In 2008 I read an article in the New Scientist – ‚’Time to Banish the God of Growth‚’. It chimed with my own thinking and I broached the topic with my Council colleagues. It was promptly laughed out of court.
Brave voices have since been making the case for humanity to leave a lighter footprint on the earth; they are now being heard. A recent conversation on BBC R4 talked about this‚’ we cannot continue consuming the planet at current rates ‚’ we need to put a value on our natural ‚’givens‚’.
Three major issues have recently coalesced: the climate crisis, Brexit and COVID19. A perfect storm -a perfect opportunity? The resources of our planet are fragile and finite and, post COVID and Brexit, we now have the chance to re-evaluate our policies, our society and our trajectory.
The past year has demonstrated how vital the natural environment is for human well-being ‚’physical and mental. A recognition of this and support for our wild places and bio-diversity is needed by Government and the private sector. We thus need a change to our economy which puts a realistic value on the natural world. With determination and visionary leadership it could happen.
The New Scientist article proposed a ‚’Steady State Economy‚’. I‚’m not an economist, but others with expertise have expounded similar ideas ~ eg. ‚’Enough is Enough: —‚’ by Rob Dietz and Dan O‚’Neill; the writings of Samuel Alexander such as ‚’Prosperous Descent:—“. John Curnow‚’s article ‚’How do you put a value on natural capital?‚’. Larry Fink is leading the way in a just transition towards sustainability. Private companies are needed with their longer term vision.
Britain can lead too. The end of the Age of the God of Growth has surely come!
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