Today Greta Thunberg is giving another impassioned speech about Climate Change to world leaders at the World Economic Forum. A speech that will likely fall on deaf ears. It really is a shame. The evidence exists. So too do the drastic pleas for help. And yet it’s still business as usual. I suppose we really shouldn’t be surprised. This is capitalism through and through. Take. Take. Take. Build. Build. Build. Grow. Grow. Grow. Consequences be damned.
For a while, when natural resources were abundant, and the environment was not yet teetering on the brink of destruction, capitalism worked. It’s a far better economic model than communism or some other models. But there’s just one problem: it’s not sustainable. At some point you’re going to run out of resources. At some point you’re going to run out of time.
What we need then is a new economic model. One that can take environmental concerns into consideration. One that can ensure that our basic needs are still meet. I’ve been saying this for a while. That I wished there was a way to create a hybrid mix of socialism and capitalism and environmentalism. But I didn’t know how to pull it off. Thankfully British economist Kate Raworth did. Say hello to your new best friend. Say hello to Doughnut Economics.
Time explains:
“In April 2020, during the first wave of COVID-19, Amsterdam’s city government announced it would recover from the crisis, and avoid future ones, by embracing the theory of ‘doughnut economics.’ Laid out by British economist Kate Raworth in a 2017 book, the theory argues that 20th century economic thinking is not equipped to deal with the 21st century reality of a planet teetering on the edge of climate breakdown. Instead of equating a growing GDP with a successful society, our goal should be to fit all of human life into what Raworth calls the ‘sweet spot’ between the ‘social foundation,’ where everyone has what they need to live a good life, and the ‘environmental ceiling.’ By and large, people in rich countries are living above the environmental ceiling. Those in poorer countries often fall below the social foundation. The space in between: that’s the doughnut.
Amsterdam’s ambition is to bring all 872,000 residents inside the doughnut, ensuring everyone has access to a good quality of life, but without putting more pressure on the planet than is sustainable. Guided by Raworth’s organization, the Doughnut Economics Action Lab (DEAL), the city is introducing massive infrastructure projects, employment schemes and new policies for government contracts to that end. Meanwhile, some 400 local people and organizations have set up a network called the Amsterdam Doughnut Coalition to run their own programs at a grassroots level.
It’s the first time a major city has attempted to put doughnut theory into action on a local level, but Amsterdam is not alone. Raworth says DEAL has received an avalanche of requests from municipal leaders and others seeking to build more resilient societies in the aftermath of COVID-19. Copenhagen’s city council majority decided to follow Amsterdam’s example in June, as did the Brussels region and the small city of Dunedin, New Zealand, in September, and Nanaimo, British Columbia, in December. In the U.S., Portland, Ore., is preparing to roll out its own version of the doughnut, and Austin may be close behind. The theory has won Raworth some high-profile fans; in November, Pope Francis endorsed her ‘fresh thinking,’ while celebrated British naturalist Sir David Attenborough dedicated a chapter to the doughnut in his latest book, A Life on Our Planet, calling it ‘our species’ compass for the journey’ to a sustainable future.”
If it’s good enough for Sir David Attenborough, the Pope, and the residents of several major cities around the world then maybe it’s good enough for the rest of us. And besides, who doesn’t love a good doughnut?!
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