Visions and Strategies for a Sustainable Economy: Theoretical and Policy Alternatives

328 Pages·2022·7.258 MB·English

by  Nikolaos Karagiannis, John E. King

GLOBAL INSTITUTE FOR SUSTAINABLE PROSPERITY
Visions and Strategies
for a Sustainable
Economy
Theoretical and Policy Alternatives
Edited by
Nikolaos Karagiannis · John E. King
Global Institute for Sustainable Prosperity
Series Editors
Mathew Forstater, Department of Economics, University of Missouri,
Kansas City, MO, USA
Fadhel Kaboub, Denison University, Granville, OH, USA
Michael J Murray, Bemidji, MN, USA
·
Nikolaos Karagiannis John E. King
Editors
Visions and Strategies
for a Sustainable
Economy
Theoretical and Policy Alternatives
Editors
Nikolaos Karagiannis John E. King
Department of Accounting, Greensborough, VIC, Australia
Economics and Finance
Winston-Salem State University
Winston-Salem, NC, USA
ISSN 2730-5511 ISSN 2730-552X (electronic)
Global Institute for Sustainable Prosperity
ISBN 978-3-031-06492-0 ISBN 978-3-031-06493-7 (eBook)
https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-06493-7
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In memory of my wife Mary Nicholls
—John Edward King
In memory of my late father Vasileios Karagiannis
—Nikolaos Karagiannis
Visions and Strategies for a
Sustainable Economy: Theoretical and
Policy Alternatives
Setting the Context
In the current age, the issue of environmental sustainability represents
one of the most critical human concerns that has drawn global atten-
tion, generated worldwide discourse, and engaged a large number of
international forums and conventions, national institutions, and non-
governmental organizations (NGOs). An environmentally sustainable
mode of economic development has gained increasing prominence due
to disastrous events and issues such as nuclear accidents, oil spills, water
pollution, deforestation, the greenhouse effect, rise in sea levels, ozone
depletion, land degradation, and a loss of biodiversity. Seeking to link
and prioritize among aspirations pertaining to human welfare, the “sus-
tainable development” notion stresses the long-term compatibility of the
economic, environmental, and social dimensions of development, while
acknowledging possible competition across these areas in the shorter
term.
Despite an extensive amount of literature on “sustainable develop-
ment”, it still has not been possible to come up with a consensus
definitionofsuchacomplicatedconcept.Instead,therearetwodistinctive
perspectivesonsustainabledevelopment:onesupportingthecontinuation
ofeconomicgrowththroughenvironment-friendlyactivities,andanother
stressing the reduction of economic growth and consumption for greater
sustainability.Inexaminingmajorfactorscausingorworseningthevarious
forms of environmental unsustainability, few are briefly spelled out: a
vii
viii VISIONSANDSTRATEGIESFORASUSTAINABLEECONOMY
drastic increase in global population; the danger presented by poverty
and inequality to the environment; excessive urbanization and industrial
expansion;therapiddemiseofsocialandwelfareprogrammesandtherise
of market-led policies; and the global expansion of unrestrained market
forces.
However,orthodoxanalysesandproposalstendtobetooeconomistic
in outlook in terms of their tendency to convert all issues related to
the environment and sustainability, including the moral questions, into
economic parameters. Consequently, they fail to take into account some
of the most basic characteristics of how human societies and economics
function and develop. For instance, they largely ignore the specific
dynamics of pioneer development, power imbalance in and between
human societies, the role of conflict, and the fundamental diversity of
interests and lifestyles. Most importantly, such orthodox studies define
life-support systems almost exclusively in bio-geophysical terms, thus
ignoring the fact that human progress primarily depends on the accumu-
lated scientific and technological knowledge and on the cultural heritage
of institutions and arrangements, which represent successful solutions of
social,economic,andpoliticalproblems.Inshort,orthodoxcontributions
have failed to capture the array of real issues and policy dilemmas.
Given these limitations of mainstream approaches, it is essential
that alternative perspectives on sustainability gain momentum towards
providing a more comprehensive understanding of the environmental,
economic, financial, educational, and civic traits of individuals, commu-
nities, and regions around the world. In this regard, there is also the
transdisciplinary effort of “ecological economics”, which seeks to link
ecology, from the natural sciences, and economics, from the social
sciences. Its goal is to develop a deeper understanding of the complex
relationships between humans and nature, and to use that understanding
to develop policies that will lead to a world which is ecologically sustain-
able, has a fair distribution of existing resources, and efficiently allocates
resources, including “natural” and “social” capital.
Such an ambition clearly requires novel and fresh approaches that are
comprehensive, adaptive, integrative, multiscale, pluralistic, and evolu-
tionary, and which acknowledge the enormous uncertainties involved.
Ultimately, the challenge to achieving sustainability is what constitutes
the “good life” and a “better society” in the twenty-first century, and
why finding ways other than simply reducing material impacts on the
natural environment is part of achieving this goal. That, in turn, requires
VISIONSANDSTRATEGIESFORASUSTAINABLEECONOMY ix
much more attention to policy interventions and less to markets. As the
pace and scale of local sustainability efforts grow—and there is consid-
erable evidence to show that they are growing—social subjectivities and
collective consciousness that must go hand-in-hand with technological
innovationandmaterialchangemayspread.Whetherthiswill,eventually,
bring us to sustainability is something we can only wait to see.
The Structure of the Book
The multidisciplinary edited book Visions and Strategies for a Sustain-
able Economy: Theoretical and Policy Alternatives provides a thorough
examination at the theoretical and, especially, policy levels of a number
of key topics related to a sustainable economy and a better society. With
important contributions by distinguished academics, the book presents
alternative views, provides an assessment of contemporary realities in
an era of ecological emergency, and offers visions, strategies, and real-
istic policies towards a better economy and society while paying special
attention to a ‘green new deal’ for different areas.
InChapter1,Daleprovidesananalysisofsustainability,self-sufficiency,
andsufficiencyintheancientworld.Accordingtotheauthor,thesustain-
abilitydiscourseisthoroughlymodern,andsotooarestrategiestoachieve
it via “sustainable consumption” and “sufficiency”. Considering that
consumerism should be understood as an ideology organic to capitalism,
Dale proposes that sufficiency needs to appear in a radical-democratic
light as a demand for an “alternative hedonism” or, broadly conceived,
as class struggle.
InChapter2,Arestis,KaragiannisandMadjd-Sadjadilinkthedevelop-
mental state view to green economic growth. The authors briefly review
the developmental state literature and point out the absence of “green
considerations”. To address this missing link, Arestis, Karagiannis and
Madjd-Sadjadi offer a green developmental state framework by distin-
guishing two main sets of factors: sociocultural and politico-institutional
elements, and economic development and industrial targeting aspects.
In Chapter 3, Sawyer develops the case for an environmental indus-
trial strategy, which requires a comprehensive approach by government
toindustry.Theauthorthenexaminesthewaysinwhichmacroeconomic
policiescanbeusedtosupporttheenvironmentalindustrialstrategywith
regard to fiscal policies and to monetary policies, as well as the ways in
x VISIONSANDSTRATEGIESFORASUSTAINABLEECONOMY
which the investment required under such a strategy could be secured to
ensure that there is a successful transition to a sustainable economy.
In Chapter 4, Arestis and Karagiannis focus on macroeconomic poli-
cies employed during the Global Financial Crisis and Covid-19 and,
particularly, on future economic policies which are deemed necessary
to achieve high levels of economic activity and employment along with
equal distribution of income and wealth. According to the authors, these
future economic policies need to be properly coordinated if successful
economic activity is to be achieved. However, as Arestis and Karagiannis
contend,fiscalandmonetaryauthoritiesshoulddotheirbesttokeepsuch
coordination safe, resilient and transparent.
In Chapter 5, Rossi takes the flaws of neoliberalism into account to
contend that central banks should not limit their policy focus to price
stability but must, first and foremost, act to guarantee financial stability
–which has become a major issue after the outbreak of the global finan-
cialcrisisin2008andtheCovid-19pandemic.Theauthorfurtherargues
thatmonetarypolicyshouldcontributetoacollectiveeffortinsupporting
and carrying out an ecological transition that favours economic develop-
ment for the common good. To achieve this goal, governments can issue
“green bonds” that central banks should purchase to finance the ecolog-
ical transition, to be achieved also through an appropriate interest rate
policy.
In Chapter 6, Correa updates the ruminations of Keynes by devel-
opingamodelinwhichgovernmentinvestmentaloneandpeoplewithout
workareconnectedbyalong-livedgovernmentinstrumentthatisheldby
peopleandprovidesthemwithreturns.Forthisconnectiontobesuccess-
fully accomplished,governments will have to ensure domains where their
interests are aligned with the people; but pursuing self-interest is best
served by policy coordination.
In Chapter 7, Nersisyan and Wray set out a framework for analyzing
the true cost of the Green New Deal (GND) in the United States. The
authors change the debate from estimating financial costs to a careful
assessmentofresourceneedsandavailability.Suchanapproach,informed
by Keynes and Modern Money Theory (MMT), provides more useful
guidance about the question of the GND’s “affordability” than the
conventional method of merely adding up the “dollar costs” of GND
projects.
VISIONSANDSTRATEGIESFORASUSTAINABLEECONOMY xi
In Chapter 8, Messkoub proposes a growth or degrowth strategy
that can manage/negotiate the composition of output whilst investing
in resources to reduce depletion of natural assets and greenhouse emis-
sion. Such a strategy is based on the “human theory of needs” that not
only meets the needs of the current generation but also provides some
measure of inter-generational justice. The welfare and social policy coun-
terpartofthisapproachmustinvolvepublicandcollectiveprovisioningof
socially necessary services of health, education, and a range of other care
services that can reduce per capita cost through economies of scale and
scope whilst providing an equitable access to these services.
In Chapter 9, Bortis utilizes the term “environmental alienation” to
sum up the overall deviation from an ideal sustainable economy, which is
onethatimpliesharmonybetweensocietyandnature.Theauthor’sargu-
ment focuses on an additional impetus to be given at moving towards a
sustainableeconomythroughimplementing,stepbystep,socialliberalism
as a new paradigm, which is desperately needed to permanently bring
about a sustainable economy.
In Chapter 10, Lewney explores pathways by which the increase in
global temperature relative to pre-industrial levels might be kept ‘below
2°C’.TheauthordiscussestherolethatGreenNewDealpoliciescanplay
in stimulating the transition, which may also promote a Green Recovery
from the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic. The discussion highlights
the importance of a multi-disciplinary approach to modelling as well as
the implementation of key insights of Schumpeterian and post-Keynesian
economics in a detailed empirical framework.
In Chapter 11, Barkin proposes a different epistemology and method-
ologyreflectingthedirectparticipationofawidediversityofcommunities
around the world, particularly in the Global South, as well as their possi-
bilities for implementing different approaches in order to improve their
well-being.Theauthorfocusesontheemergenceofalternativesocialand
productivestructuresthatrespondtothedemandsforlocalcontrolofthe
governance process in order to assure local well-being, responsible envi-
ronmental management, and a balanced ecosystem as intimately related
themes of social justice.
In Chapter 12, Karagiannis and Mohammed extract relevant aspects
of the East Asian successes and embed them in an appropriate frame-
workthatemphasizes“green”and“blue”growthstrategiesforCaribbean
economies. Taking current multifaceted impediments into consideration,