by Rob Dietz
McKibben, Bill, 99, 204, 206
Meadows, Donella, 123–124
Medicaid, 93
Mellor, Mary, 106
Menzel, Peter, 59–60
metabolism, economic, 59–61, 70
Mill, John Stuart, 202–203
minimum income. See citizen’s income program
money: as claim on wealth, 101–102, 102
creation of, 103–104, 106, 107, 110, 143
and debt-free national currency, 106–107, 110
and international currency, 108–109
key functions of, 100–101
and local currency, 107–108
monitoring systems, for resource management, 68–69
Montana, 141
Montreal Protocol, 69
National Geographic Society, 74
Netherlands, 75, 76, 132–133, 144, 147
New Economics Foundation, 23, 110, 119, 120, 161, 173
New Hampshire, 93, 94
Niger, 77
Nigeria, 121, 144
nonprofit organizations, 110, 149, 150
Norway, 142, 144
Obama, Barack, 118, 169
Occupy movement, 91, 96, 175
OECD (Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development), 116
oil companies, 22, 52, 142, 144, 145
oil production, 22–23, 52
O’Neill, Dan, 9
The Onion (satirical newspaper), 130
overconsumption: and consumer culture, 157–160, 162, 164
and economic inequality, 90
throughput as measure of, 60–62, 90
overpopulation. See population growth
ozone depletion, 19, 20, 69
Parrish, Brad, 147
Pennock, Michael, 115
permit systems, tradable, 64–66
Pickett, Kate, 28, 90, 92
plutocracy, 111
politicians: as economic-growth advocates, 169–170
steady-state economy considered by, 53–54, 169, 170, 173, 175
population density, 75–76, 76
population growth, 17, 18, 62, 73–85, 143
and contraception, 79, 80, 81, 83
and education, 80–81, 84–85
and fertility rates, 76, 77, 79, 80
and immigration policy, 82–83
impact of women’s empowerment on, 80–81
and I-PAT equation, 77
and mass media, 84–85
and planetary carrying capacity, 34–36
rate of, 74–77, 75
and social justice, 78
stabilization of, 77–83, 195, 196, 197, 199
Population Media Center (PMC), 84–85
Porter, Michael, 147
poverty, alleviation of: and democratization of economic institutions, 96, 97
and economic growth, 26–28, 46
and international trade, 182
and stabilization of population growth, 78
poverty, increase in, 4, 27, 28, 48, 49
predictions, socioeconomic, 34, 36
Procter & Gamble, 159
profit motive, 137, 142–143, 150
progress, measurements of, 115, 116, 118–124, 119, 121, 122, 143, 150, 196, 197
protected areas, for ecosystems, 67–68
Pullinger, Martin, 131
rationing, as throughput-limiting strategy, 64
rebound effect, 39–40
redistribution of income and wealth, 26–27, 93, 94
Reichel, André, 150–151
resources: depleted by economic growth, 21, 22, 33
and GDP growth, 18, 37
international competition for, 179
monitoring systems for managing, 68–69
nonrenewable, 63, 141
overconsumption of, 61–62
and population growth, 35
renewable, 23, 63, 141
shared-value schemes for conservation of, 146–147
throughput-limiting policies for managing, 63–64, 68–69, 143
work-time reduction yields conservation of, 133–134
retirement, 132
Robèrt, Karl-Henrik, 139
Rochdale Society, 148
Rockström, Johan, 19, 21
Roosevelt, Franklin D., 131
Rouse, Cecilia, 169
Royal Dutch Shell corporation, 142, 144
Russia: coal used in, 179
gross domestic product (GDP) ranking of, 120, 144
happiness indicators in, 121
population growth in, 76, 77
Ryerson, Bill, 84
Sachs, Jeffrey, 80–81
Santa-Barbara, Jack, 15–16, 26
Sarkozy, Nicolas, 116
Saudi Arabia, 144, 181
scale. See economic scale
Schumacher, E. F., 6, 139, 179
Scotland, 168
self-storage units, 60–61
Seuss, Dr., 139–141
shareholder-owned corporations, 141–142, 148, 151, 152
Shell corporation, 142, 144
Simon, Julian, 36
Smith, Adam, 189–190, 206
Smithsonian Institution, 114
social enterprises, 148, 149
social justice, 78
social responsibility, corporate, 147, 150
social return on investment, 151
Social Security, 93
Soddy, Frederick, vii–viii Solow, Robert, 22
Spain, 95, 144, 149
steady-state economy, 10–12, 45–55, 194–206
academic study of, 170–171, 174–175
blueprint of, 10–12, 194, 194–206
business in, 146–153
conferences for promoting, x, 10, 53, 173, 194
cultural shift toward, 204–205
defining features of, 46–47, 195–196, 198
and degrowth, 53, 184, 185, 195
and economic equality, 92
and economic scale, 46, 47, 185, 185–186
and efficient allocation of resources, 46–47
and elimination of growth imperative, 143
and employment, 51–52, 130, 131, 132, 134, 136, 197
and environmental values, 52
and fair distribution of wealth, 46, 47
and financial reform, 111, 196
forums for promoting, 173
and gross domestic product (GDP), 45, 47, 116
and international cooperation, 186–187
and investment, 51, 201
and labor productivity, 51–52
movements for promoting, 175
and news media, 169, 170, 175
organizations for promoting, 9, 54, 173–175
and ownership, 52, 195–196
politicians’ attitudes toward, 53–54, 169, 170, 173, 175
popularizing concept of, 171–173
and progress indicators, 123, 196, 197
role of markets in, 47
transition to, 50, 50–54, 81, 83, 111, 129, 130, 136, 146, 152, 170–172, 175, 176, 180, 187, 189, 196, 199, 203, 205
stock market, 117
Stoll, Steven, 169
Styron, William, 88
Superfund program, 141
sustainability: and corporate social responsibility, 147
and economic scale, 32–37, 40, 41, 46, 195
and employment, 128–129
and environmental values, 52
and financial systems, 101, 106, 109, 111
and international cooperation, 188
and overconsumption, 60, 61, 198
and population growth, 74, 79, 81, 85
and progress indicators, 115, 116, 118, 120, 122, 122
and throughput levels, 60, 61, 63, 67, 68, 69
Sweden, 93, 144
Switzerland, 134, 144
Tanzania, 187–188
taxation: and community interest companies (CICs), 150
economic equality achieved by, 93–94, 95
as throughput-limiting strategy, 66
and reform of business,
152
and restructuring of financial institutions, 110
technology: and limits to growth, 36–40
transfer of, 189
Thoreau, Henry David, 139, 205
throughput, economic, 45, 59–70
limitation of, 63–70, 143, 197, 198
Tocqueville, Alexis de, 87
Toyota, 142, 144
trade. See international trade
Transition Towns, 163, 165
tuna fishing, 183
Uganda, 79, 80
unemployment, 48, 48, 49, 49, 50, 50, 129, 136, 143
United Kingdom: CO2 emissions in, 39
cooperatives in, 95, 148, 149
economic inequality in, 89, 89
fertility rate in, 80
gross domestic product (GDP) ranking of, 120, 144
happiness indicators in, 26, 115, 117, 121
homelessness in, 148
immigration policy in, 82
local currency in, 108
material use in, 39
money supply in, 102, 102, 103
population density of, 75, 76
population growth in, 74, 81–82
progress indicators in, 120
work-time reduction in, 132
United Nations: democratization of, 188–189
happiness indicators sought by, 115
Human Poverty Index of, 48
impact of financial crisis reported by, 184
Millennium Development Goals of, 182
Monetary and Financial Conference of, 109
population growth estimates of, 75, 75
System of Environmental-Economic Accounts (SEEA) of, 69
United States: banking policy in, 103
coal used in, 179
and dollar’s role in international finance, 108–109
economic inequality in, 88–89, 89, 93
fertility rate in, 80
greenhouse gases emitted in, 179
gross domestic product (GDP) in, 118, 119, 120, 144
happiness indicators in, 121
household throughput in, 60–61
immigration policy in, 82–83
overconsumption in, 60
paid vacation time in, 132
population growth in, 74, 75, 76–77, 159
progress indicators in, 118–119, 119
public debt in, ix; self-storage units in, 60–61
working hours in, 133
Universal Declaration of Human Rights, 134
Ura, Dasho Karma, 115
Venezuela, 142, 144
Vermont, 93
Victor, Peter, 37, 47–50, 48, 49, 50, 53, 54, 129, 199
Vietnam, 120, 121, 145
Wallich, Henry, 91–92
Walmart, 94, 142, 144
Walton brothers, 94
wealth: accumulation of, 94, 100, 189–190
fair distribution of, 46
redistribution of, 26–27, 78, 91, 94
Wharton School of Business, 43–44
Wheelan, Charles, 183
Wilkinson, Richard, 28, 90, 92
women: education of, 80–81
empowerment of, 80–81, 95
work. See employment
World War II, 190
Wren, Deb, 127–129, 130, 137
Zencey, Eric, 169
ABOUT THE AUTHORS
Author photo: Jennifer Yang
ROB DIETZ unwittingly discovered the recipe for understanding the limits to growth.
Start with a suspicion that there’s something rotten at the core of consumer culture. Simmer that suspicion in four years of formal education in environmental science. Add a bachelor degree’s worth of study in economics, and stir in just a dash of doubt about the validity of the mainstream economic viewpoint.
Set aside those initial ingredients for the time being, and get to work combining a series of career moves. Begin with several years as an economic analyst at consulting firms in Washington, D.C., culminating in an overwhelming desire to get back to the basics of science. Add in a graduate degree in environmental science and engineering, including studies in geography and biology. Stir vigorously with a governmental stint (starting as a Presidential Management Fellow) at the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and U.S. Geological Survey. While stirring, be sure to add plenty of influential readings from authors like David Orr, Donella Meadows, and Herman Daly. Don’t forget to sprinkle in facts about species extinctions, climate change, and other environmental calamities as documented in countless articles from peer-reviewed scientific journals. Slow-cook all these ingredients in one brain, especially a brain that craves a strong balance between work and play, and you’ll see why the pursuit of infinite economic growth on a finite planet is a bad idea.
What to do once you’ve followed such a recipe? Rob’s first response was to freak out. He got a little grouchy. Then he got a lot sarcastic. Then when people stopped wanting to be around him, he took some more constructive steps.
First, he took a couple of deep breaths. Then, with his wife and young daughter, he moved to an aspiring ecovillage in Corvallis, Oregon. The idea was to try to live the good life in a community that strives to leave light footprints. Next, he became the first executive director of the Center for the Advancement of the Steady State Economy, a nonprofit organization that promotes a prosperous, yet nongrowing economy. He served in that role for four years, before taking a crack at making it as a writer. Enough Is Enough is his first book.
Author photo: Phil Faulks
DAN O’NEILL has always been interested in the “big picture.” He spent his childhood exploring the wide-open spaces of western Canada, often gazing up at the night sky and dreaming of becoming an astronomer. As an undergraduate student at the University of Victoria, he pursued a big-picture path, earning a degree in physics and receiving the Jubilee Medal for Science. While designing systems for large companies to manage their energy use, he felt the pull of another expansive topic—the state of the environment. It drew him across the country to Halifax, Nova Scotia, where he earned a master’s degree in environmental studies from Dalhousie University. There, he took a course in ecological economics that dramatically changed his perspective. He realized that many of the toughest environmental and social problems facing humanity have a common cause—our economic system and its pursuit of growth at all costs.
After completing his master’s degree, Dan moved back to Victoria and worked as a planning analyst for the Capital Regional District. His main responsibility was measuring the city’s progress toward the goals of its Regional Growth Strategy.
Although the Growth Strategy achieved many benefits, Dan sensed the need for an entirely different economic model to reconcile the conflicts among economic, social, and environmental objectives. Consequently, he moved to England to begin doctoral studies in ecological economics at the University of Leeds. While on a plane over the Atlantic, he read Herman Daly’s book Steady-State Economics, which turned his world upside down. He realized that a steady-state economy was the economic model of the future, but more research was needed to make it work in practice.
Since finishing his doctoral studies and writing this book, Dan has taken a position as lecturer in ecological economics at the University of Leeds, and chief economist at the Center for the Advancement of the Steady State Economy. His research continues to focus on the changes needed to achieve a successful nongrowing economy. Toward this end, he has designed a new system of national accounts to measure how close specific economies are to a steady-state economy, and what proximity to this goal means for their social performance. When he isn’t involved in research or teaching, Dan enjoys hiking in the Yorkshire Dales and singing songs about the misguided pursuit of economic growth.
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