wellbeing Archives – Center for the Advancement of the Steady State Economy

Work Less, Study More, and Forget About GDP

August 24, 2023/8 Comments/in Economic Growth, Greg Mikkelson, Pollution, Steady State Economy, Steady State Herald, Wellbeing /by Gary Gardner

by Gregory M. Mikkelson

Trends in human health have recently decoupled from GDP growth throughout the world. In other words, health improvement no longer tracks economic expansion. Meanwhile, environmental degradation remains firmly coupled to economic growth. As damages from economic growth mount globally, and as benefits fade, the case against further growth is stronger every day.

Within the USA, the case against economic growth is especially compelling, and not just because of the country’s massively disproportionate contribution to global ecological breakdown.

Putin the Heinous Strikes at Global Wellbeing

August 3, 2023/13 Comments/in Banking, Brian Czech, Food and Agriculture, Inflation, Money and Investments, Politics, Steady State Herald, Wellbeing /by Gary Gardner

by Brian Czech

When the name “Putin” is uttered—from now until the end of human utterance—the first thing that should come to mind is hundreds of thousands (and counting) of dead and wounded. Putin has turned a verdant, peace-seeking country into a hell-scape of suffering, including starvation. Let’s not overlook the Ukrainian casualties, now or ever.

Now, Putin is taking an even deeper stride into the annals of infamy by orchestrating one of the most despicable episodes of wanton waste in history: his attack on Ukrainian grain stocks and infrastructure.

Guess What Has Decoupled from Economic Growth?

July 13, 2023/2 Comments/in Greg Mikkelson, Steady State Economy, Steady State Herald, Wellbeing /by Gary Gardner

by Greg Mikkelson

Something new and troubling is happening as economies grow across much of the globe. In contrast to prior decades, when human health improved as global GDP swelled, the link to health progress has been broken. No longer is economic growth delivering a health dividend, it seems.

Meanwhile, another metric, the health of the environment, has continued to deteriorate with economic growth. We now face a “ghastly” global environmental crisis,

Happiness Matters, Even in a Steady State Economy! Part 2: Flourishing Life

March 2, 2023/7 Comments/in Postgrowth, Steady State Economy, Steady State Herald, Wellbeing /by Gary Gardner

by Orsolya Lelkes

Happiness matters. The quest for happiness is an elementary life force and an inherent part of steady state economies. Many fear that reducing material consumption will bring a decline in happiness. We do not like to lose what we already have. Recession and income loss tend to hurt.

On the other hand, voluntary adjustment of priorities in life may boost well-being, as a simpler life might deliver more of what many are missing: health,

Happiness Matters, Even in a Steady State Economy! Part 1: Sustainable Hedonism

February 23, 2023/7 Comments/in Consumption, Economic Growth, Steady State Economy, Steady State Herald, Sustainability /by Gary Gardner

by Orsolya Lelkes

From a historical perspective, we should be living in the happiest of all worlds. Ours is a culture ostensibly centered around happiness: The mainstream neoclassical economic system aims to maximize pleasure (utility) for all, and is based on the assumption that we humans seek the greatest pleasure and the least pain, and that this quest is the main driver of our actions.

Happiness has also been a philosophical,

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.

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,

Challenging the Pro-Growth Market: Mark Carney’s Reith Lectures and the Need for a Radical Approach

January 6, 2021/8 Comments/in Economic Policy, Steady State Herald /by Brian Czech

by James MacGregor Palmer

“Society won’t settle for worthy statements followed by futile gestures. It won’t settle for countries announcing plans in Paris five years ago for 2.8 degrees warming, far too high, that they don’t even meet. Society won’t settle for companies that preach green but don’t manage their carbon footprints, or financial institutions who can’t tell us whether our money is on the right or wrong side of climate history.”

These are not the words of an environmental activist,

COVID-19 in the UK: A Choice between Life and Lucre?

November 25, 2020/2 Comments/in Economic Growth, Economic Policy, Steady State Economy, Steady State Herald /by Brian Czech

by James MacGregor Palmer

1.8 million pounds.

That’s how much the UK government thinks our lives are worth.

Placing an economic value on a human being is nothing new. It’s standard practice in a growth-obsessed society that ascribes economic value to whatever it can.

The Economy Over All

Last week the UK’s COVID-19 death toll broke the 50,000 mark. With our own wild-haired leader of the post-truth era at the helm,

Pandemic and the Policy Roots of a Steady State Economy

July 9, 2020/4 Comments/in Economic Growth, Economic Policy, Steady State Economy, Steady State Herald /by Brian Czech

by James Magnus-Johnston

Over a decade ago, a chorus of voices called for sensible policy priorities for a post-growth transition; it took a pandemic for a few of these priorities—like a universal basic income—to become a reality nearly overnight. Not that recent policy reforms have been conducted with a steady state economy in mind. Rather, politicians have been attempting to “stimulate” a moribund economy.

Let’s imagine for a moment,

Posts

by Gregory M. Mikkelson

by Brian Czech

by Greg Mikkelson

by James Lamont

by James MacGregor Palmer

by James MacGregor Palmer

by James MacGregor Palmer

The Economy Over All

by James Magnus-Johnston