigate how to manage these in my research. Some of the changes that may be required are explored in my book Enough Is Enough: Building a Sustainable Economy in a World of Finite Resources (co-authored with Rob Dietz), which has also been made into a short documentary film by UK film-maker Tom Bliss.
This lecture is just over 17 minutes in length.
Source: YouTube
