Economy of Degrowth: Theories and Perspectives

Many of the economists mentioned so far underline a remarkable contradiction of current economic system. On one hand, concerns about an oil crash and the need to reach an oil independence, vehicles pollution, traffic and incidents in highways. On the other hand commercial trades among countries that keeps on increasing but, most of all, in many cases tradings that appear to have no sense. Latouche (2009) remarks this last point: “Alps are crossed by tracks that deliver San Pellegrino (Italian brand of water) to France while at the same time other tracks deliver Badoit de Evian water from France to Italy” than he continues “ this is the absurdity of an economic system in which different states keep on exchanging the same type of products that could be produced locally at a slightly higher price. Globalization lead to this schizophrenic logic of commercial exchange.

England, in 1998, imported 61.400 tons of chicken from Holland and exported 33.100 tons of chicken to Holland” (Latouche, la scommessa della decrescita, 2009, p. 112). The distance covered by food from its origin to the consumer is impressive. In England, part of the lamb is imported from New Zealand, which means that the meat covered a distance of about 18.800 km. Yves Cochet (2005, cited in Latouche, 2009, p.65), underlines this phenomenon: “lettuce from Salinas Valley, in California, gets to Washington markets after 5000kms and just considering transport, it consumes 30 times more energy compared to its calorific value”. Economist of degrowth find in the system of growth the responsible for this situation. First, strategies of marketing implemented the law of brands.

The brand is given too much prominence by consumers that sometimes are devoted to a particular brand without any rational reason. Second, increasing exportation create surplus in public accountancy. Third, commercial trade keeps the demand for oil at a high level. Unfortunately, the system is designed for opposite dynamics to the reduction on the huge quantity of transports: policy makers are trying to stimulate transports and commercial exchanges and all European revitalization plans aim to develop infrastructures dedicated to transports (for instance the Lione – Torino train line).