Less is More: How Degrowth Will Save the World

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The third book was "Capital in the 21st Century" by Thomas Piketty. Not an easy read but fundamental for me to understand that there is a problem when capital is becoming a lot more important than labor. It's hard to build an equal society when being a rent-seeker is enormously more profitable than being a hard-worker without capital. It's serfdom in disguise. I’ve heard this story elsewhere (fellow anthropologist David Graeber, those influenced by Fernand Braudel like Immanuel Wallerstein), and of course this is a messy topic with many inner debates, but this was a refreshing summary: capitalism did not “evolve” from feudalism in a linear, progressive manner. This fuels a politics of fear and resentment at what could be lost, at the expense of what could be gained —both for society and the world. In turn, the conflation of values with hollow consumerism bodes awfully for any kind of meaningful solidarity with the Global South, and makes a future in which US politics is charged over the plight of domestic climate refugees more imminent with each passing year. This book has some excellent criticisms of modern capitalist systems and proposes some practical methods that could be used to reduce our obsession with and dependence on economic growth. Inequality creates a sense of unfairness: it erodes public trust, cohesion and solidarity. It’s also linked to poorer health, higher levels of crime and less social mobility. People who live in unequal societies tend to be more frustrated, anxious, insecure and discontent with their lives” (Ibid.: 179).

Circular economy: Most of what is produced is either still in use (e.g., infrastructure) or is wasted/cannot be reused (e.g., waste generated from mining activities). Only a small fraction has circular potential, but economic growth would keep driving total resource use up. In essence, a circular economy would be ineffective in reducing net material use (e.g., Kasulaitis et al., 2018) It is, like every other measure, imperfect and one-dimensional. But ... it is imperfect at the edges while fairly accurate overall. Richer countries are countries that are generally better-off in almost all metrics, from education, life expectancy, child mortality to women’s employment etc. Not only that: richer people are also on average healthier, better educated, and happier. Income indeed buys you health and happiness. (It does not guarantee that you are a better person; but that’s a different topic.) The metric of income or GDP is strongly associated with positive outcomes, whether we compare countries to each other, or people (within a country) to each other. One of the most important books I have read. Less is Morecalmly dismantles the central myths of capitalism, exposing its destructive madness for all to see. It then does something extremely rare: it outlines a clear path to a sustainable future for all. A manifesto for movements and a manual for policymakers, everyone needs to understand its urgent message.” Our fears of needing more to achieve a “good life” is contrasted with the actual measures of wellness. Historically, this has not been from working to death/destroying our surroundings but from the creation of new Commons: public sanitation, public healthcare, public education, public housing/land reforms, improved working conditions, socialized safety nets/old age pensions/childcare, etc. ( Perilous Passage: Mankind and the Global Ascendancy of Capital). …Thus, degrowth is the transformation from artificial scarcity to radical abundance.

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T]his is the core principle of capitalism: that the world is not really alive, and it is not certainly our kin, but rather just stuff to be extracted and discarded – and that includes most of the human beings living here too. From its very first principles, capitalism has set itself at war against life itself.” The sleepwalkers Of the many disconcerting paradoxes of our time, perhaps the most jarring is the idea that as our understanding of the causes and possible consequences of climate change improves, politicians are often unwilling to connect the dots and design policies to avert a catastrophe. This is a catastrophe that is rapidly unfolding before our very eyes. However else the political class may justify their inaction, they won’t be able to claim they weren’t warned. However, in his view that should not be a problem as the marginal utility of GDP for welfare declines after it has passed a certain threshold and material wealth, a point developed countries have long passed. Beyond this threshold, social (a robust welfare system) and immaterial wealth (a sense of meaning) become more important for human happiness. Degrowth will reduce carbon emissions in a variety of ways. Changing focus from “wants” to “needs” in the Global North with reduce the wastage of fast fashion and lessen the heavy burden of environmental externalities from off-shoring production. Promotion of world-wide plant-based diets, staycations and active travel will have many health benefits as well as reducing carbon emissions.[3] But there is a lot in between bitcoin and basic subsistence needs. And “enough for everyone who needs it” inherently requires value judgments about what people really need, and what things they value that are frivolous luxuries. That’s why so many anti-poverty programs have moved away from giving people “what they need” toward just giving them cash — that is, giving them wealth, which they can choose to spend however they please.

That was also the diagnosis of Zion Lights, a former spokesperson for Extinction Rebellion, who has become one of the climate movement’s internal critics, arguing that the movement focuses too much on environmentalist-friendly proposals that have nothing to do with climate. The first two chapters provide an easy-to-understand “creation story” of capitalism that is in line with the tradition of dialectics. The history of capitalism is marked by material productivity and by famines and economic impoverishment. For anyone confused about the process of the Enclosures or M-C-M’, this is definitely a useful resource. Excellent analysis...This book explores not only the systemic flaws but the deeply cultural beliefs that need to be uprooted and replaced.' ADELE WALTON It certainly doesn’t capture everything of value. When parents spend a quiet weekend at home teaching their children to read, for example, nothing GDP-generating has happened — but value has certainly been created.ii) “Overpopulation”: I don't think we can stress enough how important the unequal distribution of per capita ecological footprint is here (see Too Many People?: Population, Immigration, and the Environmental Crisis and video); only after this is made clear should we then add that population growth is the one growth curve we know how to flatten in a socially-just manner, i.e. infant/women's health, reproductive rights, education, and of course overall improved living standards. Even when Pollin considers “degrowth” of GDP, his progressive reformism barely registers as he compares this with economic crises which also “degrow” GDP! Who needs reactionary conservatives?! The amount of fetishization for an abstract macroeconomic measure rather than directly considering social health measures is appalling. We are not talking about basic accounting here; this is pure ideology! Most countries measure their progress by measuring the growth of GDP. But they measure and set goals for it just for the sake of it. They don't focus on the actual effects of the growth - desirable or not. Enclosures, slavery, and colonization were (and still are) fundamental to capitalism��s objective of perpetual growth.