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    Less Is More by Jason Hickel Summary

    Less Is More
    Jason Hickel
    EnvironmentEconomicsSociety
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    Overview of Less Is More

    Challenging capitalism's growth imperative, "Less Is More" reveals how degrowth could save our planet. Oxford professor Danny Dorling calls it "a masterpiece," while tech founder DHH admits it debunked economic myths he'd "left unquestioned since business school." Your perspective on prosperity will never be the same.

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    The Growth Paradox: How More Became Less

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    Imagine returning to a childhood place-a forest where you once played-only to find it transformed into a shopping mall. This loss reflects a larger pattern happening globally. Insects vanishing from windshields. Bird populations plummeting by a third in just 15 years. Rainforest insect biomass down by a staggering 98%. These aren't just statistics-they're alarm bells signaling ecological collapse. What's driving this devastation? The answer lies in our economic system's fundamental design flaw: the requirement for endless growth. Unlike natural systems that reach equilibrium, capitalism demands perpetual expansion-typically 2-3% GDP growth annually. This creates an exponential curve that doubles the global economy every 23 years, pushing resource use far beyond Earth's limits. The consequences are already visible. Material consumption has exploded from 14 billion tons in 1950 to a staggering 92 billion tons today-nearly twice what scientists consider Earth's sustainable threshold. Climate breakdown accelerates as tipping points like Arctic ice melt create feedback loops that continue regardless of human emissions. What makes this particularly troubling is how our economic system treats these warning signs not as existential threats but as obstacles to overcome in pursuit of more growth. We've been conditioned to believe this system is inevitable-so much so that even powerful politicians can only respond "that's just the way it is" when questioned about alternatives.

    2

    The Violent Birth of Our Economic System

    3

    The Relentless Machine: Why Growth Cannot Be Stopped

    4

    The Myth of Green Growth

    5

    Pathways to Post-Growth Prosperity

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    From Work to Life: Reclaiming Our Time

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    Regeneration: Healing Our Relationship With Earth