- Eco-sufficiency
Eco-sufficiency requires a reduction of the level of production/consumption in those parts of the
world with the highest standards of living beyond reducing the use ofnatural resources as well as waste and emissions per unit of production/consumption (=decoupling /delinking). Given a very loose relation in rich countries between material wealth,GDP and human well-being, this might be possible even without reducing the latter, while, for example, increasing leisure and non-material activities for well-being.There are potentials to reduce substantially the use of
natural resources without compromising human wealth. However, many studies show thateconomic growth “eats up” these gains at least partially: if the economy grows by 2 % p.a. we need an increasing resource productivity by 4 % in order to achieve a 2 % reduction of the absolute resource use. While eco-efficiency aims to improve the effectiveness of material, energy, and land use, eco-sufficiency aims at reducing negative environmental consequences through a reduction of the demand for consumer goods.Eco-sufficiency is closely related to issues of
quality of life andwork-life balance . It can to some extent be achieved on the individual level, e.g. through energy savings, reduction of transport and change in diets (less meat). However, it also requires a change in social frameworks, provided on the national or European level, including measures such as environmental taxes,environmental planning and new concepts of labour.A wide spread of eco-sufficiency will only occur, if people find the new lifestyles sufficiently attractive. It needs to be shown that less material wealth can bring increased well-being or
happiness to individuals and societies. An important aspect here is related to the so-called work-and-spend cycle. Ifleisure and forms of work other thanemployment (incl.self-employment ), such as caring,do it yourself and community work gain relevance, income - and therefore consumption - would be reduced.External links
* [http://www.worldresourcesforum.org/ World Resources Forum] Scientific Forum aiming to develop the eco-sufficieny/decoupling idea and to bring it onto the political agenda
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