GDP ignores nature. Its calculation specifies it clearly: “a purely natural process, without human intervention or control, does not constitute production in the economic sense.”
๐๐ป๐ฑ ๐ถ๐ณ ๐ป๐ฎ๐๐๐ฟ๐ฒ ๐ฑ๐ผ๐ฒ๐ ๐ป๐ผ๐ ๐ฐ๐ผ๐๐ป๐, ๐ถ๐๐ ๐ฑ๐ฒ๐๐๐ฟ๐๐ฐ๐๐ถ๐ผ๐ป ๐น๐ฒ๐ฎ๐๐ฒ๐ ๐ป๐ผ ๐๐ฟ๐ฎ๐ฐ๐ฒ ๐ถ๐ป ๐๐ต๐ฒ ๐ฎ๐ฐ๐ฐ๐ผ๐๐ป๐๐ถ๐ป๐ด ๐ฏ๐ผ๐ผ๐ธ๐. ๐๐ผ๐ฟ๐ฒ๐๐ ๐ณ๐ถ๐ฟ๐ฒ๐ ๐๐ถ๐น๐น ๐ฒ๐๐ฒ๐ป ๐ถ๐ป๐ฐ๐ฟ๐ฒ๐ฎ๐๐ฒ ๐๐๐ฃ ๐๐ต๐ฟ๐ผ๐๐ด๐ต ๐๐ต๐ฒ ๐ฒ๐ ๐ฝ๐ฒ๐ป๐๐ฒ๐ ๐๐ต๐ฒ๐ ๐ด๐ฒ๐ป๐ฒ๐ฟ๐ฎ๐๐ฒ ๐๐ผ ๐ฝ๐๐ ๐๐ต๐ฒ๐บ ๐ผ๐๐.
We are crossing planetary boundaries one after the other, water is polluted, the air is polluted, biodiversity is collapsing, and habitats are becoming toxic. And despite all that, what terrifies us the most is the idea that the economy could shrink.
Even the UN Sustainable Goals are worded this way: “Ending poverty and other deprivations must go hand-in-hand with strategies that improve health and education, reduce inequality, ๐ฎ๐ป๐ฑ ๐๐ฝ๐๐ฟ ๐ฒ๐ฐ๐ผ๐ป๐ผ๐บ๐ถ๐ฐ ๐ด๐ฟ๐ผ๐๐๐ต โ all while tackling climate change and working to preserve our oceans and forests.”
But guess what? We live in a world where vast quantities of food, energy, and materials go to waste. We can feed the planet through more equitable distribution and reducing waste. We don’t need economic growth to end poverty, improve health, or reduce inequality. In fact, even if we keep on increasing GDP, we won’t end poverty. Because growth would still have to boost the incomes of the most modest households, which, in reality, is not often the case.
As Timothรฉe Parrique puts it: “Trying to eradicate poverty by stimulating GDP growth is like hoping to change the direction of a car by adding gas to an already full tank.
The prosperity of the economy is intrinsically linked to that of the ecology as well. Just as a healthy organ does not survive long in a dying body, there cannot exist a thriving economy in an ecological desert โ an economy cannot sustain itself in a collapsing biosphere (or at least not for long).”
๐ช๐ฒ ๐ฐ๐ฎ๐ป ๐ป๐ผ ๐น๐ผ๐ป๐ด๐ฒ๐ฟ ๐ฏ๐ฒ๐น๐ถ๐ฒ๐๐ฒ ๐ถ๐ป ๐๐ต๐ฒ ๐ฑ๐ฒ๐ฐ๐ผ๐๐ฝ๐น๐ถ๐ป๐ด ๐ผ๐ณ ๐ฒ๐ฐ๐ผ๐ป๐ผ๐บ๐ถ๐ฐ ๐ด๐ฟ๐ผ๐๐๐ต ๐๐ถ๐๐ต ๐ต๐๐บ๐ฎ๐ป ๐๐ฒ๐น๐น-๐ฏ๐ฒ๐ถ๐ป๐ด, ๐๐ผ๐ฐ๐ถ๐ฎ๐น ๐๐ฒ๐น๐น-๐ฏ๐ฒ๐ถ๐ป๐ด, ๐ฎ๐ป๐ฑ ๐๐ต๐ฒ ๐๐๐ฎ๐๐ฒ ๐ผ๐ณ ๐๐ต๐ฒ ๐ฝ๐น๐ฎ๐ป๐ฒ๐.
We have to rethink our society, our priorities, and what matters.
We have to change our economic paradigm.
#economy #degrowth #systemschange #circulareconomy#climatecrisis #sustainable #growth