Conference on Degrowth in London

From DegrowthPedia.org

Revision as of 18:19, 22 April 2010 by FrancoisDM (Talk | contribs)
(diff) ← Older revision | Current revision (diff) | Newer revision → (diff)

Event: Rethinking economic growth, Towards an international degrowth network

Date and Place: Tuesday 12 January 2010, London, UK

Organizers: CEECEC and nef, in association with Growth in Transition and the 2nd Conference on Economic Degrowth for Ecological Sustainability and Social Equity

I. Degrowth: A Systemic Approach - Dr. Mauro Bonaiuti, University of Turin (Italy)
II. Civil Society and Degrowth in Europe - Leida Rijnhout, ANPED (Belgium)
III. Degrowth and the Firm - Dr André Reichel, Stuttgart University (Germany)
IV. Policies for Sustainable Economies - Dr. Stephen Spratt, nef (the new economics foundation) and Professor Tim Jackson, University of Surrey (UK)

Background information

Faced with widespread ecological, social and political crisis, with injustice, insecurity and possible collapse of the economic system itself, civil society, academia, government and the general public are searching for new and fair sustainable economic models. In many parts of Europe, a strong movement has emerged around the concept of Décroissance (Degrowth). Sustainable economic degrowth has been defined as "a smooth, voluntary and equitable downscaling of production and consumption to ensure human well-being and ecological sustainability locally as well as globally in the short and long term"; Kallis, Schneider and Martinez-Alier, 2008).

Serge Latouche, French economist and founder of the Décroissance movement, emphasises that Degrowth is above all a slogan, and that there are no "ready-made political solutions". Indeed, overcoming today’s model to develop a truly just, sustainable social system based on Degrowth raises vast, complex problems that cannot be solved by simplistic solutions. However, with considerable academic progress in recent years, Sustainable Degrowth is far more than just a criticism of neo-classical economics.

The concept of Décroissance shares many features with approaches better-known in the UK such as steady-state economics, and prosperity without growth. The goal of this event is to bring together these visions and contribute to the establishment and consolidation of an International network, one that values the complementarity and diversity of the many emerging European movements, and encourages and enables collaboration between researchers, CSOs and policymakers in order to move toward realizing a Degrowth society.

See also

http://www.degrowth.eu/v1/fileadmin/content/news/Degrowth_Hub_KC_Jan12.pdf

Retrieved from "http://degrowthpedia.org/index.php?title=Conference_on_Degrowth_in_London"