An Economics of Doughnuts
…Living in the Sweet Spot
*Note that graphics in this post are copied from the Doughnut Economics website.
There are those who say that every human being (at least those on Earth) deserves to be guaranteed the basic necessities of life – food, shelter, healthcare, social justice, etc. Others, often many of the same, say that we humans must, for our own survival, change our whole relationship with Earth so that we can live without exceeding the planet’s carrying capacity. Many say we can’t have it both ways.
British economist Kate Raworth, in her 2017 book Doughnut Economics: seven ways to think like a 21st century economist, says we can. And the worldwide movement inspired by the book, called the Doughnut Economics Action Lab (DEAL), is exploring and demonstrating how it can be done by thinking about and practicing economics in a new, 21st century, way.
Why economics, one might ask? Well, it makes sense if we realize that the word “economics” derives from the Greek word meaning “household management”. Thus, how we take care of our home. If we think of Earth as our home, which she is, we have to admit that we’ve done a lousy job of it. Clearly, Earth is not amused and has been giving us, increasingly in frequency and severity, deadly slaps upside the head (hurricanes, floods, droughts, earthquakes, heat waves) in an effort to wake us up to our incompetence. And we’d better wake up lest she fires us from our management job and kicks us out of the house.
The seven ways to transform economic thinking and practice are summarized in the diagram below. More details are given in the book and on the website.
The website also provides concrete examples – via 390 (so far!) stories – of how the principles of Doughnut Economics are being put into practice in countries around the world. Check ‘em out!
A friend replied that, while this is a worthy idea, there will be a lot of obstacles along the way. Yes, that's for sure. We have to realize, though, that the Doughnut is just one idea being tried out; there may certainly be others popping up over time. Also, we are living at a time when those obstacles are being swept away in the collapse of the current system of political and economic institutions and ways of doing things. We can see and experience it every day all around us. Something will arise to replace it – is already arising via the Doughnut and other experiments going on. As Einstein said, “We cannot solve our problems with the same thinking we used when we created them." I can’t argue with Einstein!