The post-growth economy Paech proposes is one that meets human needs independently of
economic growth and which is characterized by
degrowth. Post-growth economics intentionally distances itself from popular terms such as "sustainable", "green", "dematerialized" or "decarbonized", rejecting the idea that ecological sustainability can realistically be achieved through technological development alone within a system that continues to measure progress merely in terms of added economic value. Paech sketches 4 reasons for and 5 steps to implement his theory.
Reasons: • there is no empirical or theoretical reason to disconnect economical growth via markets and money from mankind-exterminating risks caused by ecological destruction such as the climate crisis • after achieving a certain level of income there is no further improvement of happiness achieving more monetary income • the "imperative logic of growth" - decreasing hunger, poverty (trend of global improvement interrupted in 2020), and economical inequality by further economical growth - is ambivalent • economical growth has economical limits like "peak oil". High demand for certain resources limits production capabilities. Highest demands in nations like China or India increases costs for resources that have been essential for growth so far The
Implementation of his approach is based upon five pillars: institutional
innovations, material
zero-sum games,
regional economics,
subsistence economy and
sufficiency, "which conclusively lead to higher individual quality of life and promote the common good." He stresses that there are no sustainable products or sustainable technologies as such, only sustainable lifestyles. • decluttering and deceleration: it is pure economical logic to get rid of unnecessary goods and gadgets, claiming time, money, space and ecological resources providing little use. Individuals and society shall be liberated from unnecessary "goods" • balance out self and external supply. Dependence on external growth based economy supplies is at risk since interdependencies cause fragility (e.g.European dependence on Russian petrol/gas till the
invasion of Ukraine, global dependence on Ukrainian grain). The longer the supply chains are the more fragile and less resilient they are in crisis. Stability is given by short distances between Production and consumption. There is a need for reactivation of basic skills such as gardening and repair satisfying basic needs without using monetary based, international dependent markets. Restructuring self- and foreign provided support should reduce money and growth dependency. Subsistence,
community gardening, exchange rings, common use of land and tools are practical approaches for de-globalisation. • regional economics would decrease risks such as climate change(or the impact of global events like the Ukraine war on energy prices) since there is less need for individual mobility and transportation of goods. It should be supported by
regional currencies keeping purchasing power in the region while using the advantages of monetary based economies, avoiding the risks of monetary integration in global markets. Concepts like
Community supported agriculture allow the consumers participation in the production and distribution of supplies while sharing the risks of farming while creating more biological awareness, making consumers
prosumers. • Goods that can not be avoided, such as high-technology like medical equipment, computers and agricultural tools and vehicles shall be limited in production, shared, repaired and used as long and intensive as possible making overproduction and scrapping unnecessary. • Institutional innovations: soil and monetary reforms, implementing local currencies equipped with interest free circulation safety. Environmental exposure limited by universal usage rights for each prosumer oriented on the planets capabilities to deal with pollution and carbon dioxide (Paech estimates 2-3 tonnes of /capita). Markets, companies, innovations, money, and goods will be used in post-growth economy within natural limits. == Literature ==