Growth, A-Growth or Degrowth to Stay within Planetary Boundaries?

The environmental sustainability of economic growth has been subject to much debate for many decades. Recently, two alternatives to the growth paradigm have been put forward: namely, "a-growth" and "degrowth." The first proposes to ignore GDP information and focus instead on soun...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Journal of economic issues 2012-12, Vol.46 (4), p.909-920
Main Authors: van den Bergh, Jeroen C. J. M., Kallis, Giorgos
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
a-growth
Analysis
Climate change
Debates
Degrowth
Ecological economics
Ecological sustainability
Economic conditions
Economic crisis
Economic forecasts
Economic growth
Economic growth theories
Economic policy
Economists
Employment
Environmental policy
environmental sustainability
Experimental methods
GDP
Green economics
Gross Domestic Product
gross domestic product (GDP)
Growth
growth paradigm
Institutional economics
Pollution control
Productivity
Social progress
Society
Studies
Sustainable development
Sustainable economic development
Sustainable economies
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Summary:The environmental sustainability of economic growth has been subject to much debate for many decades. Recently, two alternatives to the growth paradigm have been put forward: namely, "a-growth" and "degrowth." The first proposes to ignore GDP information and focus instead on sound environmental, social, and economic policies independently of their effects on economic growth. The second recommends a downscaling of the economy so as to make it consistent with biophysical boundaries. We compare these approaches in the context of the growth paradigm and examine whether they have any merit. We further consider the potential contribution of institutional economics to further develop such alternatives.
ISSN:0021-3624
1946-326X
DOI:10.2753/JEI0021-3624460404