In 1977 Fred Hirsch’s acclaimed book made the case that in addition to the ecological limits to economic expansion identified by the Club of Rome, there are important social constraints on the benefits that can be obtained from growth. And these limits, Hirsch argued, make themselves felt much sooner than would the ‘distant and uncertain’ effects of ecological breakdown.
The thesis has gained fresh force in recent years: the post-crisis period in the West has reignited arguments over the distribution of the gains from growth and has highlighted the gap between economic growth and advances in wellbeing.
Join us for this timely discussion on Hirsch’s challenging analysis and its relevance today. The panel is chaired by Caroline Lucas MP and Prof Tim Jackson, with speakers including Prof Diane Coyle, Prof Donald Hirsch (son of Fred Hirsch) and Daniel Zeichner MP. For enquiries please email appg@cusp.ac.uk.
Podcast
The audio recording can be streamed via Mixcloud below.
Links
- New Boundaries: When More is Not Attainable and To Strike Another Social Balance—Fred Hirsch for the New York Times, 1977.
- Why Do We Still Worship At The Altar Of Economic Growth? | Blog by Donald Hirsch for recently established Huffington Post platform This New World
- Enlightenment Economics | Blog by Diane Coyle
- Lessons for a post-crash world | Blog by Caroline Lucas and Tim Jackson