Posts


Wildlife on the Way Out While the World Wildlife Fund Lays a Policy Egg

by Brian Czech

It’s been awhile since wildlife—not just a species here or there but wildlife at large—has been front and center in the news. Usually the biggest environmental news pertains to climate change at the global level, or local pollution problems such as lead in the water pipes. “Biodiversity” gained traction as an issue in the 1990s, but seems to have slipped off the public’s radar. (When’s the last time you saw it in a prominent newspaper headline?)

“Wildlife,” on the other hand,


Uncommon Sense—The Foreword

by Brian Czech

Editor’s Note: This foreword is an excerpt from the Steady State Press’ forthcoming book, Uncommon Sense: Shortcomings of the Human Mind for Handling Big-Picture, Long-Term Challenges by Peter Seidel. Preorder a copy now.

I first encountered Peter Seidel at a Society of Environmental Journalists conference in Wisconsin. Or perhaps it was a conference of the U.S. Society for Ecological Economics in New York.


Building Upon the Trophic Theory of Money: Preliminary Results from Canada

By James Magnus-Johnston

The human economy doesn’t just mimic the economy of nature; it is part of it. It is woven directly into the ecological system of producers and consumers. Due to the technological prowess of Homo sapiens, though, the human presence dominates, threatening other species and the life support system of the planet. Human dominance over non-human life leads us to acknowledge some uncomfortable truths, particularly for proponents of “green growth.”

The first pertains to the loss of biodiversity.


The Silver Lining of the COVID-Caused Recession is Supra-Economic

by Brian Czech

COVID-19 has done in a deadly way what steady-state economists would prescribe in a healthy way: putting the brakes on a runaway economy. In fact, the pandemic has slammed on the brakes and jammed the GDP gearstick into reverse. It has ushered us into a recession that will be pronounced and protracted. In a COVID-caused recession, it’s nature at bat, not the Fed.

In these dark times, any source of comfort is welcome.


Biocultural Heritage: The Foundation of a Sustainable Economy

Want healthy ecosystems and healthy economies? You’d better think about conserving biocultural heritage.


A Medical Missionary’s Environmental Epiphany

What can leprosy and its treatment teach us about ourselves and how to manage our environmental crises?


Ecosystem Services: The Traveling Salesman and the Trophic Conundrum

Valuation of ecosystem services is an important, but insufficient, step toward achieving a sustainable economy.


Opportunity Cost of Growth

Herman Daly swims upstream like a salmon, fighting the flow of fallacious philosophy from growth economists — you won’t want to miss his final refrain on this one.