The Long Road to Sustainability: A Very Short History of Ecological Economics
For decades, economists have been trying to factor nature into their models. This post looks back at how the field of ecological economics developed, tracing the big ideas that helped shape our understanding.
One early pioneer was Georgescu-Roegen. In the 70s, he criticized the way traditional economics ignored limits. His insights about entropy, depletion and scarcity really got people thinking about sustainability.
Herman Daly built on these ideas with his "steady state economy." He argued endless growth isn't possible and defined sustainability through consumption, population and wear and tear. While some criticized the focus on consumption alone, Daly raised important questions we're still grappling with.
Around the same time, the Club of Rome study warned that humanity's footprint was outpacing the planet's capacity. Led by Meadows, their work highlighted the need for holistic, long-term thinking across technology, society and planning.
E.F. Schumacher also emphasized looking beyond just numbers. He accepted limited, targeted growth but stressed moral and spiritual values too in developing sustainably. Preserving resources through culture was key.
Later, Vester expanded on these systemic connections. By truly understanding complex socio-ecological systems, he believed we could craft more effective sustainability strategies. His influence lives on in holistic, multi-level approaches.
The Environmental Kuznets Curve proposed pollution initially rises then falls with income, like inequality. But critics rightfully note it oversimplifies complex relationships between wealth, power and the environment.
More recently, "green growth" and "ecological modernization" emerged, arguing efficiency gains could balance economy and ecology. However, some question whether endless growth itself is sustainable or if humanity's role gets overlooked.
The journey of ecological economics has brought us a long way. By learning from thinkers past and present, hopefully we can continue developing solutions that respect both people and planet for generations to come.