Degrowth as a Critique of Green Growth in Contemporary Sustainability Policy

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School of Business | Bachelor's thesis
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Date

2025

Department

Taloustieteen laitos

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Mcode

Degree programme

Bachelor’s programme in Economics

Language

en

Pages

22

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Abstract

This thesis researches the two paradigms present in sustainability policy discussions nowadays: green growth and degrowth. Green growth, that is a commonly used framework in larger organizations, such as the European Union and the United Nations, and its prevelance in contemporary sustainability policies, is looked through the lense of the critique degrowth scholars present it with. Methods, such as efficiency improvements, technological advancements, and decoupling, are examined by how often they are visible in the policies but also on how effective as methods they actually are. Some scholars present it with increased amount of questionning, whether they are viable solutions for combatting the climate change. In this thesis, theoretical foundations of the two paradigms are studied, together with examining the policies that implement the methods those paradigms vouch for. By analyzing key European Union and United Nations policy frameworks, including the European Green Deal, Fit for 55 package, and the 2030 Agenda of the United Nations, and comparing them to recent academic literature on the topic. In this thesis the major critiques presented towards green growth are synthesized. Green growth seems to offer more politically easy solutions to the on-going climate change crisis, by reinforcing technological optimism and at the same time reinforcing unsustainable consumption patterns. Contrastingly, degrowth puts emphasis on structural transformation in the global economy through methods, such as reduced working hours, universal basic services, and economic restructuring. Integrating the two paradigms might offer better outcomes instead of the current green growth focused policies.

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Thesis advisor

Huttunen, Kristiina

Keywords

green growth, degrowth, green economy, sustainability, ecological economics

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https://urn.fi/URN:NBN:fi:aalto-202510268572

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