Enough is Enough: Ideas for a Sustainable Economy in a World of Finite Resources
http://steadystate.org/wp-content/uploads/EnoughIsEnough_FullReport.pdf Contents Forewords .................................................................................................................. 6 Summary.................................................................................................................... 9 Part One: Questions of Enough 1. Introduction ......................................................................................................... 20 2. How Much is Enough? ........................................................................................ 23 3. What Sort of Economy Provides Enough? .......................................................... 33 Part Two: Strategies of Enough 4. Enough Throughput: Limiting Resource Use and Waste Production................... 42 5. Enough People: Stabilising Population................................................................ 50 6. Enough Inequality: Distributing Income and Wealth............................................ 57 7. Enough Debt: Reforming the Monetary System.................................................. 64 8. Enough Poor Indicators: Changing the Way We Measure Progress................... 73 9. Enough Job Losses: Securing Employment........................................................ 80 10. Enough Excess Profits: Rethinking Business and Production........................... 87 11. Enough Unilateralism: Addressing Global Relationships................................... 95 12. Enough Materialism: Changing Consumer Behaviour..................................... 101 13. Enough Silence: Engaging Politicians and the Media ..................................... 106 Part Three: Advancing the Economy of Enough 14. A Blueprint for an Economy Built to Last ......................................................... 112 15. Boldness in Building the Steady State Economy............................................. 117 Notes and References............................................................................................ 121 A foreword by Lorna Arblaster and David Adshead Unlimited economic growth is not possible on a finite planet. Despite this, there is little discussion of an alternative economic system that can meet our needs without growth. The Steady State Economy Conference aimed to promote such discussion. In particular it aimed to identify practical policy proposals to bring about change towards a steady state economy in the UK. The conference took place on 19th June 2010. Three years earlier to the day, we collaborated with Claire Bastin to host the first Café Economique in a suburb of Leeds. Inspired by the concept of “economic justice for all” (and taking that phrase as the name of our organisation), we set out to develop a forum where members of the public could discuss socio-economic problems and consider innovative solutions. At the first Café Economique, Claire led a discussion on the topic of “Economics in a Full World”. The suggested background reading for the discussion was a paper of the same title, written by economist Herman Daly and published in Scientific American. >From this simple beginning, the number of people attending the monthly Café Economique events has grown steadily, requiring us to move to larger venues. How have we achieved this continuing and increasing interest? We meet locally, we invite a speaker to inform the discussion, we use a format that encourages attendee participation, and we address a wide range of socio-economic issues. In November 2009, Dan O’Neill, the European Director of the Center for the Advancement of the Steady State Economy (CASSE), spoke at the Café Economique. We took great interest in Dan’s ideas and the discussion that they generated, and together we recognised an opportunity to develop the concepts further. The conference and this report are the result of this collaboration between Economic Justice for All and CASSE. The report, with its extensive set of references, is an excellent primer for anyone interested in the economics of sustainability. It also provides a valuable information resource for “economic discussion and action” groups, and we hope that it will lead to the creation of more such groups, in the UK and around the world. Increasing awareness of the pressures on our fragile planet obliges us to rethink urgently how we organise our economic and social systems — a complex and challenging task. This report provides an overview of areas where change is needed, specific proposals for change, and questions for further discussion. A small local group with few resources, Economic Justice for All dared, with CASSE, to organise the Steady State Economy Conference. We hope that you will dare to take forward the ideas in this report, whoever and wherever you are. -- Sandwichman
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