Can we thrive by abandoning the obsession with endless economic growth?
In short: For decades, global progress has been measured by a single metric: growth at any cost. But as industrialised nations face ecological limits, a new movement is asking if 'natural prosperity'—an economy based on wellbeing and sufficiency rather than expansion—is our only viable path forward.
The concept of a Wellbeing Economy (WE) has moved from the fringes of environmental activism into the political mainstream. It is championed by a diverse coalition, including health advocates, international bodies like the OECD, and various governments. While these groups share goals such as poverty reduction, greater equality, and ecological sustainability, they often disagree on a fundamental question: Is a wellbeing economy truly 'post-growth'?
True post-growth theory advocates for an ethic of sufficiency, intentionally moving beyond the pursuit of economic expansion as a societal priority. In contrast, many current implementations are what researchers describe as a 'weak post-growth approach.' For instance, while nations in the Wellbeing Economy Governments (WEGo) partnership share ambitions for these goals, analysis of countries like Finland and Canada shows they have taken only limited steps toward full post-growth orientations.
Wales serves as a notable outlier in this landscape. It has implemented specific sufficiency-oriented policies, such as placing limits on road building, yet it still maintains an evident commitment to economic growth. This tension highlights the current struggle of the movement: balancing the urgent need for natural prosperity with existing political and economic structures that are deeply rooted in expansionary logic.
The shift toward 'natural prosperity' is framed by some scholars as a necessary response to the stagnation seen in industrialised countries since the 2008 global financial crisis. By breaking free from growth-at-all-costs, proponents argue we can create an economy that prioritizes human survival and success within planetary boundaries.
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Sources
- Summary by Intellect · source: Natural Prosperity and the Wellbeing Economy
- Also: The wellbeing economy in practice: sustainable and inclusive growth? Or a post-growth breakthrough? - Humanities and Social Sciences Communications
- Also: Gresham College — Natural Prosperity and the Wellbeing Economy · YouTube (embedded player only)
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