Steady State Economy

THE STEADY STATE ECONOMY ur Steady State economy we have two guiding princip A Totem of Real Happiness We are a decade into a huge experiment in which we are trying to convert our planet into a Steady State economy. We have two guiding principles: we don't use natural resources faster than they can be replenished by the planet, and we don't deposit wastes faster than they can be absorbed. Ten han they can be replenished. We don't deposit wastes years down the line, the sacrifices we have made have been less onerous than we feared they might be. We have escaped the doomed model of economic growth, and no one is worse off. It is even possible that we have all become a little bit happier, and it is good to know that now our grandchildren have a chance of a better life too. Resource Use Rate: CONSUMPTION Waste Deposit Rate: EMISSIONS О Срн O EpH uop at Срн Eрн Ecology Economy h and emission are kOut studying economics we work Sustain Consumption effective We use t Mechanism 1: We cap resources. Mechanism 2: We tax resources. We cap fossil fuels at the source (coal, oil, natural gas). We TAX resources at the point they are extracted. PRICES EFFICIENCY We have sustainable energy from sun, wind and water. We use resources sparingly as taxes raise their price. Financial equity. Eco-effectiveness. Lower impact lives. New financial systems. In a Steady State economy the highest income is no more than 30 times the lowest income. The carrying capacity of the ecosystem determines limits to economic growth. We develop new models of ownership. We can lease rather than buy new products. The owner is responsible for maintenance and recycling the product. Finance is not built around speculative bubbles and expectations of future growth. HIGHEST INCOME LOWEST INCOME 00000 00000 30x 00000 Efficiency increases. Developments in technology allow us to get more and more out of the resources we have. Example: FACTOR OF INCOME RANGE We gradually raise the percentage of money deposited that banks are required to keep in reserve. Co2 FACTOR from PLATO to THE STEADY STATE ECONOMY Introduction of a tax on Co2 Emissions makes petrol fuelled travel very expensive. This limits car journeys, Products are built to Last. Maintenance and repair are a more important source of employment than ever before, as are science, technology and design. Plato's vision Universities, civil services 20 and the military and triggers investments in public transport and in the technology reguired to run vehicles on renewable energy. We move to a culture in which you have to sae money before you can lend or invest it. US corporate sector I e economy 2020: towards a Steady State economy The Steady State economy •how to achieve these limits in the m than they can be abs0. 000000 Sustainahilty Range O- y of nature we work out what levels of co