Sustainability

As Brussels prepares to reform its economy on the basis of the doughnut model, Amsterdam is already taking the leap with its circular economy strategy.

We sat down with Molly Scott Cato, Green MEP and economist, to discuss the EU’s sustainable finance package, alternatives to the current banking model and the role of speculation in Brexit.

An interview on daring to dream and designing economics to regenerate life and community, to thrive rather than to grow.

Public momentum to tackle plastic waste is strong in the UK, but political barriers stall further progress.

Now the economy has overshot key ecological limits, more sustainable social protection systems that do not depend on environmentally destructive forms of work must be found.

Are smart techno-managerial solutions the perfect alibi for resource extraction and inequality in our cities? We talked to author and academic Maria Kaika about the way that green technology so-called solutions are sometimes anything but, and can displace real action.

Could reforms on the horizon in Greece mean the end of environmental protection?

The European Union is far from perfect – from a Green perspective – yet at times when it is threatened, we must rally to its defence as an idea and as a project.

Bigger cities, more wealth and increasingly complex products demand more metallic ores. This is also true for the transition towards sustainable energy.

It is vital now to distinguish between the terms “sustainable development” and “degrowth”, as while one has lost meaning, another is more relevant than ever. Written before the start of COP21, this piece sets apart the two and highlights the importance of changing our view of what constitutes a healthy, climate-friendly economy.