Wellbeing for all within planetary boundaries
The Club of Rome has recently published a number of deep-dive papers as part of the Earth4All project.
These papers delve into the issues and solutions needed to transform our economic system and provide an equitable future for all on a finite planet. They also serve as the background content and further reading material for the Earth4All book which will be published in September.
From inequality to sustainability
Large income and wealth differences reduce the chances that our societies will respond adequately to the environmental crisis. This paper details six reasons for why greater equality is essential to a world facing the consequences of overshoot and the climate crisis.
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Planetary boundaries means that equitable resource sharing cannot be substituted for economic growth.
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People will oppose action unless they feel that the burden is fairly shared
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The environmental footprint of the rich is so large that it has to be reduced, not only for the sake of justice but as an essential part of bringing the environmental crises under control.
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Consumerism – a major threat to sustainability - can be reduced by reducing status competition
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Greater equality is central to both health and social wellbeing
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Greater equality promotes cooperation
Full paper by Richard Wilkinson and Kate Pickett: https://www.clubofrome.org/publication/earth4all-inequality-to-sustainability/
Related op-ed: If it doesn’t work for the people, it won’t work for the planet
The Limits to Growth model: still prescient 50 years later
The paper discusses the accuracy of 1972 report - The Limits to Growth – which stated that “If the present growth trends in world population, industrialization, pollution, food production, and resource depletion continue unchanged, the limits to growth on this planet will be reached sometime within the next one hundred years”.
The systems dynamic model behind the report – the World3 model - was used by the authors of The Limits to Growth in 1972, and this paper sets to conduct a quantitative comparison between empirical data and the most recent version of the World3 model to see how accurate the different scenarios were. It concludes that it is not too late to change path – but that the window of opportunity is closing fast:
Full paper by Gaya Herrington: https://www.clubofrome.org/publication/earth4all-ltg-model/
Related op-ed: What a 50-year-old world model tells us about a way forward today
Planetary turnaround: an investment banker’s perspective on climate change action
The Earth4All initiative details five extraordinary turnarounds that can reboot our economies, reduce the risk of disruptive societal change, improve the happiness and wellbeing of every human, and protect our natural environment. This paper shows that the investment required to deliver these five turnarounds is, to a significant degree, a huge investment opportunity as opposed to an economic burden.
Actions that governments need to take include:
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Subsidise or incentivise the adoption of new technologies and industries of the future.
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Ban investment in fossil fuels, end all subsidies to the fossil fuel sector, and make all damaging activities increasingly unprofitable.
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Set deadlines for energy systems to reach net zero.
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Provide a decent guaranteed income for displaced workers while they retrain.
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Make required investments with public money where private-section investment proves impossible.
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Learn from the COVID pandemic which showed that the state (particularly high-income countries) can provide the capital needed to cushion the worst impacts of instabilities.
Full paper by Nigel Lake and Jorgen Randers: https://www.clubofrome.org/publication/earth4all-lake-randers/
Related op-ed: Eco-infrastructure – A transformational opportunity for investors
Till Kellerhoff
Program Director
+41(0)52 244 0806
Philippa Baumgartner
Head of Communications
Tel: +43 664 414 4456
The Club of Rome is a platform of diverse thought leaders who identify holistic solutions to complex global issues and promote policy initiatives and action to enable humanity to emerge from multiple planetary emergencies.
The organisation has prioritised five key areas of impact: Emerging New Civilisations; Planetary Emergency; Reframing Economics; Rethinking Finance; and Youth Leadership and Intergenerational Dialogues.
Earth4All is an international initiative to accelerate the systems-changes we need for an equitable future on a finite planet. Combining the best available science with new economic thinking, Earth4All is designed to identify the transformations we need to create prosperity for all. Earth4All is initiated by The Club of Rome, the Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research, the Stockholm Resilience Centre and the Norwegian Business School. It builds on the legacies of The Limits to Growth and the Planetary Boundaries frameworks.
Earth4All will publish a book in September 2022, which focuses on transformational economics and five extraordinary turnarounds needed to achieve wellbeing for all within planetary boundaries. www.earth4all.life