Economics in a Full World
Summary-AVID Article Format
- The economy is growing too fast for the Earth to support it, Economy is not infinite
- Expansion now makes us poorer rather than richer
- A sustainable economy must be reached before collapse
- Many believe that we can continue to expand with no issue, but resource and environmental economics contradicts this idea (world is finite, resources are finite)
- GDP, utility, throughput, natural capital, and total capital must be sustained
- Shift growth to qualitative development (quality of quantity)
- Utility, the need for things, cannot be measured
- Natural resource use must be lowered, goods must be used longer
- Strong sustainability must be used (less fish=less boats)
- Methods and limitations such as the cap-and-trade system could be implemented to limit growth
- Requires demographic transition in both population and product lifetimes
- Goods that help people universally (poor and rich) must be improved and produced more
- Taxes will be altered, free trade will be reduced; Employment reduced
- Happiness and wealth will improve in the long run
Summary
Expansionists have advocated the growth of human civilization and economy to remedy the growing problems that are surfacing from a lack of resources and an increase in poverty. Environmentalists, however, have observed the trends in economy growth, and the Earth is now reaching its carrying capacity. One thing is for sure: the Earth is not an infinite mass of infinite resources, and experts have been trying to support sustainability. Sustainability is being supported by experts that believe that quality should matter more than quantity, and that happiness and prosperity will be rewarded in the long run.
Reflection
There is no doubt that Earth is not an infinite source of resources, and I fail to comprehend why people believe that it is. I agree that quality ultimately trumps quantity, and that we should focus on making goods that last, rather than making goods that fuel the mindset of buying the latest product. This task may prove to be difficult, since many are absolutely fine with their current lifestyle (such as me), and many will find sustainability to be unappealing due to its cons (such as decreased employment). I do however, feel that the shift to sustainability will be worth the initial sacrifice.