Wellbeing and Productivity: A Review of the Literature | Paper
This report reviews the relationships between the different aspects of wellbeing, productivity, and productivity growth. It is the culmination of a desk-based evidence review, survey, and a mapping workshop held with experts from backgrounds including psychology, sociology, economics, and design. The focus is on wellbeing and labour productivity.
Towards a Wellbeing Economy | EESC calls for a new vision of prosperity
The European Economic and Social Committee overwhelmingly adopted an ‘own-initiative opinion’ on the sustainable and inclusive ‘wellbeing economy’ that Europe needs. A call on the EU 'for a new vision of prosperity', developed in close collaboration with CUSP director Tim Jackson as Expert to the Rapporteur.
The storied state of economics: Review of Robert Shiller’s Narrative Economics | By Tim Jackson
“Economists are tellers of stories and makers of poems,” wrote the economic historian Deidre McCloskey in 1990. It’s a curious observation for a profession that prides itself on hard-nosed, quantitative analysis and strives continually for predictive power. The Nobel-prizewinning economist Robert Shiller goes even further. His new book probes how social behaviour trumps statistics in determining the fate of economies—Tim Jackson weighs it up.
Measuring Prosperity—Navigating the Options | Paper
Since its development in the 1930s, GDP has been the most widely used measure of the health and progress of an economy, being adopted as the principal policy objective of countless national and international bodies across the world. Its many shortcomings as a measure of progress are well documented, and the alternative indicators of progress developed in response to these shortcomings have been diverse and numerous. This paper synthesises the literature, highlighting the importance of context and purpose in determining what makes a ‘good’ indicator.
A new kind of Growth for Europe? | Tim Jackson at the 2019 Brussels Economic Forum
Tim Jackson in fierce debate with high-profile panel on prospects in the EU for reconciling economic growth with social cohesion, fairness and sustainability. Moderated by Viktoria Dendrinou (Bloomberg), co-discussants include Valdis Dombrovskis (Vice-President, European Commission), Nadia Calviño (Minister of Economy and Business, Spain), Gita Gopinath (Chief Economist, International Monetary Fund) and Riccardo Illy (Chairman, Gruppo Illy).
‘Whatever it takes’—the new economics of system change
‘System change, not climate change’ is the mantra for a new politically-charged ecological activism. In the wake of two key economic conferences, Tim Jackson reflects on what this means for the financial and political stability of Europe.—"It matters not a jot that you do ‘whatever it takes’ to save the banks, if you fail to do whatever it takes to save the climate."
Green, prosperous and fair: a vision for Europe’s future
After the most profound shake-up in decades, European politics stands at a pivotal point in its long history. With nationalist parties drawing support from communities who have been left behind and green parties benefiting from a huge upsurge of concern around climate breakdown and biodiversity loss, there is a unique opportunity, argues Tim Jackson, to build a new vision for Europe that is green, prosperous and fair.
Rethinking Economic Policy in the EU | First Postgrowth conference at EU parliament
Scientists, politicians, and policymakers gathering in Brussels for landmark conference: Hosted at the EU parliament, the multi-stakeholder event is exploring visions and solutions for a post-growth economy in Europe. An accompanying petition calling on the EU and its member states to plan for a postgrowth future is now published in leading newspapers all over Europe.
LowGrow SFC: An ecological macroeconomic simulation model
System dynamics model by Tim Jackson and Peter Victor is live now, developing sustainable prosperity scenarios for the Canadian economy out to 2067. LowGrow SFC is part of a suite of system dynamics models developed by Tim Jackson and Peter Victor, including SIGMA, which addresses the key challenge of inequality in the context of declining growth rates; and FALSTAFF, which explores the financial and economic dimensions of a post-growth economy.
‘Secular stagnation’ meets the ‘GDP fetish’
Tim Jackson introduces his new CUSP working paper ‘The Post-Growth Challenge’, in which he discusses the state of advanced economies ten years after the crisis. Our attempts to prop up an ailing capitalism have increased inequality, hindered ecological innovation and undermined stability, he argues.
‘Everything, in short, except that which makes life worthwhile’
Fifty years to the day after Robert Kennedy’s historic speech on the limitations of the GDP at the University of Kansas in March 1968, Tim Jackson reflects on the failings of measurement and vision which still haunt both economic policy and our everyday life.
Social Limits to Growth — Lessons for a post-crash economy
On 13 November 2017, the APPG on Limits to Growth hosted an evening debate at the House of Commons, to celebrate the 40th anniversary of the publication of Social Limits to Growth by Fred Hirsch. Caroline Lucas and Tim Jackson reflect on the continuing relevance of his ground-breaking work.
This new world—Reframing the distribution of rewards | Huffington Post
Remember trickle-down theory? It’s the rose-tinted notion that economic growth is the only way to bring poor people out of poverty and reduce the inequality that divides society and undermines political solidarity. It’s not working. Our choices are now clear. Either we endure the rising instability and fractured politics of a deeply unequal world, or we build a new vision of a shared prosperity.
Beyond Consumer Capitalism—Foundations for Sustainable Prosperity | Paper
This paper explores the ramifications of the combined crises now faced by the prevailing growth-based model of economics. In paying a particular attention to the nature of enterprise, the quality of work, the structure of investment and the role of money, the paper develops the conceptual basis for social innovation in each of these areas, and provides empirical examples of such innovations.
