So for today’s episode, we’ll be dissecting the idea of degrowth. Degrowth, which prioritizes ecological sustainability and social well-being, is the deliberate reduction of energy and resource consumption to bring economies into harmony with the natural world. Degrowth challenges the status quo of measuring economic well-being based on the capitalistic hegemonic order. It is not just a recession; rather, it is a purposeful process meant to lessen the negative effects of economic activity on the environment while maintaining a fair and balanced allocation of resources. It's also become a hot topic in popular debate of what constitutes a successful economy under the guise of the free market and consumerism, and measuring growth solely based on Gross Domestic Product GDP. I had the opportunity to learn more about degrowth during a perceptive dialogue with Claudius Gräbner-Radkowitsch, who is a Junior Professor at the Europa University Flensburg in Northern Germany.

We learn why degrowth is such a contentious phrase because it questions the conventional wisdom that measures standard of living and prosperity using the capitalistic system, as degrowth advocates to protect natural resources and guarantee environmental justice for all through sufficiency. Stay tuned to learn more about this contested idea for part one of this episode.

Here's the episode overview:

• Journey into Academia and Research

• Understanding Degrwoth and its Core Values

• Distinguishing Degrwoth from Conventional Growth

• Challenges and Opportunities of Degrowth

• Balancing Degrowth with Poverty Alleviation

• Sustainability and its Complexities

• Defining Degrowth and its Implications

• Distinguishing Degrowth from Sustainable Development

• Obstacles to Degrowth in Contemporary Society

• The Role of Sufficiency in Economic Growth

• Balancing Sustainable Goals with Economic Growth
• Non-negotiable Sustainable Principles

• Assessing Success in a Degrowth Economy

  
  

  
  

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  Music credits

  Be Forest (2014).Sparkle.

  Live on WFMU's Dark Night of the Soul with Julie: Nov 6, 2014.Free Music Archive. Retrieved from https://freemusicarchive.org/music/Be_Forest/Live_on_WFMUs_Dark_Night_of_the_Soul_with_Julie_Nov_6_2014/Sparkle/ Be Forestis licensed under a Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.

  
  

  Be Forest (2014).Airwaves. Live on WFMU's Dark Night of the Soul with Julie: Nov 20, 2014.Free Music Archive. Retrieved from https://freemusicarchive.org/music/Be_Forest/Live_on_WFMUs_Dark_Night_of_the_Soul_with_Julie_Nov_6_2014/Airwaves/