Avsnitt
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Global biodiversity is in decline and transformative change is required to address biodiversity loss. Yet the predominant approaches that are prevailing in policy and industry focus on the so-called biodiversity funding gap, and aim to deliver biodiversity conservation primarily through attracting more private investment- often associated with creating new revenue streams for funding nature conservation and restoration, such as the expansion of biodiversity or carbon credit markets. Today’s guest Justin Adams is Reimagining Nature Finance Fellow at the Circular Bioeconomy Alliance and cofounder of Ostara and has formerly held very senior positions in some of the biggest players in nature finance, such as environmental NGOs like the Nature Conservancy and sustainability-focused asset managers such as Just Climate, aiming to attract more investment into nature conservation and restoration. But after decades of doing this, Justin ended up coming to the conclusion that these approaches just weren't a systemic solution to the problem. So: what’s next? How can we reimagine nature finance? Hosted by Sophus zu Ermgassen. Edited by Aidan Knox. Cover photo Drazen Nesic.
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It is clear that strong sustainability that pays attention to notdepleting natural resources beyond their regenerative capacities would require companies to change drastically. In these debates one company keeps popping up as a paragon of corporate sustainability: Patagonia. Through its commitments to produce lasting garments, to repairing rather than replacing products, through its transparent supply chain, and its decision to transfer ownership to a trustdedicated to protecting the planet, Patagonia seems to underscore that companies can change indeed. On the other hand, Patagonia also represents a paradox: a company that tells people to buy less still relies on selling products in a system built on resource extraction. To delve into this paradox, in this episode have with us Alejandro Agafonow who has studied in depth Patagonia’s sustainable practices. Hosted by Alexandra Köves. Edited by Aidan Knox. Photo by Taylor Annis (unsplash).
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Saknas det avsnitt?
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The GDP was never meant to be an indicator of human happiness. Ecological economists have been criticising the use of the GDP as a sole measure of progress for over half a century now and even if a myriad of other indicators exist in the world, it is still the only one captures the imagination of policymakers. Can we turn it around? Is it true that you cannot have what you do not measure? And can the concept of sustainable and inclusive wellbeing guide the EU beyond growth? Our guest today, Tuuli Hirvilammi believes that Europe’s single-mindedness with competitiveness should be replaced by the true understanding of what sustainable and inclusive wellbeing might bring to the table. Hosted by Alexandra Köves. Edited by Aidan Knox. Episode picture by Elena Helade.
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Turning our economies upside down for people and planet require some fundamentally different understandings of how we relate to each other and to more-than-humans. Conviviality is a central concept for Degrowthers, a term first used by Ivan Illich to describe an intrinsic ethical imperative to use our autonomy in relation to others and respecting our interdependence rather than just for our own individual benefit. In today’s episode, Andrea Vetter explains whyconviviality is so important from a Degrowth perspective and how it relates to other concepts such as freedom and commoning. Hosted by Alexandra Köves. Edited by Aidan Knox. Episode picture by Arthur Poulin.
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It is completely critical to Earth system stability that we decarbonise the global economy. Recent studies have demonstrated how a decarbonised energy system would consume much fewer materials than a status quo fossil energy system. But even so, decarbonisation will require the most incredible amount of new infrastructure, including the installation of an unfathomable amount of renewable energycapacity and associated infrastructure. So where will all those materials come from, and how can we ensure that decarbonising the economy doesn’t just shift problems onto other aspects of the biosphere, such as nature or local communities on extraction frontiers? In today’s episode we’ll talk through all these issues with Dr Aurora Torres from the University of Alicante. Hosted by Sophus zu Ermgassen. Edited by Aidan Knox.
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In an ideal world, equality and justice are not just empty buzzwords. In our collective actions, we would make sure that we have taken into consideration the impacts of those actions not just on those whose voices are most loudly heard but also on everyone else. When ecological economists work on policy suggestions to transition into an economy that respects not just planetary boundaries but all our fellow humans and non-human entities, they need to be able to think along the lines of intersectional justice. In today’s episode, our guests Corinna Dengler and Pooja Patki explain us what intersectionality is and how we can reflect on it. Hosted by Alexandra Köves. Edited by Aidan Knox.
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One of the ultimate drivers of nature degradation and loss is investment in activities that harm nature mediated by the financial system. There is a huge amount of policy activity aiming to address the financial flows that are damaging nature at the moment, but many seem to be light-touch initiatives that put more of an emphasis on getting private companies to disclose their impacts and dependencies, than taking real regulatory action for addressing biodiversity loss. So what can we really do to address the nature degradationembedded into the financial system? Hosted by Sophus zu Ermgassen. Edited by Aidan Knox.
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In debates about social ecological transformation, most conversations focus on what governments, corporations, orinternational bodies should do. But beneath these big policy debates, there’s another story unfolding: one of ordinary people taking action in their communities. Across the world, citizens are creating local solutions to global problems: developing local energy projects, repair cafés, community-supported agriculture and cooperative housing. These efforts may seem small, but they reflect the very principles social ecological economics stands for: sufficiency, conviviality, cooperation, and care instead of competition and endless growth. Hosted by Matilda Gettins. Edited by Aidan Knox.
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One of the departures from mainstream economics in ecological economics is the way ecological economists tend to value nature for more than its pure anthropocentric, utilitarian value. So in this episode, we’ll be talking aboutprotecting some nature that gets pretty bad press: sharks! We interview award-winning conservation scientist and practitioner Dr Hollie Booth, who runs an NGO focusing on shark conservation in Indonesia whilst also running randomised controlled trials to evaluate their effectiveness. So here we get a deep dive on the economics of shark declines, and the real-world challenges of running large ecological economics field experiments in the wild. Hosted by Sophus zu Ermgassen. Edited by Aidan Knox.
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Transitioning into an economy that respects planetary boundaries inevitably requires downscaling of production of certain kinds and causes major shifts within and between industries. However, it is unclear whether a truly regenerativeeconomy would demand more or less labour. What we can predict is that both the way we think about work and the types of jobs available to us will have to change. But can we create a safety net throughout these tectonic changes? Our guest today, Charles Stevenson argues that a job guarantee is not only possible but also desirable. Hosted by Alexandra Köves. Edited by Aidan Knox.
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Ecological economics is founded on the criticism of the current economic system but while some of its representatives believe that things can changewithout completely dismantling capitalism, many say that capitalism by definition will never be able to respect planetary boundaries. How we may perceive this question is strongly influenced by what we know and think of the already tested alternatives and their failures. In the first episode of Season 5, with today’s guest, Hungarian sociologist, economist and historian, Attila Melegh we will discuss just what kind of socialism we have ever tested. Hosted by Alexandra Köves. Edited by Aidan Knox.
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It is blatantly clear that if we ever want a good life for all within planetary boundaries, we need to tackle the question of distribution and redistribution. On the one hand, we must make sure that all can live in sufficiency and dignity and on the other that those who have an enormously unequal share of the resources are forced to make do with less. In today’s episode with Marlies Glasius, we look at the possibilities to tax the superrich in a world where they seem to have most of the political as well as the economic power. Hosted by Alexandra Köves. Edited by Aidan Knox.
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Ecological economics teaches that the human economy is a subset of the biosphere, and that every single transaction occurring in the human economy implies some kind of physical work, an energy transformation or the use and transformation of resources. Thinking about the world in this way has radical implications for lifestyles, policy, practice, and the future of society. Our main discipline for tracking the flows of energy and matter through the economy is industrial ecology. In this episode we’re lucky to have leading industrial ecologist Prof Paul Behrens onto the show to give us a brilliant overview of industrial ecology. Hosted by Sophus zu Ermgassen. Edited by Aidan Knox.
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A lot of ecological economists believe that one of the fundamental drivers of nature destruction is the historical creation of the human-nature dichotomy, and we often draw inspiration from cultures who don’t view people as distinct from nature. But what lessons can we draw in countries in the global North where that human-nature dichotomy is taken to its extreme, where the overwhelming policy pressure is towards the commodification of nature? We’ll dive into some of these discussions today with Prof Julia Martin-Ortega and Dr Josh Cohen, focusing on humanity’s relationship with rivers. Hosted by Sophus zu Ermgassen. Edited by Aidan Knox.
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What if we accepted that human prosperity was about health rather than wealth? What if instead of growth, the economy would concern itself with care? In his new book Tim Jackson argues that our careless economy is jeopardising our physicaland mental health as well as the natural environment and the wellbeing of other species. The organising principle of the economy should therefore be centred on care. But what is care? And how can our growth-fetishist patriarchal societiesshift towards embracing a holistic understanding of care?
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To achieve global biodiversity and climate policy goalswe have to restore nature at a massive scale. There’s a huge debate in ecological economics about what the correct policy approach is, and in a way different approaches represent very different visions of the future; some believe these should be driven by governments, others see a major role for private finance and corporations, others in empowering civil society and local communities and more decentralised approaches to nature recovery. We’ll diveinto some of these discussions today with Dr Tim Lamont, discussing the role of large businesses in biosphere stewardship. Hosted by Sophus zu Ermgassen. Edited by Aidan Knox.
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Achieving planetary sustainability cannot be achieved using the same practices and reasoning that has induced the problems in the first place. Diverse indigenous and local knowledge has proven to be much better steward to localecological systems than the globalised culture that drives current mainstream economic and political decisions and is currently at the forefront of protection struggles. Our guest today, Victoria Reyes-Garcia explains why this is the case, how this knowledge differs and what can be done to promote its inclusion into collective decision-making processes. Hosted by Alexandra Köves. Edited by Aidan Knox.
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Ecological economics is about understanding the entanglement of economic, political, social, and ecological systems and about finding ways to reduce the economy’s overwhelmingly aggressive power and dominance above allothers even if it is a supposed to be just a subsystem of them. While on an unreflective level we know that geopolitics is governed by economic interests, all too often we try and understand wars and power games only in terms of political or social processes. As an example, the monstrous war in Gaza has been predominantly explained by settler colonisation or Israeli lobbying power but has rarely been discussed from the wider perspective of how our dependence on oil fuels such atrocities. Our guest today, Adam Hanieh explains how the fossil fuel industry influences our geopolitical realities. Hosted by Alexandra Köves. Edited by Aidan Knox.
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Ecological economists face true hardships when coming up against the long-lived myth of how markets can solve everything: from personal and collective wellbeing to ecological sustainability. But – of course - only if we leave them alone to work their magic. But how has this myth been created and why does it hold so strong despite all evidence underpinning its effectiveness? Our guest today, historian Naomi Oreskes will explain us in this episode. Hosted by Alexandra Köves. Edited by Aidan Knox.
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Agriculture is a major driver of planetary boundaries being transgressed or facing severe pressure, including climate change, biosphere integrity, land-use change and freshwater use. Furthermore, it is rife with injustices, including exploitative labor practices, prioritizing profits over food security, and perpetuating land-inequality and land-grabbing. A socio-ecological transformation of agriculture is hence imperative. Movement building is necessary to achieve this, working together with and learning from people on the ground and in the field. To learn aboutthis, we have the pleasure to be joined by Julia and Jana from the young peasants association (junge AbL), a German association for young farmers, gardeners, students and apprentices who organize together to achieve a shift inagricultural policies and to promote peasant farming. Hosted by Matilda Gettins. Edited by Aidan Knox.
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