A new book about Degrowth will be out this summer. The authors Matthias Schmelzer, Andrea Vetter and our R&D member Aaron Vansintjan discuss why economic growth isn’t working and it cannot be made to work.
Offering a counter-history of how economic growth emerged in the context of colonialism, fossil-fuelled industrialisation, and capitalist modernity, The Future Is Degrowth argues that the ideology of growth conceals the rising inequalities and ecological destructions associated with capitalism.
Growing evidence shows that continued economic growth is incompatible with sustaining life and is not necessary for a good life for all. Despite this, not only in society at large, but also on the Left, we are held captive by the hegemony of growth. Leftists have based their utopian hopes on the development of productive forces, on redistributing the fruits of economic growth and technological progress. This book argues that any Left politics and vision for postcapitalism that doesn’t question growth perpetuates global inequalities, climate injustice, and the destruction of life on Earth. Degrowth perspectives offer a way to step off the treadmill of an alienating, expansionist, and hierarchical system. A textbook and a manifesto, The Future Is Degrowth is a must-read for all interested in charting a way beyond the current crises. Agree or disagree with the degrowth proposal, read this book to get a better idea of what it is. You just might change your mind.
You can now pre-order the book here
It's official: Our book „The Future is Degrowth“ (with @a_vansi and Andrea Vetter) will be published next June with @VersoBooks. What's in it? ⬇️ pic.twitter.com/N0toapdyTJ
— Matthias Schmelzer (@MGSchmelzer) September 23, 2021
Capitalism gets the numbers all wrong, it deals in imaginary numbers for selfish privatization. Degrowth is an ecological science describing the failing fantasies of the capitalist political ideology.
I hope to find some ideas in this book how the transition can be started and shaped as of today. All the books I read on the subject well describe the Problem and to some extent the target system. However all of them fall short in describing feasible transition paths and concepts for inspiring, motivating transition concepts.