Steady State Herald – Center for the Advancement of the Steady State Economy

The Second Cold War?

May 21, 2020/0 Comments/in Economic Growth, Economic Policy, Energy, Environment, Steady State Economy, Steady State Herald, Sustainability, Technology /by Casey - Managing Editor

By Brian Snyder

Over the past two months, there has been a great deal of talk about the environmental implications of the pandemic. Some have looked for glimmers of hope, others have predicted that we will shortly return to the status quo. I fear that the biggest outcome of the pandemic will not be its death toll nor its effects on the climate, but its impacts on geopolitics. Specifically, the deteriorating relationship between China and the USA may lead to a Second Cold War.

A Post-COVID Vision: The Full and Sustainable Employment Act

May 19, 2020/14 Comments/in Brian Czech, Consumption, Economic Growth, Economic Policy, Endangered Species, Energy, Environment, Jobs and Employment, Politics, Population, Steady State Economy, Steady State Herald, Technology /by Brian Czech

By Brian Czech

If COVID-19 has taught us anything, it is that the Great God of GDP is a false god after all, impotent as Baal. The mighty American economy, with unprecedented GDP, has been knocked to its knees by one of the lowest conceivable life forms, a mere virus possessing not a single strand of DNA. Politicians who thought their legacies would be associated with “the greatest economy ever” now look like ridiculous priests of a sham religion.

Book Review: The Green New Deal and Beyond: Ending the Climate Emergency While We Still Can by Stan Cox

May 15, 2020/1 Comment/in Consumption, Economic Growth, Economic Policy, Energy, Environment, Politics, Steady State Economy, Steady State Herald, Sustainability /by Casey - Managing Editor

By Gerry Greaves

Achieving sustainable societies globally is likely to be a defining challenge of the 21st century. There is a growing realization that we must act to mitigate the climate crisis. There is also a growing understanding that social and economic injustice must be solved simultaneously. There are many ideas of how to achieve this, but none seems to have caught widespread attention as much as the Green New Deal. This resolution of the U.S.

New Zealand Deprioritizes Growth to Improve Health and Wellbeing

May 12, 2020/2 Comments/in Consumption, Environment, James Magnus-Johnston, Monetary Policy, Steady State Economy, Steady State Herald /by Casey - Managing Editor

By James Magnus-Johnston

Last May, New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern released a budget to improve the “wellbeing” of citizens rather than focusing on productivity and GDP growth. And, not so coincidentally, New Zealand has one of the best coronavirus outcomes of any democracy in the world. Perhaps this provides a global model to make economic health cohere with health for all life.

To improve wellbeing, Ardern emphasized goals that focus on care for people and the planet.

Sequence Matters

May 7, 2020/19 Comments/in Consumption, Economic Growth, Economic Policy, Energy, Environment, Herman Daly, Steady State Economy, Steady State Herald, Technology /by Casey - Managing Editor

By Herman Daly

The main message of the controversial documentary, Planet of the Humans, is that unrestrained economic and population growth should be the target of environmentalists’ efforts, not technological fixes. Techno-fixes can be helpful, but belong in second place. If put in first place they are often dangerous (e.g., nuclear power, green revolution, biomass fuel, space colonization, etc.). Technocrats enjoy usurping first place and are not humble about it.

Planet of the Humans Puts Sacred Cows Out to Pasture

May 1, 2020/71 Comments/in Brian Czech, Climate Change, Economic Growth, Economic Policy, Energy, Environment, Population, Steady State Economy, Steady State Herald, Sustainability, Technology /by Casey - Managing Editor

By Brian Czech

Planet of the Humans is a once-in-a-decade documentary for all concerned with the environment, the economy, and life on Earth. Directed by Jeff Gibbs and produced by Michael Moore, Planet is especially important for advancing the steady state economy. It is reminiscent of Pope Francis’ Laudato si’ in that it makes the case for a steady state economy—resoundingly—while never quite uttering the phrase “steady state economy.”

When viewing a documentary,

Social Solidarity Requires a Universal Basic Income

April 29, 2020/3 Comments/in Economic Growth, Environment, James Magnus-Johnston, Monetary Policy, Steady State Economy, Steady State Herald, Sustainability /by James Johnston

By James Magnus-Johnston

Going forward in these uncertain times, a universal basic income could be the best way to maintain social solidarity—whether referring to health, wellbeing, or public order. “Solidarity,” writes Eric Klinenberg, “motivates us to promote public health, not just our own personal security. It keeps us from hoarding medicine” and prompts us “to knock on our older neighbor’s door.” It is a structure and a mindset that breaks down the barriers of inequality and improves trust,

Happiness and the COVID-caused Recession

April 21, 2020/2 Comments/in Animal Welfare, Economic Growth, Economic Policy, Environment, Jobs and Employment, Steady State Economy, Steady State Herald /by Casey - Managing Editor

By Beth Allgood

Modified from the original published in Our Daily Planet (ourdailyplanet.com) on March 21, 2020.

In 2013, the United Nations designated March 20th as the International Day of Happiness to recognize the importance of happiness and wellbeing in the lives of people around the world. Last year I attended the launch of the annual UN World Happiness Report in New York. This year the UN is closed to the public,

Building a Steady State Economy in a System Evolved for Growth

April 15, 2020/6 Comments/in Animal Welfare, Biodiversity, Economic Growth, Economic Policy, Environment, Population, Steady State Economy, Steady State Herald, Sustainability /by Casey - Managing Editor

By Brian F. Snyder

If you’ve been on the internet recently you’ve been exposed to Tiger King, the wildly popular Netflix series that revolves around the conflict among a bizarre set of humans feuding over the proper way to hold big cats in captivity. Watching the show is a bit like watching a train derail in slow motion, but for our purposes what is important is that it illustrates the discrepancy between the way the world is and the way the world ought to be.

The Triangular Economy: Behind the Circular Flows

April 7, 2020/6 Comments/in Biodiversity, Brian Czech, Consumption, Economic Growth, Economic Policy, Energy, Environment, Monetary Policy, Steady State Economy, Steady State Herald, Sustainability /by Brian Czech

By Brian Czech

The “circular economy” is a response to the environmental problems and resource shortages that arise as the human economy expands. The focus of the circular economy literature is on efficiency which, in terms of economic production, means more output per unit of input. All else equal, increasing efficiency means higher profits, too. That’s real motivation for the corporation.

Efficiency connects to the human propensity to innovate, too. From childhood on,