Steady State Herald (CASSE Blog) – Page 15 of 55 – Center for the Advancement of the Steady State Economy

Introducing the Forgoing Flights for America the Beautiful Act

September 2, 2021/5 Comments/in Brian Czech, Climate Change, Economic Policy, Environment, Governance, Politics, Steady State Economy, Steady State Herald, Sustainability /by Brian Czech

by Brian Czech

The first commandment of serious policy reform is: “Thou shalt not propose sweeping legislation without the drafting thereof.” So, if we’re going to get serious about banning flights, we better produce the legislative goods. In doing so, we strive to obey the second commandment as well: “Thou shalt not propose infeasible legislation.”

To be feasible, the Forgoing Flights for America the Beautiful Act (FFAB) must be presented as a logical sequence of reforms.

#BanFlightsUSA, Before It’s Too Late!

August 26, 2021/26 Comments/in Brian Czech, Climate Change, Economic Policy, Environment, Governance, Steady State Economy, Steady State Herald, Sustainability /by Brian Czech

by Brian Czech

In a rational world, we’d avoid doing things that rot our teeth, cause traffic accidents, or…ruin the planet for the kids, grandkids, and millions of other species. Unfortunately, our rationality has been spotty at best. We’ve been rational enough to protect plenty of teeth and prevent numerous accidents, but we’ve done nothing to stop the global heating that is wrecking our spectacular Earth.

That’s why we need to ban flights now.

IPCC Report: Happily Ever After or Miserable Ever More?

August 19, 2021/2 Comments/in Climate Change, Economic Growth, Environment, Steady State Herald, Sustainability /by Brian Czech

by Brian Snyder

If you’ve been following the news, you’ve heard that the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) recently released the first section of its sixth report (hereafter, “the report”). The report focuses on the physical science of climate change, and projects the most likely ecological and economic impacts as well as possible mitigation pathways. If you’ve read it—and it is worth reading—you might find that the IPCC has managed once again to walk the line between terrifying and cautious.

The GPI Act: Genuine Indication of Progress?

August 12, 2021/6 Comments/in Economic Growth, Economic Policy, Politics, Steady State Herald /by Brian Czech

by James Lamont

On July 30 the Genuine Progress Indicator (GPI) Act was introduced in Congress by U.S. House Representative Ilhan Omar (D-MN). The GPI would indicate the net benefit of economic activity, as an alternative to Gross Domestic Product (GDP). It would be used in the economic and budgetary reporting of federal agencies and government offices.

For me, the timing was remarkable, as July 30 was the very day I signed on with CASSE.

CO2 Emissions: Accounting for Accountability

August 5, 2021/2 Comments/in Climate Change, Consumption, Economic Growth, Economic Policy, Environment, Steady State Economy, Steady State Herald /by Brian Czech

by Taylor Lange

In my very first graduate statistics course, the professor often cautioned us about data collection: “Garbage in, Garbage out.” What she said, in no uncertain terms, was that mistakes in the measurement or methodology would invalidate our statistical analyses. I’ve consistently reminded myself of this mantra. My colleagues, students, and I double check the sources and methodology behind any data we’re testing. If we aren’t entirely confident in the integrity of the data,

Reduce, Reuse, Rethink: The Problem of Recycling

July 29, 2021/3 Comments/in Biodiversity, Climate Change, Economic Growth, Environment, Steady State Economy, Steady State Herald, Sustainability /by Brian Czech

by Ted Atwood

I was born in the year 2000. Thus, for my entire life, human-caused climate change has been an ever-present, intensifying threat. Throughout my early education, I learned that we all just needed to “do our part” to combat climate change. “Do your part” lessons always culminated in the sentiment that you too could save the cute polar bears by following the motto “reduce, reuse, recycle,” and these were words I took to heart.

Old White Men: Protecting the Rim for Steady-State Diversity

July 22, 2021/18 Comments/in Brian Czech, Economic Policy, Environment, Governance, Politics, Steady State Economy, Steady State Herald, Sustainability /by Brian Czech

by Brian Czech

I’m an old guy. Not ancient, perhaps, but my 61-year old knees alone would put me in the lower decile of…let’s say freshness. Why, my best days are so far back, you’d need a rearview mirror from the Giant Magellan Telescope to spot one!

As if that weren’t bad enough, I’m a white guy. I might feel black and blue sometimes from fighting the forces of GDP growth,

Wellbeing, Happiness, and GDP Growth: Rhetoric vs. Reality

July 15, 2021/5 Comments/in Climate Change, Economic Growth, Economic Policy, Environment, Governance, Politics, Population, Steady State Economy, Steady State Herald, Sustainability /by Brian Czech

by James MacGregor Palmer

Several movements are working in opposition to the destructive growth economy of the 21st century. The labels adopted by these movements are largely tied to the regions in which they originated and/or became popular. For example, the term “steady state” is most prevalent in the USA, while “degrowth” is often associated with continental Europe. The widespread term throughout the UK, however, is “wellbeing economy.”

Without prior knowledge of the UK term,

If It’s Profitable, Is It Really Sustainable?

May 20, 2021/3 Comments/in Banking, Corporate Reform, Economic Growth, Environment, Money and Investments, Steady State Economy, Steady State Herald, Sustainability /by Brian Czech

by Gunnar Rundgren

That an economic activity has to be profitable is considered a truism, something taken for granted and not reflected upon. But what if the opposite is the case?

When I first took up small-scale organic farming in the 1970s, I spent a lot of energy on developing new methods and machinery to increase my productive efficiency. The early organic advocates went a long way to assure growers, farmers,

Degrowth: A North American Vision

May 6, 2021/10 Comments/in Brian Czech, Degrowth, Economic Growth, Economic Policy, Governance, Politics, Population, Steady State Economy, Steady State Herald /by Brian Czech

By Brian Czech

Students and scholars of steady-state economics must have noticed, by now, that the Degrowth movement in Europe has attained far more traction than the steady-state movement has in the USA (or anywhere). Degrowth is the banner under which thousands have assembled at numerous conferences for almost two decades now, demonstrating a durable unity. Major European news outlets such as The Guardian report on Degrowth doings; even prominent American outlets including Bloomberg have taken note.