Jump to ratings and reviews
Rate this book

Enough Is Enough: Building a Sustainable Economy in a World of Finite Resources

Rate this book
It s time for a new kind of economy

We re overusing the earth s finite resources, and yet excessive consumption is failing to improve our lives. In "Enough Is Enough," Rob Dietz and Dan O Neill lay out a visionary but realistic alternative to the perpetual pursuit of economic growth an economy where the goal is "enough," not "more."

They explore specific strategies to conserve natural resources, stabilize population, reduce inequality, fix the financial system, create jobs, and more all with the aim of maximizing long-term well-being instead of short-term profits. Filled with fresh ideas and surprising optimism, "Enough Is Enough" is the primer for achieving genuine prosperity and a hopeful future for all.

256 pages, Kindle Edition

First published December 5, 2012

27 people are currently reading
844 people want to read

About the author

Rob Dietz

4 books2 followers

Ratings & Reviews

What do you think?
Rate this book

Friends & Following

Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!

Community Reviews

5 stars
92 (36%)
4 stars
95 (37%)
3 stars
49 (19%)
2 stars
13 (5%)
1 star
4 (1%)
Displaying 1 - 30 of 37 reviews
Profile Image for Zora.
1,342 reviews68 followers
May 16, 2016
Well-intentioned , but an awful lot of nonsense. I'm not sure how he's going to get people to quit breeding; we've known about overpopulation for decades and people just keep breeding more. There's also a creepy -to me- romanticization of poor countries and their noble savages . They have the exact same problems we do, just not enough wealth to make it obvious, and 90% of the people there would choose an American lifestyle if they could. "Good" carbon use ratings are tied to poverty, and people generally don't choose poverty....it chooses them. A lot of the advice here might work in some hippie college town, briefly, but it's really not a solution.

The beginning of the solution must be negative population growth, and the only ways that I can see to achieve that are through pretty totalitarian measures, or by letting pandemics spread unchecked. For instance in the United States we give people a tax bonus for having children...the more kids, the bigger break. If we were serious about ZPG , we'd penalize them. If we can't do that one, tiny, nonviolent thing and find the will within ourselves to do it, there is little hope. If we cannot agree, right now, to nationalize gasoline and tax it three dollars per gallon , and use that money to build mass transit infrastructure , how will we have the balls to make even more radical changes?

It is as if he is ignoring human nature, or thinking all humans will behave as well educated white first world people living in upper-middle-class comfort and able to afford to shop at Whole Foods.

When I took this book out of the library, an old man tried to get me to sign a petition ending the two dollar per household charge for development of solar power here, his argument being that that money "went into the pockets of rich people, the only people who could afford solar ." I felt like asking him why he didn't just shoot his own grandchildren dead right now, because their grandchildren are going to die horribly because of how we've been living and because of people like him thinking stupidly . Greed and stupidity have taken us to this point , and a book like this doesn't make me feel less cynical and pessimistic; it makes me feel more so because it's just so clueless.

I don't know the solutions...but this book doesn't have them either.
Profile Image for Shirley.
272 reviews215 followers
August 25, 2015
The idea of a “steady-state economy” is hard to wrap one’s mind around. What is it? Why is it a good idea? And, most daunting, how do we arrive at a steady-state economy? This clearly laid out, easy-to-read book has answers to these questions.

A steady-state economy is, basically, an economy that prioritizes enough over more. In a steady-state economy, resource consumption and population remain stable while well-being is prioritized over consumption. Rather than changing quantitatively, a steady-state economy changes qualitatively through innovation and development, rather than through growth. A steady-state economy is sustainable and equitable (minimal to no unemployment). Sounds like something to strive for, especially when compared with the current business-as-usual scenario, in which our ecological footprint dwarfs the available resources, people trample over each other to get to Black Friday specials, ever-increasing GDP is king, and the world population is projected to grow another 1.2 to 3.7 billion people in 38 years (2050) with little sign of stabilizing or decreasing.

Is a steady-state economy even feasible, and how do we get there? Dietz and O’Neill spend most of the book outlining ways in which this could happen with a measured and realistic, yet optimistic, tone. They offer concrete suggestions of how to achieve this goal, focusing in areas such as population stabilization, resource consumption, financial/monetary institutions, income distribution, work/unemployment, and consumerism. Each chapter begins with an engaging anecdote. Simple but effective graphs hammer the point in (and if graphs are not your thing, the text and/or the captions to the graphs explain the points made by the graphs).

The book is meant for and is totally accessible to a reader with a noneconomics background like me. (The only economics course I took was through UC Extension. The class was at night in San Francisco, and I worked here - in Palo Alto - and lived over there - in the East Bay. Plus I was pretty nauseous from being pregnant – so circumstances probably weren’t ideal for me to get as much out of this course as I might have otherwise. But I digress…)

The authors gracefully maneuver through some tricky areas such as population stabilization (which is a must but a politically unpalatable, controversial issue). They acknowledge that coercive policies like China’s one-child policy probably aren’t going to fly. As alternatives, they mention other measures like family planning (e.g., condom distribution). In that context, they mention this very interesting statistic of 80 million. That’s about the number of unplanned pregnancies worldwide each year. It’s also about the number by which the world population is increasing every year. Also fascinating and hopeful was the discussion about Population Media Center’s soap operas, which are aired in countries with high fertility rates. These soap operas are not only entertaining but are meant to prompt people to think about their reproductive options. Half of Ethiopians tuned into one such radio serial regularly. After the two years of airing that show (ending in 2004), the Ethiopian fertility rate dropped from 5.4 to 4.3 children per woman. Amazing!

Many of the measures the authors suggest are in the hands of politicians (Obama, you’ve got to read this!), but politicians respond to cultural shifts. Each of us can contribute to such cultural shifts by signing a steady-state economy position statement like CASSE’s (http://steadystate.org/act/sign-the-p...) and by living lives that value relationships, nature, and community. And indeed, has any one of us ever shouted, “GDP brings me joy!”?

I’d been somewhat skeptical about the idea of a steady-state economy before; I thought it was a good idea in principle but didn’t have a sense of how it could happen. After having read this, I am convinced not only that this is necessary, given the way our planet is headed, but that it is possible. It will not be easy, and the authors are realistic about which policy suggestions are more palatable than others. Some will require seismic shifts in the way we think (and live). But here is a prescription for a very hopeful future.
10 reviews2 followers
March 24, 2014
Enough is Enough

“Enough is Enough” by Rob Dietz and Dan O’Neill
(Book Review by David Kimball)

As the authors say in their Preface, “Enough is Enough was conceived as a collection of policy proposals for achieving a prosperous, but non-growing economy (known as a steady-state economy)”. So it is an apologetic for steady-state economics. (“Apologetics – the discipline of defending a position through the systematic use of information. Wikipedia) As such, it deals with ecological economics at the macro level and integrates all the systems necessary for a global approach. The book argues for a paradigm shift from the current approach of “A larger economy implies progress” to an approach where “Enough is better in order to sustain our ecosystem”. It defines economics as a means of controlling all the systems within our ecosystem rather than define economics strictly in terms of the managing of the scarce resource of only money.

Part I raises the “Questions of Enough”, Part II the “Strategies of Enough”, and Part III “Advancing the Economy of Enough”. This book does a good job of sounding the alarm that there are many problems with the current economic systems. What is different about this book from the many other books that also sound the alarm regarding the issues of Sustainability, is that it tries to present the problems and the solutions to these problems with a label – “steady-state economics”. So it sounds as if it alone is sounding the clarion call for solutions and doesn’t give credit to the many other Sustainable causes such as Triple Bottom Line Accountability, Conscious Capitalism, Natural Capitalism, Shared Value Capitalism, Creative Capitalism, B Corporations, etc. Of course, this is a problem shared by all of these approaches who try to limit themselves by attaching a label if they present themselves as “the” solution rather than “a” solution.

This book is meant to provoke (in a good sense) discussion around its own policies and provide fodder for discussions around the policies of governments and corporations, but it totally ignores the NGO and grassroots sector. It is written in an informal style and although there are many facts, figures, charts and references to economic terms, it is written to be understood by laymen.

It does a good job of describing our current culture in terms of consumerism where we want “more objects, more food, and more resources such as energy” where we should be creating, instead, a culture which values “doing, being, and connecting”. Because our planet is finite, we cannot consume indefinitely and so it is our responsibility to see what and how much we should consume in order to be sustainable. Sustainability can be defined as “What do we need to do today to assure that we will be just as viable in 50 years?” To answer the question of “How much can we consume”, they quote Herman Daly: “(1) Exploit renewable resources no faster than they can be regenerated; (2) Deplete nonrenewable resources no faster than the rate at which renewable substitutes can be developed; and (3) Emit waste no faster than they can be safely assimilate by ecosystems.” The book does a great job of expressing the problems we face not just in terms of ecological sustainability, but also social sustainability and personal values.

It is acknowledged that reducing our wants only applies to those who already have enough so that some poorer societies will need to go from an Undesirable Degrowth State first to a Desirable Growth State while we richer societies will need to go from an Undesirable Growth State first to a Desirable Degrowth State. Only then can we can all reach the goal – a Steady State Economy (SSE).

Several strategies are presented for passing through these States to reach the point of SSE. The first strategy is to limit the use of materials and energy to sustainable levels. Because we are already beyond the “Safe Operating Boundaries” of three of the seven identified planetary processes - Climate Change, Biodiversity Loss, and Nitrogen Cycle – we need to cut back immediately. These cutbacks may be by direct interventions such as bans, rationing, tradable permits, or “cap and share” or they may be by indirect interventions such as ecological tax reforms, or conservation of natural areas. This cutting back should be done in a way to assure that we achieve a more equitable distribution of income and wealth and should include a comprehensive monitoring system. What is needed in changing to these States is heavy cooperation across all levels of governments. Governments need to experience a paradigm shift from one of competition and control to one of collaboration and cooperation.

It is important to stabilize population through compassionate and non-coercive means. Since this issue is tied to divisive topics such as poverty, reproductive health, women’s rights, immigration, and cultural religious beliefs, this strategy needs to be dealt with not only politically but also culturally with the key being the empowerment of women. Another recommendation for this strategy is to change immigration policy to achieve equal levels of immigration and emigration.

Another strategy is to achieve a more favorable distribution of income and wealth (or assets). The key here is to put control of companies, government agencies, and nonprofit organizations into the hands of the people who work in them, use their services, or live in the communities affected by them. This is known, in other approaches, as creating a paradigm change from focusing on the shareholders to focusing on all of the stakeholders.

Probably one of the most controversial strategies addressed in this book is to reform the monetary and financial systems. It is evident that the current system is broken and needs to be fixed. But if there are to be limits on economic growth, then there should be limits to debt and limits to investments. The book promotes a neutral international currency that is not controlled by any single country or group of countries.

As stated above, we need a comprehensive monitoring system to replace our GDP as the GDP does not measure the values of our culture – only the output of our society. It suggests a measurement called the Gross National Happiness (GNH) monitor which is currently being used in a few areas. The four pillars of GNH are the promotion of equitable and sustainable socioeconomic development; Preservation and promotion of cultural values; Conservation of the natural environment; and the Establishment of good governance.

The next strategy is to secure meaningful jobs and full employment. I was pleased to see the authors recommend looking at the Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC which included the Work Projects Administration - WPA) that brought us out of the depression. It states that guaranteed jobs are included in Article 23.1 of the United Nation’s Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UN UDHR). (However it did not mention that although the United States had ratified the political section of the UN UDHR, it had refused to ratify the social section which includes this right.) The book gives good examples of less-work societies by presenting the European work-time policies which are much more favorable to the workers than here in the US.

The last strategy presented is “Enough Business as Usual: Rethinking Commerce”. Instead of placing the ROI to shareholders as the highest value, businesses need to address the value they create in the social and environmental sectors. This is to have the businesses driven by purpose to the ecosystem and society rather than duty to the shareholders. There are several business models already in existence in the US such as the Low-profit Limited Liability Company (L3C) and the B-Corporation where dividends to shareholders are limited and where the purpose is for the community or wider public interest.

After describing these strategies, the book details what is necessary to advance the Steady-State Economy. One of the biggest ways is to change consumer behavior to seek personal values rather than status. The goal of the management of a society should be to provide the resources (time and opportunities) for each member to achieve a state of “well-being”. For members in our society to achieve well-being, instead of relying on consumerism, they should strive to connect, be active, take notice, keep learning, and give. Politicians and the media should be held accountable to consider the “constant growth of GDP” paradigm and consider the paradigm of a steady-state economics. I would include a call for controls on the lobbyists and the influencers of Congress as needed for such a transformation.

Since this transformation is global, it requires all the nations to work together as one nation cannot address these issues as an isolate. The book discusses the need for the United Nations, the World Bank, the International Monetary Fund and the World Trade Organization to be democratized and work together collaboratively.

The book does a good job of identifying several problems with our current economic system driven by consumerism and the goal of “more growth”, and also does a good job of providing a lot of food-for-thought for several solutions. However because these strategies are presented in one, all-unifying package of steady-state economics, it is difficult to see how these strategies could be applied piecemeal, or along with other approaches, or from the micro-level of a nation to say nothing about an individual or a civil service/grassroots organization (CSO). It is evident, though, that the problems we are currently experiencing today are of such a magnitude that the solution needs to be a complete transformation rather than just a fix. It would be great to see some dialogues on steady-state economics where these as well as other approaches could be discussed and especially if they could lead to some deliberations on actions.

David Kimball
Profile Image for Ryan.
Author 1 book36 followers
March 18, 2016
Although the goals are laudable, the primary one being to propose a transition to a steady state or no-growth economy, this ends up reading like a laundry list of good-to-have items alongside the main one, like equitable wealth, socially conscious business structures that I found to be extraneous to the core concept. The word utopia is never mentioned, but one gets the sense that the authors are aiming to create such a society where everyone is fulfilled, everyone is equal (in wealth), nature abounds and people are satisfied to live lives close to the land and very localized with a surplus of leisure time.

It is said there is no choice other than to be an optimist, and I praise this book for espousing and cheering the cause for a sustainable future, but it is also said that the devil is in the details, and HOW we can achieve this tampers such optimism. Indeed, it requires a cultural shift that changes the aim from More to Better, but I can't help but wonder if the former is made out to be so evil, why do corporations and the elite continue to self aggrandize at the expense of the majority? Can we expect altruism to suddenly overcome the 1% so that a sense of social justice compels them to transfer their riches? The steady state economy is an interesting and compelling idea, but it will remain a purely academic one I suspect. After all, we primates are born to live in a social hierarchy, so the goal of equality will remain elusive. The question then is, can we get to a steady state sustainable model while retaining an unequal society?
Profile Image for Randall Wallace.
665 reviews635 followers
December 22, 2018
Today’s deepest problems have one elegant solution: introducing the steady state economy. The coolest members of the human community around us seek social and environmental justice for all, and after capitalism crashes, it’s replacement, the steady state economy, seeks the same goal. “We need a new economic structure designed for stability instead of growth.” We must now head towards this steady state economy based on improving quality of life, instead increasing GDP – moving now from the concept of consumption, to the concept of sufficiency. In 1930, Energy Return on Investment (EROI) for “oil extracted in the United States” was above 100 to 1. Get 100 dollars for each one dollar put in. By 1970, it was 30 to 1. By 2005, it was 15 to 1. Modern civilization requires an EROI of 10 to 1; guess where we are headed? Wind Turbines are 18 to 1, solar panels 7 to 1 and biodiesel a whopping 1.3 EROI. We have to create a working model for the steady state now as we head towards this approaching “degrowth transition”. For a steady state economy to work, for example, banks could no longer issue debt. Thus, the reserve requirement would have to be 100% - no more creating money out of thin air. If our future is the steady state economy, then to learn more we must read about these organizations: “CASSE, the New Economics Foundation, Feasta, SERI, Research & Degrowth, the Post Growth Institute, the Post Carbon Institute, Earth Economics, the New Market Network, the New Economy Working Group, Ethical Markets and Gaian Economics.” This book reminds us of Albert Barlett’s dictum famous in the Peak Oil community (from an amazing YouTube lecture), “The greatest failing of the human race is our inability to understand the exponential function.” The world’s population increases by 80 million per year while 80 million unintentional pregnancies happen each year. If contraception was easily available worldwide, population could stabilize naturally. Noam is a fan of the steady state economy and even wrote a blurb on the back of this book. A critically important topic which few are writing about – the future of mankind.
5 reviews
March 31, 2013
A critical topic, but not enough detail. When someone says that a model shows that a steady state economy is feasible, I want to know the details of the model. However, a very good collection of references, including internet references I found valuable.
Profile Image for Stella.
3 reviews
May 18, 2015
Quite thought-provoking but the solutions are just too unrealistic.
Profile Image for Anna Kladova.
3 reviews1 follower
September 18, 2017
I am not saying that's everything you have to know about sustainable economics and degrowth. But these are the basics, which anyone living nowadays is obliged to know. I am consciously using "obliged". That's a manifesto against the consumerist religion ruling our everyday lifes, our ideals from childhood on, against the obsession with the GDP growth, against the today's monetary principles allowing banks to create money out of thin air through loans, against the tyranny of the corporations which are in fact the main force determining politics in our society. The book is short and wrote in a really accessible manner. Please take your time to get informed, because even those of us with high IQ scores are not secured against errors if they fail to get the right information at the right time.
Profile Image for Andrew.
7 reviews1 follower
March 21, 2021
I read this book in college for a contemporary economics course and it changed how I look at ecology, systems, the environment, capitalism, and the growth dilemma. The concept of exponential growth is easy to understand in a math class but for whatever reason we humans struggle to apply it our behavior. This book is both sobering and hopeful. The author's do a great job of outlining the climate crisis while offering realistic economic solutions. In order to understand the climate crisis, it is necessary to understand the interconnection of ecology, environment, and economics. "Human history becomes more and more a race between education and catastrophe" - H.G. Wells
39 reviews4 followers
February 11, 2013
I found the concept behind this book appalling - never in the history of humanity has there been a "steady-state" economy, and none can materialize because these authors say so.

Unless they have suspended all biological systems laws as well as the laws of thermodynamics the above applies to ALL systems, not just human societies.
176 reviews1 follower
November 7, 2018
Offers a rational, equitable framework for the future of life on a finite planet.
Profile Image for Keith Akers.
Author 8 books89 followers
August 9, 2013
Wow. This is a milestone book in an area new to much of even the well-educated public: the world of finite resources. But it's also a tough book to review, because there are so many different possible audiences. I'll summarize my review first, then go into the details. This is a long review for which I apologize; in due course, I will sort out my thoughts on this subject and put it on my blog or publish it somewhere. The main audience for my review is people who already get "limits to growth." They've seen TheOilDrum.com, they know who James Hansen is, and they "get it." Everyone else can stop reading my review right here: "Enough is Enough" is the greatest thing since sliced bread; go out and read it, and then come back here.

Common sense dictates that there are "limits to growth," and that our economy cannot grow forever, as the title of the well-known 1972 report to the Club of Rome indicated. But conventional economics and political consensus dictates the exact opposite. As a consequence, there has been a lack of discussion of this reality. This is our dilemma, and the dilemma addressed directly by "Enough is Enough."

If you are looking for an introduction to the concept of "steady-state economics" and don't have time to wade through Ecological Economics: Principles And Applications, co-authored by Herman Daly and Joshua Farley, then you have come to the right place. "Enough is Enough" is accessible (Herman Daly wrote the foreword) and has three parts, subdivided into 15 chapters, which move along fairly quickly.

The first part introduces the problem of the growth economy. The second part discusses possible strategies: how to deal with limiting resource use, population growth, inequality, debt, commerce, unemployment, and measurement of economic goods. I thought the second part was the strongest part, even when I didn't agree with everything they said, because the authors clearly understand the territory. In the third part they discuss plans for action. This is the weakest part because, basically, there are key problems with the concept of a steady-state economy that neither they nor probably anyone else has resolved. Like, at precisely what level will the steady-state economy function? When you get into the details, you realize that to resolve this question is not just academic nit-picking; it is a really big deal. Even here there are some interesting ideas, but the ideas are a bit vague.

Evaluating the Book

Who is the audience for this book? And who is the audience for this review? There are obviously multiple potential audiences, so I'm going to try to imagine how they all might react to this book. Generally I thought the book was good, but it clearly has some problems, and what we do about the book depends on who your audience is. At some point, we will need to address these difficulties, or we won't be able to make any further progress on this issue. But we aren't at that point yet.

So here are the issues, and they are biggies: what is a steady-state economy, and is it really necessary?

Let me preface this by saying that I've read Ecological Economics: Principles And Applications, and am a firm believer in the need for ecological economics. "Enough is Enough" is clearly written and much of what they say is true. The authors cheerfully admit that there are many problems unresolved regarding a steady-state economy (an economy which does not grow) -- like how, for example, it would work. In fact, it is unclear what a "steady-state" economy should even be called. They discuss the advice of Franny Armstrong, who when asked what advice they would have to raise the profile of steady-state economics, responded "change the name" (p. 171).

To begin with, there are a number of minor quibbles that I have with the book. To deal with unemployment, they seem to be bent on job-sharing or government make-work programs rather than on a basic guaranteed income. The chapter on population offered only conventional formulas about educating women. The chapter on debt completely ignored Debt: The First 5,000 Years. The authors don't understand food issues and the importance of veganism (my pet peeve with environmental authors generally). The concluding chapter on what we should do about the situation offered vague prescriptions such as "get people interested," "combine science and art," and "have fun."

These quibbles could probably be resolved if we could resolve the bigger questions, so let's look at what the book says about those.

What is a steady-state economy?

A steady-state economy neither grows nor shrinks. Inequality, the authors make clear, would be significantly reduced. But at what standard of living and with what population would the world's population exist? Are we talking a substantially smaller human population with a modern European standard of living? Or perhaps the technology of the early 19th century, before the modern automobile and airplane came into existence? Or is it back to the middle ages, technology-wise? Inquiring minds want to know.

And, actually, the book gives several different answers. On p. 35, there is a table from the WorldWatch Institute that implies that the world could only support a population of 2.1 billion people on a high average yearly per capita income ($36,000), or a population of 6.2 billion if the per capita income were only $5,100. Looks like we'll have to take a pay cut, or undertake some serious population reduction measures. But on p. 50, the book gives a much more optimistic chart depicting one scenario for a successful steady-state economy for Canada. It shows GDP per capita actually increasing by over 50% relative to the 2005 level and then leveling off. Unemployment, greenhouse gas emissions, and poverty all fall as well. This seems to imply that while the economy won't grow, we'll still be physically better off in 2035 (and thereafter) than we were in 2005.

On the other hand, the chart on p. 185 gives yet another dimension. It suggests that the world as a whole will be in a steady state, but that some countries (the more developed ones, like the U. S. and Canada, we presume) will have economies that actually shrink, while those with populations of people making $2 a day will see their economies grow. This seems to imply that the GDP per capita of Canada will decline (all other things being equal) relative to the level of 2005.

And this is only the beginning of the discussion. A staple observation of many environmentalists is that we are in a state of "overshoot" -- that we are actually drawing down critical natural resources, and we need to cut back resource consumption to be sustainable. The relationship between resource consumption and the economy is complex, but if the relationship is fairly straightforward (as it likely is), then decreased resource consumption would seem to imply a declining economy, not a steady-state economy.

Still others, such as Gail Tverberg, have said that no steady-state economy is possible except at a fairly low level (like, basically, the technology available in 1700 or thereabouts). I personally am quite skeptical about an all-electric economy supporting anything approaching the contemporary American standard of living for any except a small elite (much, much smaller than the current elite). I don't think we can prosaically assume that we can just draw the line at the 2005 economy and say that we're staying there -- or even 1980, or 1950. This whole thing needs to be thought out from the bottom up, not the top down (and thus the need to address food before addressing more weighty things like transportation and communications).

These pictures of a possible future economy are dramatically different. I don't think it is realistic to write a book about a steady-state economy and not define the size at which such an economy would function. We would allow for some inequality, of course, although ideally that would be substantially reduced, as the authors advocate. So we wind up finishing the book not having the most basic understanding about what this steady-state economy is going to look like.

This is what is going to happen. When the big environmental / economic crisis hits us, people will realize that we need something like a steady-state economy, but no one is going to be able to say what this steady-state economy is going to look like. As society continues to deteriorate around us, there will be endless discussions, arguing, and hand-wringing. In the end, nothing will be done. The result will fall into place. This may mean a complete collapse of modern civilization and a reversion to something like 5000 BCE, or even the disappearance of all life on earth in a climate change apocalypse such as that envisioned by James Hansen at the end of Storms of my Grandchildren.

Or it will be determined by chance. Or it will be determined by a small minority which will have thought out these questions outside of the realm of politics, figured it out on their own, and simply maneuvered or forced it into place. Unfortunately, this last alternative seems to be our best chance. Anyone want to give it a shot?

Do we need a steady-state economy?

There's a second problem, a rather common-sense problem which many readers not convinced of the need for a steady-state economy are bound to ask. Do we really need a steady state economy to deal with today's environmental problems? Let's take, for example, the biggest problem of them all right now, climate change. Does climate change require a steady-state economy? Why couldn't we just have solar panels, wind turbines, dispense with fossil fuels, and continue to have a growing economy? This problem is related to the first, because if there's no sense of urgency, then we can postpone the whole discussion of what a steady-state economy would look like.

Now, I know the answer to this, because I read TheOilDrum.com and OurFiniteWorld.com and other blogs that have discussed this at length. The answer is, NO, we can't have a sustainable economy built on solar and wind and the like, and STILL be growing. A renewable economy based on solar and wind might possibly grow for a small period of time, at some point -- though NOT at first. In the beginning, even in the best circumstances, such a renewable economy would likely actually shrink because the EROEI (energy return on energy invested) of solar and wind is lower than the EROEI for fossil fuels -- that's a lot of what makes fossil fuels so attractive as a fuel. Moreover, the additional money and energy required to build out the new renewables infrastructure required would make a huge (albeit temporary) dent in the economy -- sometimes referred to as the "renewables gap." Thirdly, even after making the transition from fossil fuels to renewables, and even assuming an unlimited supply of whatever-it-is that we're making those solar panels and wind turbines out of (there's no unlimited supply -- but just saying), there are other materials (soil, water, forests, metals, etc.) which are in limited supply and which would limit economic growth.

But, this needs to be explained. The authors don't talk about this. I know: it's a bit hard to explain. However, I would at least try. If you don't try, you've lost your audience (or the part of the audience that can think, at any rate). Why do we need a steady-state economy in the first place? Why can't we just "grow" the economy, but just using renewables? Ecological economists need to know the answers to these questions! My fear is that a key reason that the steady-state economy has not been popularized is not only because we have too few good writers able to communicate technical subjects. My fear is that even the technical people don't really understand these issues. Therefore, it is possible that the reason we can't popularize this subject is because we don't know what we're trying to popularize in the first place.

The importance of these issues

The book is also something of a milestone in the history of ecological economics. For years ecological economics has labored under a burden. There is widespread interest in the environment, witness the growing and vast unease over climate change. There is also widespread awareness that the earth's resources are finite, witness the decades-old study The Limits to Growth. There is, finally, widespread awareness of the obvious truth that the economy is clearly tied up both with climate change, resource use, and many other environmental issues. But despite this, awareness of ecological economics or the most basic issues related to ecological economics -- like what a steady-state economy is! -- is limited almost entirely to a handful of specialists. The world desperately needs to spread awareness of these principles and we have reached a crisis of the first order (threatening the existence of the human race) because of this ignorance.

At last, now, we have something approximating an attempt to disseminate the principles of ecological economics to a wider audience. But does Enough is Enough succeed at this? While it is a milestone, the book is also rather problematic. I read through the entire book and had difficulty placing my finger on the reason.

So, what's the take away from this book? What am I, the aspiring activist and advocate for a steady-state economy, supposed to scrawl on my placard as I march around in a demonstration, or write to my elected representatives, or present as ideas to my fellow environmental activists? There must be limits: that much is clear. But where should those limits be? The authors give us only the most vague of answers.

I am imagining this scenario. I am promoting Enough is Enough and after the talk, ask for questions. A hand shoots up and the questioner asks: "In a steady-state economy, about what would the average standard of living be?" Or: "In a steady- state economy, would computers be as widespread?" "Who would have cars, and how would they be powered?" "Would people continue to eat meat or increase meat consumption?" All of these questions seem reasonable, but I wouldn't really know how to answer them. To be perfectly honest, I'm not sure how I'd answer them even if I were NOT promoting this book, but were promoting my own book in which I could say whatever I wanted. They are simple, but tough questions.

Some people may be tempted to offer a generalizing answer like this: "In a steady- state economy, we will have a European standard of living for the entire world, at a world population of 2 billion." This is a politically acceptable answer because it will appeal to environmentalists who are not aware of the seriousness of our resource shortage issues. The best and the brightest of those who are aware of the depth of our resource shortage issues know that this sort of thing will not work. A European standard of living for 2 billion is just not sustainable. By making this sort of answer, you will lose a lot of smart people. We need specifics, or at least parameters. In their absence, people will just shrug their shoulders and move on, and the world will move into a darker phase in which the electrons which currently record these sorts of thoughts will fall silent.

Profile Image for Catherine.
410 reviews2 followers
October 2, 2024
The ideas presented in this book align with many of my personal values of living simply, minimizing consumption, and valuing experiences and time over possessions and earning more money. However, the cynic in me, who is unfortunately growing louder as I grow older, is doubtful that the type of society proposed in this book could ever become a reality. As the authors admit, moving away from a growth economy to a sustainable, steady-state economy would require a fundamental shift to the current culture of consumerism and a change in the type of work that is valued. For example, work that involves improving the community or the environment (planting native plants, working with the elderly or children, tending community gardens) would be more highly valued than work which results in more products being created or merely involves making money for the sake of having more. If "value" implies the monetary compensation a given career demands, one can see that this is not the way we currently assign value to jobs.

The authors suggest that the end result of creating an economy based on "enough" instead of one based on "more" would result in a cleaner environment, a halt to climate change, and a preservation of our limited resources. People would benefit by being able to work fewer hours and thus have more time for family, friends and personal pursuits which would lead to a more fulfilling and satisfying life. This is a wonderful dream; but one that I find hard to believe will ever be realized.

I appreciated the organization of the book and the way the authors used a similar format for each chapter. In my opinion, the middle part of the book outlining the authors' ideas got a little bogged down with statistics and facts. I would have enjoyed the insertion of more specific examples and fewer generalizations.

This book was published in 2013 and, given the rapid changes the world now experiences, I already feel it is a bit outdated. Still worth a read, if this is a topic of interest, but I would be curious to read something that's a little more current.
Profile Image for Brandon.
416 reviews
February 9, 2019
An interesting read and a broad overview of the ideas behind stable state economics. It doesn't go into any great depth on any one subject, bit instead touches on a wide breadth of subjects which determine how our environment, society, and economy all effect each other.

On the whole I enjoyed it and agree with most of their analyses for the unavoidable problems our 'unlimited growth' model is hurtling us towards. Our current society is based on an unhealthy and unfulfilling addiction to 'more'. And what we desperately need as a species is the wisdom and maturity to recognize what is 'enough' and be content with it. And that 'enough' needs to be spread equitably amongst humanity.
However, I found some of their ideas a bit fluffy and unrealistic. Others seemed to misstate the issues or be misleading. I'm particularly thinking of their 10 imagined scenes from a SSE at the end of the book, which actually describe a world that has been depopulated. On the whole the book is overly simplistic, but it's also clearly intended as an introductory primer for people who've never heard of the idea before. And in that I think it does a good job.

And the authors are correct, in that no one will have a perfect vision of the next stage of human social organization before it is constructed. Just like all of history, it will evolve in pieces as we try to improve and innovate. Until one day it will be largely complete and we'll wonder how we could ever have had such a backwards and shortsighted system as unrestrained capitalism.

So for now we should all be pushing forward, holding in our minds that how humanity is currently organizing itself is unsustainable, and we should advocate for change everywhere we can.
676 reviews11 followers
February 1, 2020
What happens when growth is the only thing to measure? When will it stop, as physics and common sense state there is a limit to everything. Climate change is the result of growth without regard to costs.

Why is a town happy that it has a growing population? Or that a person is buying more shoes or pants or toys, even though the house already has more than it can use?

The authors posit the question, when is it enough. This fits a lot of what I've been thinking about over the last year. How can I make a smaller impact on the planet? It starts with a change of mindset. When do you have enough?

In an article I read awhile ago, it isn't about being happy, but useful. If your idea of the pursuit of happiness is to have a flashier car than some faceless person or that you may be seen in the same dress twice, then you have bought into the marketing hype. The fashion world is supported on the idea that clothes are disposable and you need to be refreshing your overcrowded closet on a regular basis. I bought two wool shirts and got rid of 90% of my t-shirt collection as a result. I now have enough shirts & a much emptier closet as a result.

The book provides the frame work to apply this to everything around you, not just stuff. We need to get used to the idea of a steady state economy, one that doesn't grow, but becomes more egalitarian for all. Investing in ourselves, that should be our growth. Not stuff that impacts the environment in a negative way. This is a good book to start that shift in mindset to make a better world, one small step at a time.
123 reviews
February 25, 2019
Enough is enough discusses economical and environmental sustainability and stresses overpopulation as the issue. It is a heavy read, and reading the whole book is unnecessary to know the point they are getting at, so I put it away. It is, to its benefit, concisely organized.
Profile Image for Nicolas Quattromani.
39 reviews27 followers
June 2, 2019
Everyone needs to read this. Our current way of life is bringing about the apocalypse, and this book thoughtfully explains how we can still get out of our predicament.
1 review
December 31, 2012
As someone who routinely skipped attending economics class in college due to boredom, I am surprised by how fascinated I was by this book. The steady state economy described by the authors made more and more sense to me the further I read along in the book. While I admit I am skeptical that we can overcome what I think one of the larger hurdles is to achieving a steady state economy, i.e., human greed and self-interest (ironic as the authors make a persuasive case that people will actually be more fulfilled living in a steady state economy), the vision and plan described by the authors is worth serious consideration. In fact, given the state of our current economy, our environment, and our society, we MUST pursue a steady state economy as an alternative to the status quo. The authors admit the transition from a growing economy to a steady state economy would be difficult, but they provide both the motivation for doing so (happiness for people, health for the environment), and a multi-step plan for achieving it.

I also appreciate how the authors want the reader to consider how leading a simpler life of having "enough" is better not only for the world as a whole, but also for the individual and his/her family and community, to rethink the terms in which we describe our goals as a nation and as humans, that maybe the path we are on is worth reexamining.

Everyone should consider reading this very reader-friendly book, even if only to understand an alternative to the current economic system and its accompanying environmental and social problems. I know I felt encouraged and optimistic upon finishing this book that maybe we can really solve some of the world's most pressing problems, e.g., draining of natural resources, economic inequality, gender inequality, violence, etc., by making one big change in economic structure.
Profile Image for Bradley Jarvis.
Author 12 books12 followers
June 30, 2013
"Enough is Enough" makes the case for a no-growth, or "steady-state" economy, while providing a solid set of prescriptions for creating one. The steady-state economy is the desired result of ecological economics, which sees the global economy as a part of, and therefore subordinate to, the Earth's biosphere, which we are sabotaging through our pursuit of endless growth in material consumption and waste. Besides, the authors argue, our current system was designed in a totally different kind of world than the one we live in, where some of its most basic assumptions no longer apply, and people's lives are not being improved as expected.

Having studied this subject extensively, very little in the book is new to me, and I agree with much of it. I'm familiar with the Center for the Advancement of the Steady State Economy (CASSE), which both authors play major roles in; it has been a highly visible leader in promoting this much-needed update of traditional economics. "Enough is Enough" is a summary of the results of its first conference on the subject, with a mix of personal perspectives that makes it very accessible to anyone who reads it.

The book effectively anticipates and responds to real and potential objections to its message, which will undoubtedly be viewed as heresy by most people who haven't already come to similar conclusions. Those who seek it out are more likely to already agree with it, and use it as a source of common talking points in broaching the subject with others. Someone I studied an ecological economics textbook with recommended "Enough is Enough" as the best on the subject, perhaps for that reason, and it has been highly praised by pioneers in the field as a must-read for pretty much everyone else. While I would stop short at calling it the "best," it definitely belongs in the top ten, and I highly recommend it.
Profile Image for Carrie.
1 review
January 10, 2013

With this book the authors simply and clearly offer concrete steps to be taken to improve the lives of the average person. Enough is Enough speaks to people about jobs, healthcare, and happiness and in doing so dismantles the myth perpetuated in our society that equates the GDP with prosperity for all and debunks the myth that conserving the environment can only be done at the expense of people and their way of life. Enough is Enough explains why the very opposite is true. In making the idea of an alternative to growth economy understandable and accessible, the average person – the citizen - gains power over the economic conversation. They will be able to cry foul when we are told that the banks are too big to fail and that the topic is too complicated. Enough is Enough connects the everyday welfare of people with environmental welfare in an inclusive way which will help to grow a movement.
Profile Image for Richard.
242 reviews8 followers
March 11, 2013
If you were one of the many people annoyed by the occupy protests and their lack of a coherent message, you should probably read this book to get a good idea of just how shitty our current system is. It's a good overview of the work and ideas that are being done to address this frustrating, complex system.

The solutions are all built around human well being and happiness. I really hope my kids can live in the world described in this book, and not in the pathetic, miserable shit storm we have today. Sadly, I think America is the last to get the memo, and seems to have been creating laws to prevent itself from going through the necessary changes to make people happier.

I love the idea that greed will be the next thing we make socially unacceptable, just like we have with racism, sexism and homophobia in the past. I am well down with that. Lets start!
Profile Image for Kate Lawrence.
Author 1 book29 followers
February 20, 2013
I am glad to see a serious and wide-ranging discussion of the need for a steady-state economy--and not a moment too soon to be getting this discussion going! Every day we inch closer to the limits to growth.
I'd have liked more detail about how to implement many of the ideas; for example, if we wanted to launch a local currency, how would we go about it? If we agreed that we need a public works program like the New Deal's CCC to repair infrastructure and keep people employed, how would we persuade our political representatives to establish it? Give us not just an outline but a guidebook, I say, although in fairness to the authors, there are so many unknowns in implementing many of these ideas that a guidebook may not be possible at this time.
The more people we can get to read and discuss the ideas in this book, the better.
Profile Image for Dave.
49 reviews21 followers
August 19, 2013
Highly recommend this book. Some really good thoughts and ideas.

I believe the need for a reframing is here and it's amazing to know that even some of the world's top historical economists predicted the pursuit of growth could only last a couple centuries. We've hit the boundaries our planet can handle--we're there now. Now it's time to stop growing and seek constant levels, turn our attentions to improving quality of life, no longer "growth," especially as blindly and unquestioningly as we are now. It was a good objective for a while, the right answer. Now it's not anymore. Time to adjust.
Profile Image for Vivek Vivek.
14 reviews2 followers
April 6, 2023
I liked the book in several ways. It covers a lot of ground and they have done it fairly convincingly. The book is relatively easy to read (compared to typical academia papers) while also providing rigour through references.

The challenge is that most of us would not accept much of this book and would not follow much of what's argued for in here. The book should add more on Psychology side of humans to further overcome the paradoxes that we are facing: so much known about climate change, inequality, injustice etc. yet so little action. It is an age of collective foolisheness, moving from collective ignorance.
Profile Image for Vicki.
391 reviews4 followers
August 24, 2016
The ins and outs of the steady-state economy. Blending economics and the environment. Four main characteristics being: 1)sustainable scale 2)fair distribution 3)efficient allocation 4)high quality of life. Can we as a people make this happen? Not convinced, but still hoping. Simply moving in this direction as a movement by some probably won't be enough. Cynicism aside also discussed was 5 proven ways to 'happiness' this I can relate to: connect, be active, take notice, keep learning, and give. It was also mentioned that in regards to these five ways, they have two things in common-- 'they all take time and they all are free.' A place to start. Thanks Aaron, for the recommendation.
2 reviews
May 3, 2013
This an excellent book.
I have been critically analysing the current western "economics" paradigm since it is obviously a failure on so many measures.
We have to radically rethink the functioning and role of economics. This redesign of economics is part of the bigger picture of building a sustainable world for our future generations.
"Enough is enough" presents an understandable explanation of the failures of the current economy and then suggests ( with cogent arguments ) an alternative model, which I personally would love to be a citizen in.
Profile Image for Rentz Hilyer.
3 reviews1 follower
July 23, 2014
Dietz and O’Neill explain that numerous indicators show that the earth is suffering the effects of over use by too many people. While we may be barraged by this information on a daily basis, they present it in an especially logical and organized manner, backed up with the latest data.
More importantly, they provide a host of practical real world policy ideas that will help us transition to a steady state economy. The language, data, and policy ideas from Enough Is Enough are now a big part of my discussions with friends, family, and co-workers.
Profile Image for Deborah Schober wren.
1 review2 followers
December 23, 2012
This book is a comprehensive read on a difficult subject. The authors have done a commendable job of illustrating through examples in our everyday lives the need to transition to a steady state economy while using evidence from studies done on general happiness and quality of life of communities world-wide. It even succeeded in answering those difficult questions of how to transition to a steady state economy so that even the biggest growth junkies may begin to agree.
45 reviews
November 20, 2013
An excellent roadmap to leading to a sustainable future which maximizes human happiness, well organized in sections what's wrong with the current systems, where they need to go, and how to get there. A primer to ideas that should hopefully become mainstream over the next few years.

YouTube talk by one of the authors that gives an good overview of many of the topics of the book, including more details on some aspects as they refine their message: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bvufNb...
1 review
December 20, 2012
Enjoy very much reading "Enough is Enough". such a very well written book. It certainly opens, broadens and strengthens my mind about the sustainable economy. It definitely makes me to think, to chew and to digest every chapter of this book. I like it very much and will highly recommend it to many of my friends, family members and our local libraries.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 37 reviews

Can't find what you're looking for?

Get help and learn more about the design.