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What does degrowth mean? A few points of clarification
Abstract
Degrowth is a planned reduction of energy and resource use designed to bring the economy back into balance with the living world in a way that reduces inequality and improves human well-being. Over the past few years, the idea has attracted significant attention among academics and social movements, but for people new to the idea it raises a number of questions. Here I set out to clarify three specific issues: (1) I specify what degrowth means, and argue that the framing of degrowth is an asset, not a liability; (2) I explain how degrowth differs fundamentally from a recession; and (3) I affirm that degrowth is primarily focused on high-income nations, and explore the implications of degrowth for the global South.
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“The current eco-social crisis is driven by an unsustainable socioeconomic model based on continued economic growth that exceeds planetary limits.”
From Bridging Sectors and Disciplines to Gain a Critical Understanding of the Eco-Social Determinants of Health Inequities: The ESDHI-EU Conference (2025) · cites this paper as [46]
In the citing paper
“The current eco-social crisis is not an inevitable consequence of humanity's existence but rather the result of a specific socioeconomic system that relies on perpetual expansion (46), disproportionately benefiting a small minority of wealthy individuals (47).”
From Bridging Sectors and Disciplines to Gain a Critical Understanding of the Eco-Social Determinants of Health Inequities: The ESDHI-EU Conference (2025) · cites this paper as [46]
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Metadata
- Authors
- Hickel, J.
- Affiliations
- University of London (GB)
- Corresponding author
- Hickel, Jason
- ORCID
- Hickel, Jason
- Venue
- Globalizations
- Publisher
- Informa UK Limited
- Published
- 2020-09-04
- Volume
- 18
- Issue
- 7
- Pages
- 1105-1111
- ISSN
- 1474-7731 (ISSN-L)
- 1474-774X
- OpenAlex
- W3083442998
- Cited by
- 401
- References
- 24
- Citations by year
- 2026: 81 · 2025: 103 · 2024: 65 · 2023: 85 · 2022: 40 · 2021: 24 · 2020: 3
- FWCI
- 44.86
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- closed
- Locations
- Globalizations (publishedVersion)
- Topics
- Physical Sciences › Environmental Science › Management, Monitoring, Policy and Law › Sustainable Development and Environmental Policy
- Social Sciences › Sociology and Political Science › Economic and Social Issues
- Social Sciences › Sociology and Political Science › Political Economy and Marxism
- Keywords
- degrowth, economic inequality, human well-being, economic recession, Global South, social movements
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