An Oct 2024 report by EY NZ and WWF NZ, A Nature Positive Aotearoa, argues that a rapid, major boost to nature protection would contribute to long-term net GDP growth. However, there’s much in the report to support further thinking through a degrowth/post growth lens. NZ is in crisis with 66% of native forest, 90% … Continue reading A Post-Growth Nature-Positive Aotearoa
The current global economic growth model is increasingly at odds with the environmental and climate realities we face. Tackling climate change in growth settings will inevitably result in nature losses, which are not being adequately accounted for—a recent BCG report being a prime example. Climate change solutionism generates false optimism, perpetuating the idea that economic … Continue reading The Ill Logic of Addressing Climate Change to Save Growth While Growth Destroys Nature
The timing could not be sweeter for a new paper—Post-growth: the science of wellbeing within planetary boundaries—from the leaders of post-growth thinking, providing an overview of the current research. With concerns rising that economic growth in high income nations is not sustainable, socially beneficial or even economically achievable, post-growth research is centred on replacing the … Continue reading Post-Growth Science Explained
Housing has become an expensive asset and a key pillar of capitalism, where profitability reigns—leaving some people in substandard homes or without a home at all. Instead, the building industry needs to see itself as part of a system for provisioning shelter—satisfying a human need—rather than a developer of housing as an asset. This shift … Continue reading A Change in Building, By Design
What is social-ecological thinking? How can social-ecological movements leverage change towards a sustainable economy? How can social-ecological drivers change the economy, eg the agri-food sector? These three macroeconomic questions are tackled in the presentation below, which contributed to a session at the 'Economy for Public Good' conference in Wellington, New Zealand, on 24 November 2024, … Continue reading Social-ecological Movements
Great to speak to a packed room at the 2024 NZ Climate Change and Business Conference for a kōrero on “A Thriving Economy Within Planetary Boundaries”. Below is my 4-minute speech, which focused on the X-curve to move away from status quo economics towards an eco-social future economy, and the role of degrowth thinking in … Continue reading Transitional Economics
The field of degrowth and post-growth finance is in its nascent stages, with ongoing research and emerging practices. To advance the dialogue, a session on ‘Investing in degrowth: resourcing postgrowth futures’ took place at the joint 10th Intl. Degrowth Conference and 15th Conference of the European Society of Ecological Economics in Pontevedra, Spain, on 19 … Continue reading 2024 Degrowth Conference: ‘Investing in Degrowth’ Session Summary
What role can investing play in a degrowth transformation of the economy? New Zealand's Impact Investing Network (IIN) has begun to explore the potential for funds managers to help engineer an economic system breakthrough, pinning a spotlight on the idea of degrowth-aligned investing. The IIN, a peak body dedicated to expanding the impact investing sector … Continue reading Degrowth-aligned Investing
Degrowth responds directly to climate change and other sustainability and wellbeing issues, affecting energy and resource use. It is crucial not to overlook it when developing climate scenarios for the energy sector. The Aotearoa New Zealand Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment (MBIE) has released Electricity Demand and Generation Scenarios, July 2024, reinforcing mainstream assumptions … Continue reading We Need Degrowth Energy Scenarios
This presentation introduces degrowth-aligned finance in a webinar hosted by the Sustainable Finance Network of the Institute of Environmental Management and Assessment (IEMA), the largest professional body for environmental practitioners in the UK and worldwide. There's also a brief presentation by Adrian Vodislav, Structured Finance Officer of the European Investment Fund (EIF), discussing the EIF's … Continue reading Intro to Degrowth-aligned Finance
In my recent Master's thesis for a degree in Degrowth: Ecology, Economics and Policy at the Autonomous University of Barcelona, I explored how kaupapa Māori enterprises contribute to achieving Māori aspirations. In settler colonial countries, Indigenous nations have faced systemic destruction through dispossession and de-culturalisation, eliminating traditional modes of production and value creation. Modern Indigenous … Continue reading Kaupapa Māori Enterprises: Agents of Aspiration
Sustainability reports from Google and Microsoft indicate they are struggling on climate action, with both companies citing expansion of data centres for AI, which have high energy and water demands, coupled with a scarcity of renewable energy. Is AI so profitable they are willing to forego environmental goals? Or do they have no control over … Continue reading The Huge Water and Energy Costs of AI
The briefing paper 'Degrowth-aligned Finance: A preliminary exploration' is an aid to understanding the emerging elements of a degrowth-aligned financial system. Co-authored by Jennifer Wilkins and Anastasia Linn, its purpose is to initiate conversations and encourage building a shared research and practice agenda. It also provides supporting information to the Special Session "Investing in Degrowth" … Continue reading Degrowth-aligned Finance
Ground-breaking news on two fronts: Girona is the first city in Spain to explore degrowth AND a master's of degrowth programme is going to be delivered alongside the municipal administration. An agreement has just been signed between the City Council, the University of Girona, Dark Matter Labs and Research & Degrowth International (R&D), which produces … Continue reading Oh, Girona!
In her recent address to the Auckland Business Chamber titled "Growth is the Answer", New Zealand Finance Minister Nicola Willis acknowledges low-growth projections, imploring businesspeople to lean in on the government’s growth agenda. However, this fails to grasp the essence of entrepreneurship, which is rooted in autonomy. Entrepreneurs are never in business to work for … Continue reading Growth is No Longer an Answer
This chapter, written for the book Radical Business Perspectives for Sustainability Transitions, explores the contested notion of corporate degrowth, suggesting degrowth intrapreneurship as a way forward. First, the chapter questions the efficacy of corporate sustainability, assessing whether intensifying ESG practices would be a sufficient corporate response to the global poly-crisis, and proffers degrowth as a … Continue reading Corporate-degrowth Intrapreneurship
A survey of MEPs by degrowth scholars Giorgos Kallis, Riccardo Mastini and Chritstos Zografos has uncovered some interesting data on opinions, shedding light on the growth dependency within institutions, such as the European Parliament, that makes them resistant to change, despite preferences for change within. Their paper in Nature describes how they looked at four … Continue reading A Survey of Perceptions of Degrowth in the European Parliament
There is so much to love in this graphic book by Céline Keller smashing the myths about degrowth, filled with quotes from the who's who of both growth and degrowth worlds, juxtaposing their views and really exposing the absurdity of many of the ideas that are taken for granted and lauded as truths in the … Continue reading Who is afraid of Degrowth? A brilliant graphic book by Céline Keller
"Setting Limits to Growth" is a new handbook for aligning start-ups and SMEs with post-growth thinking, based on a self-case study of its writers' own business, Post Growth Guide, a post-growth-aligned start-up educating about post-growth business. How's that for meta! Post Growth Guide (PGG) dovetails with founders' other business, an impact-led communications agency, enabling them … Continue reading Setting Limits to Growth: a handbook for post-growth start-ups
The nascent trans-disciplinary topic of business degrowth must find a home where it can cross-pollinate to form new strands of management scholarship. Much of the literature in the field of degrowth lands in the Journal of Cleaner Production. But degrowth business management literature needs to land where business scholars can find it and engage with … Continue reading Who’s Publishing Business Degrowth Research?
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