{"id":3190,"date":"2024-12-17T00:18:46","date_gmt":"2024-12-17T00:18:46","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/wrigley\/?p=3190"},"modified":"2026-04-02T22:48:13","modified_gmt":"2026-04-02T22:48:13","slug":"green-growth-and-sustainable-consumption","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/wrigley\/2024\/12\/17\/green-growth-and-sustainable-consumption\/","title":{"rendered":"Can we have green growth and sustainable consumption, too?"},"content":{"rendered":"\n\n\n\n\n  \n    \n\n\n\n\n\n\n<div\n  class=\"cc--component-container cc--article-hero \"\n\n  \n  \n  \n  \n  \n  \n  >\n  <div class=\"c--component c--article-hero\"\n    \n      >\n\n    \n<div class=\"inner-wrapper\">\n          \n<div class=\"f--field f--image\">\n\n    \n    \n    \n    \n    \n    \n              \n      <img\n                            data-src=\"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/wrigley\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/116\/2024\/12\/green-growth-stock-web-768x432.jpg\"\n          data-srcset=\"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/wrigley\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/116\/2024\/12\/green-growth-stock-web-1920x1080.jpg 1920w,https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/wrigley\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/116\/2024\/12\/green-growth-stock-web-1280x720.jpg 1280w,https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/wrigley\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/116\/2024\/12\/green-growth-stock-web-768x432.jpg 768w\"          data-sizes=\"(min-width:1200px) 75vw, (min-width:768px) 83vw, 100vw\"          class=\"lazyload\"\n        \n                  alt=\"a small human figure marches up a line graph above growing green plants and a glowing lightbulb\"\n        \n        \n                                      \/>\n\n    \n    \n  \n  \n\n<\/div>\n  \n  \n  <div class=\"text-wrapper\">\n    \n              \n<div class=\"f--field f--page-title\">\n\n    \n  <h1>Can we have green growth and sustainable consumption, too?<\/h1>\n\n\n<\/div>\n    \n          <div class=\"subtitle\">\n            \n<div class=\"f--field f--description\">\n\n    \n  Constant economic growth is damaging to our planet, but Wrigley Institute research points to a better path\n\n\n<\/div>\n      <\/div>\n    \n          <strong class=\"author-field\"><span >By<\/span>Kathryn Royster<\/strong>\n    \n          <span class=\"post-date-field\">December 17, 2024<\/span>\n      <\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n  <\/div><\/div>\n\n  \n    \n\n\n\n\n\n\n<div\n  class=\"cc--component-container cc--social-share \"\n\n  \n  \n  \n  \n  \n  \n  >\n  <div class=\"c--component c--social-share\"\n    \n      >\n\n    \n  <div class=\"content-wrapper\">\n    <span class=\"a2a_kit a2a_kit_size_32 addtoany_list\" style=\"line-height: 32px;\">\n      <span class=\"title\">\n        Share\n      <\/span>\n                        <a class=\"a2a_button_copy_link\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"\/#copy_link\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" title=\"Link\">\n            <span class=\"a2a_svg a2a_s__default a2a_s_copy_link\">\n              <svg height=\"19\" viewBox=\"0 0 19 19\" width=\"19\" xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\"><path d=\"m7.43475275 9.52380952-2.17490843 2.26076008c-1.08745421 1.058837-1.68841575 2.518315-1.68841575 4.0350275 0 1.5167124.60096154 2.9475732 1.68841575 4.0350274 1.058837 1.0874543 2.51831502 1.6884158 4.03502747 1.6884158 1.44087681 0 2.80427251-.5423678 3.86936601-1.5289606l.1656615-.1594552 2.2321428-2.2321428-1.6311813-1.6311813-2.2321429 2.26076c-.6581959.658196-1.5167124 1.0016026-2.43246332 1.0016026s-1.7742674-.3434066-2.43246337-1.0016026c-.65819597-.6581959-1.00160257-1.5167124-1.00160257-2.4324633 0-.8547009.2991453-1.6595442.87416905-2.2981957l.12743352-.1342677 2.23214286-2.2321429zm6.88661855-.40736607-5.26116068 5.26116075 1.61881868 1.6188186 5.2611607-5.2611607zm1.3837569-5.54501488c-1.4408768 0-2.8042725.54236779-3.869366 1.52896062l-.1656615.15945513-2.23214282 2.23214286 1.63118132 1.63118132 2.2321429-2.23214286c.6581959-.65819597 1.5167124-1.00160256 2.4324633-1.00160256s1.7742674.34340659 2.4324634 1.00160256 1.0016026 1.51671246 1.0016026 2.43246337c0 .85470089-.2991453 1.65954419-.8741691 2.29819559l-.1274335.1342678-2.2321429 2.2321428 1.5739469 1.5739469 2.2321429-2.2321428c1.0874542-1.058837 1.6884157-2.5183151 1.6884157-4.03502751 0-1.51671245-.6009615-2.94757326-1.6884157-4.03502747-1.058837-1.08745421-2.518315-1.68841575-4.0350275-1.68841575z\" transform=\"translate(-3 -3)\"\/><\/svg>\n            <\/span>\n            <span class=\"a2a_label visually-hidden\">Copy Link<\/span>\n          <\/a>\n                                <a class=\"a2a_button_facebook\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"\/#facebook\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" title=\"Facebook\">\n            <span class=\"a2a_svg a2a_s__default a2a_s_facebook\">\n              <svg height=\"19\" viewBox=\"0 0 19 19\" width=\"19\" xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\"><path d=\"m23.9512 6h-16.9024c-.57923625 0-1.0488.46956375-1.0488 1.0488v16.9024c0 .5792362.46956375 1.0488 1.0488 1.0488h9.10024v-7.34768h-2.46772v-2.87584h2.46772v-2.11508c0-2.45404 1.49872-3.79012 3.68828-3.79012.7389668-.00263323 1.4775241.03516995 2.21236.11324v2.56348h-1.51392c-1.18788 0-1.4174.56544-1.4174 1.39612v1.8316h2.84772l-.37088 2.87584h-2.47684v7.34844h4.83284c.5792362 0 1.0488-.4695638 1.0488-1.0488v-16.9024c0-.57923625-.4695638-1.0488-1.0488-1.0488z\" fill-rule=\"evenodd\" transform=\"translate(-6 -6)\"\/><\/svg>\n            <\/span>\n            <span class=\"a2a_label visually-hidden\">Facebook<\/span>\n          <\/a>\n                                <a class=\"a2a_button_twitter\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"\/#twitter\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" title=\"X\">\n            <span class=\"a2a_svg a2a_s__default a2a_s_twitter\">\n              <svg version=\"1.1\" xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" xmlns:xlink=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/1999\/xlink\" x=\"0px\"\n\t y=\"0px\" viewBox=\"0 0 30 30\" enable-background=\"new 0 0 30 30\" xml:space=\"preserve\" width=\"19\" height=\"19\">\n<path fill=\"#000\" fill-rule=\"evenodd\" clip-rule=\"evenodd\" d=\"M14.5,16.2l-0.8-1.1l-6.3-9h2.7l5.1,7.3l0.8,1.1\n\tl6.6,9.4h-2.7L14.5,16.2L14.5,16.2z M16.9,13.4l7.4-8.7h-1.8l-6.5,7.5L11,4.8H5l7.8,11.4L5,25.2h1.8l6.8-7.9l5.5,7.9h6L16.9,13.4\n\tL16.9,13.4z\"\/>\n<\/svg>\n\n            <\/span>\n            <span class=\"a2a_label visually-hidden\">X<\/span>\n          <\/a>\n                                <a class=\"a2a_button_linkedin\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"\/#linkedin\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" title=\"Linkedin\">\n            <span class=\"a2a_svg a2a_s__default a2a_s_linkedin\">\n              <svg height=\"19\" viewBox=\"0 0 19 19\" width=\"19\" xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\"><path d=\"m25 21.4220779c0 1.974026-1.6038961 3.5779221-3.5779221 3.5779221h-11.84415582c-1.97402598 0-3.57792208-1.6038961-3.57792208-3.5779221v-11.84415582c0-1.97402598 1.6038961-3.57792208 3.57792208-3.57792208h11.84415582c1.974026 0 3.5779221 1.6038961 3.5779221 3.57792208zm-14.5584416-12.21428569c-.98701295 0-1.60389606.61688311-1.60389606 1.48051949-.12337663.8636364.49350649 1.4805195 1.48051946 1.4805195.987013 0 1.6038961-.6168831 1.6038961-1.4805195 0-.86363638-.6168831-1.48051949-1.4805195-1.48051949zm1.3571429 12.70779219v-8.6363636h-2.83766234v8.6363636zm10.2402597 0v-4.9350649c0-2.5909091-1.3571428-3.8246753-3.3311688-3.8246753-1.4805195 0-2.0974026.8636363-2.4675325 1.4805194v-1.2337662h-2.8376623v8.6363636h2.8376623v-4.9350649c0-.2467532 0-.4935065.1233767-.7402597.1233766-.4935065.6168831-.987013 1.4805194-.987013.987013 0 1.4805195.7402597 1.4805195 1.974026v4.564935z\" transform=\"translate(-6 -6)\"\/><\/svg>\n            <\/span>\n            <span class=\"a2a_label visually-hidden\">LinkedIn<\/span>\n          <\/a>\n                                <a class=\"a2a_button_bluesky\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"\/#bluesky\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" title=\"Bluesky\">\n            <span class=\"a2a_svg a2a_s__default a2a_s_bluesky\">\n              <svg xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" width=\"50px\" height=\"50px\" viewBox=\"0 0 24 24\">\n                <path fill=\"#00000\" d=\"M12 10.8c-1.087-2.114-4.046-6.053-6.798-7.995C2.566.944 1.561 1.266.902 1.565C.139 1.908 0 3.08 0 3.768c0 .69.378 5.65.624 6.479c.815 2.736 3.713 3.66 6.383 3.364c.136-.02.275-.039.415-.056c-.138.022-.276.04-.415.056c-3.912.58-7.387 2.005-2.83 7.078c5.013 5.19 6.87-1.113 7.823-4.308c.953 3.195 2.05 9.271 7.733 4.308c4.267-4.308 1.172-6.498-2.74-7.078a8.741 8.741 0 0 1-.415-.056c.14.017.279.036.415.056c2.67.297 5.568-.628 6.383-3.364c.246-.828.624-5.79.624-6.478c0-.69-.139-1.861-.902-2.206c-.659-.298-1.664-.62-4.3 1.24C16.046 4.748 13.087 8.687 12 10.8\"  fill-rule=\"evenodd\" \/>\n              <\/svg>\n            <\/span>\n            <span class=\"a2a_label visually-hidden\">Bluesky<\/span>\n          <\/a>\n                                <a class=\"a2a_button_email\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"\/#email\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" title=\"E-mail\">\n            <span class=\"a2a_svg a2a_s__default a2a_s_print\">\n              <svg height=\"12\" viewBox=\"0 0 18 12\" width=\"18\" xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\"><path d=\"m8.14285714 9.42857143c-.17142857 0-.34285714 0-.51428571.08571428l7.28571427 6.34285719c.3428572.2571428.6857143.2571428.9428572 0l7.2857142-6.34285719c-.0857142-.08571428-.2571428-.08571428-.4285714-.08571428zm-1.28571428 1.11428567v.1714286 8.5714286c0 .6857143.6 1.2857143 1.28571428 1.2857143h14.57142856c.6857143 0 1.2857143-.6 1.2857143-1.2857143v-8.5714286c0-.0857143 0-.0857143 0-.1714286l-7.2 6.3428572c-.7714286.6857143-1.8857143.6857143-2.6571429 0z\" fill-rule=\"evenodd\" transform=\"translate(-6 -9)\"\/><\/svg>\n            <\/span>\n            <span class=\"a2a_label visually-hidden\">Email<\/span>\n          <\/a>\n                  <\/span>\n  <\/div>\n\n  <\/div><\/div>\n \n\n\n      \n  \n    \n\n\n\n\n\n\n<div\n  class=\"cc--component-container cc--article-highlights \"\n\n  \n  \n  \n  \n  \n  \n  >\n  <div class=\"c--component c--article-highlights\"\n    \n      >\n\n    \n<div class=\"inner-wrapper\">\n          \n<div class=\"f--field f--section-title\">\n\n    \n  <h2>\n          In this story:\n      <\/h2>\n\n\n<\/div>\n    \n      <ul>\n              <li><p>Green growth is an economic approach that supports continual economic growth combined with more efficient use of environmental resources.<\/p>\n<\/li>\n              <li><p>Because it ignores total environmental impact, green growth puts us on a collision course with our planet&#8217;s ecological limits, says USC Wrigley Institute researcher Aitor Marcos Diaz.<\/p>\n<\/li>\n              <li><p>Marcos&#8217;s research shows that &#8220;post-growth&#8221; models may be a better choice. These models focus on meeting today&#8217;s needs without compromising future generations&#8217; ability to meet their own needs.<\/p>\n<\/li>\n          <\/ul>\n  <\/div>\n  \n\n  <\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n\n  \n    \n\n\n\n\n\n\n<div\n  class=\"cc--component-container cc--rich-text \"\n\n  \n  \n  \n  \n  \n  \n  >\n  <div class=\"c--component c--rich-text\"\n    \n      >\n\n    \n      \n<div class=\"f--field f--wysiwyg\">\n\n    \n  <figure id=\"attachment_1692\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-1692\" style=\"width: 200px\" class=\"wp-caption alignright\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-1692\" src=\"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/wrigley\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/116\/2024\/07\/Photo_Aitor.jpg\" alt=\"Aitor Marcos Diaz\" width=\"200\" height=\"200\" srcset=\"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/wrigley\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/116\/2024\/07\/Photo_Aitor.jpg 800w, https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/wrigley\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/116\/2024\/07\/Photo_Aitor-300x300.jpg 300w, https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/wrigley\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/116\/2024\/07\/Photo_Aitor-150x150.jpg 150w, https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/wrigley\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/116\/2024\/07\/Photo_Aitor-768x768.jpg 768w, https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/wrigley\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/116\/2024\/07\/Photo_Aitor-320x320.jpg 320w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 200px) 100vw, 200px\" \/><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-1692\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Aitor Marcos Diaz<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Imagine that you\u2019ve decided to buy a new pair of sneakers. You shop around, compare prices, and narrow your list to two options. One pair costs more, but it\u2019s made from recycled and natural materials. The other pair costs less, but it\u2019s made from new, synthetic materials.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">You care about the environment and want to live sustainably, so you buy the first pair of shoes. Congratulations, you\u2019ve just done something good for the planet! Right?<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Well, maybe.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">If you already own sneakers that are in good condition, the most sustainable choice is not to buy more sneakers, says Aitor Marcos Diaz, a postdoctoral research scholar at the USC Wrigley Institute for Environment and Sustainability. He is an ecological economist, someone who researches how much of our planet\u2019s finite resources can be used to meet today\u2019s human needs without risking the well-being of future generations.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<h3>Green growth: what it is and how it falls short<\/h3>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u201cMainstream economics often assumes that we can detach our economic growth or our consumption habits from our environmental footprint, relying on new technologies that haven\u2019t been proven at scale. Instead of questioning the prevailing model of compound growth, we just look for ways to produce or consume that make more efficient use of environmental resources.<\/span> <span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">That\u2019s called \u2018green growth\u2019,\u201d Marcos says.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The green growth model focuses on reducing the environmental impact of each unit produced but ignores the total volume of production. In other words, it focuses on reducing the environmental impact of each pair of sneakers, but ignores how many total pairs of sneakers are being made.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">That oversight, Marcos says, causes problems for the planet. Even if they\u2019re made with recycled materials, each sneaker still has an environmental footprint. This footprint comes from the energy required to run the factory where the shoes are produced, the new materials (such as glue or thread) that go into each shoe, and so on. As more pairs of sneakers are produced and sold, that environmental footprint adds up. The same is true for any product you find in a store. The end result: As production increases due to demands for growth, even sustainably made products can contribute to greater environmental harm.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">For this reason, Marcos warns, green growth may not be compatible with truly sustainable consumption. In his view, when companies use terms such as <\/span><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">sustainable<\/span><\/i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">, <\/span><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">eco-friendly<\/span><\/i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">, or <\/span><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">recycled<\/span><\/i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> as marketing tools, they\u2019re really just driving green consumerism. And this green consumerism has a hidden dark side. According to Marcos, people who buy eco-labeled products <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.tandfonline.com\/doi\/full\/10.1080\/02650487.2019.1607450\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">are vulnerable<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> to a psychological effect called <\/span><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">moral licensing<\/span><\/i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">. This occurs when people do a good deed, then feel entitled to do a bad or less-good deed as a result. Buy the \u201ceco-friendly\u201d sneakers, and you may feel like you don\u2019t need to be careful about the environmental footprint of the backpack you buy next week.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.sciencedirect.com\/science\/article\/pii\/S0959378023000018\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Marcos encountered this effect<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> while studying carbon taxes (surcharges for products with high carbon footprints). He looked at the practice in Europe, where countries were testing whether to call out carbon taxes on product labels. Marcos expected to find that people would buy fewer products if they knew they were paying more per product due to a carbon tax. To his surprise, however, he found that people who knew they were paying a carbon tax tended to make <\/span><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">more<\/span><\/i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> purchases than people who didn\u2019t know they were paying the tax. The knowing buyers\u2019 rationale? They were doing something good for the planet by paying the carbon tax, so it was OK to commit the bad deed of buying even more stuff.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Accepted wisdom around the gross domestic product, or GDP, is another example of the limitations to a green growth mindset. Used as a key indicator of U.S. economic health, the GDP measures the value of goods and services produced in the country. Economists and policymakers, Marcos explains, usually frame GDP growth as an absolute positive, and green growth advocates tend to agree. But he believes a different approach is better.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u201cBeing at the Wrigley Institute, I\u2019ve been made more aware of strong ecological limits, not just limits on paper. Green growth ignores these limits,\u201d Marcos says. \u201cMathematically, when you grow GDP 2 percent and then 2 percent on top of that and then 2 percent on top of that, it\u2019s exponential. Nothing in nature, where we get the resources for this growth, can grow exponentially without crashing afterwards, because you reach an ecological limit.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<h3>Post-growth: a more sustainable alternative to green growth<\/h3>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Rather than thinking about green growth-style <\/span><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">efficient<\/span><\/i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> growth or consumption, Marcos says, we need to think about <\/span><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">sufficient<\/span><\/i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> growth and consumption. His approach to sufficiency references the <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.stockholmresilience.org\/research\/planetary-boundaries.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Planetary Boundaries framework<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> developed by environmental scientist <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.stockholmresilience.org\/meet-our-team\/staff\/2008-01-16-rockstrom.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Johan Rockstr\u00f6m<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">. The framework outlines nine essential processes for a stable and resilient Earth, and the boundaries within which those processes can function. As of September 2023, Earth had crossed six of those nine boundaries.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">By keeping consumption and production at a flat level or reducing it, however, we can avoid crossing the other boundaries\u2013and perhaps even retreat from the six we\u2019ve already crossed. The technical term for this approach is a <\/span><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">post-growth model<\/span><\/i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">. In society at large, it\u2019s often known by other names, such as <\/span><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">sustainable consumption<\/span><\/i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> or <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/grist.org\/looking-forward\/rampant-consumerism-is-bad-for-the-planet-underconsumption-core-offers-an-alternative\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">underconsumption<\/span><\/i><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">. <\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">(VIDEO: Watch as Marcos explains over- and under-consumption. Story continues after the video.)<\/span><\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<div class=\"video-embed\"><iframe loading=\"lazy\" width=\"560\" height=\"315\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/0H589hkhG6c?si=YiCGMiEmH3zNEIRj\" title=\"National Postdoc Appreciation Week with USCWrigley's Aitor Marcos Diaz\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin-when-cross-origin\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe><\/div>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Marcos\u2019s research shows that most people currently prefer green growth, but it may be possible to nudge them toward post-growth models, which create <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/timjackson.org.uk\/ecological-economics\/pwg\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">prosperity without growth<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">. Marcos and Wrigley Institute Director Joe \u00c1rvai tested this hypothesis in a recent study to be submitted for publication in February 2025. They began by surveying participants about their attitudes toward post-growth models such as agrowth (abandoning GDP growth as a policy aim) and degrowth (actively downscaling unnecessarily large economic sectors). The survey also included questions about characteristics, such as political affiliation and mathematical proficiency, that might affect study outcomes.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Next, some of the participants were put in a control group that received no additional information. The remaining participants received varying combinations of information about GDP growth, carbon footprint growth, or material footprint growth and the links between the different measures. (Carbon footprint tracks climate-changing carbon dioxide emissions, while material footprint tracks the extraction of natural resources.)<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Finally, Marcos and \u00c1rvai surveyed the participants again about their attitudes toward agrowth and degrowth. Individuals who received information about GDP growth only, or who received information about all three types of growth, increased their support for agrowth and degrowth. Support increased even more among people who entered the study with the ability to recognize exponential growth trends.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The effect of the information provided during the study was not enough to overcome certain pre-existing beliefs. For instance, it didn\u2019t make a difference to people who entered the study believing that climate change is not real. However, the overall changes were small but significant, and Marcos takes that as a good sign.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u201cThe information increases people\u2019s awareness of [ecological] limits, and that awareness is what leads to policy support,\u201d he says.<\/span><\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<h3>What real-life sustainable consumption looks like<\/h3>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The overall goal of post-growth models, according to Marcos, is to achieve a level of consumption that keeps us between the Planetary Boundaries at the upper limit and the <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/sdgs.un.org\/goals\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">United Nations Sustainable Development Goals<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> at the lower limit. This means aiming for what he calls a \u201csteady-state economy,\u201d where everyone has enough for a good life, but constant year-over-year economic growth is no longer the overriding goal for governments and companies.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">At the individual level, this might mean buying those new sneakers, but using your cellphone until it dies (and then replacing it with a secondhand model). Or it might mean shifting to public transit instead of buying an electric vehicle, repairing your broken refrigerator instead of replacing it, or teaming up with neighbors to share ownership of a lawn mower.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">More importantly, it also means making systemic changes. These changes are crucial to widespread, long-term sustainability, and they can take place through both private-sector and government action. Marcos points to examples such as <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.ncsl.org\/technology-and-communication\/right-to-repair-2023-legislation\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">right-to-repair laws<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">, widespread use of renewable energy, prioritization of public transit in government infrastructure projects, and sustainable towns supported through the grassroots <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/transitionnetwork.org\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Transition Network<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u201cDegrowth is going to happen, either by design or disaster, because there are ecological limits on how much we can extract from our planet. Planned degrowth looks like democratically planned downscaling of consumption,\u201d Marcos says. \u201cIt\u2019s not a single vision\u2013we need a multitude of post-growth alternatives to spark our imagination. And it doesn\u2019t mean we\u2019re going to live worse. It means we won\u2019t hamper future generations\u2019 ability to meet their needs.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/wrigley\/research\/research-themes\/\">Learn more about Wrigley Institute research &gt;&gt;<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n<\/div>\n\n\n  <\/div><\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"","protected":false},"author":182,"featured_media":3200,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[41],"tags":[65,63],"class_list":["post-3190","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-research","tag-consumer-psychology","tag-economics"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v27.1.1 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>Can we have green growth and sustainable consumption, too?<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Sustainable consumption and economic growth: can we have both, or are they at odds with each other? One researcher has a unique answer.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/wrigley\/2024\/12\/17\/green-growth-and-sustainable-consumption\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Is sustainable consumption possible without limits on growth?\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Sustainable consumption and economic growth: can we have both, or are they at odds with each other? One researcher has a unique answer.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/wrigley\/2024\/12\/17\/green-growth-and-sustainable-consumption\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Wrigley Institute for Environment and Sustainability\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2024-12-17T00:18:46+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2026-04-02T22:48:13+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/wrigley\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/116\/2024\/12\/green-growth-stock-web.jpg\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"2387\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"1267\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Kathryn Royster\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/wrigley\/2024\/12\/17\/green-growth-and-sustainable-consumption\/#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/wrigley\/2024\/12\/17\/green-growth-and-sustainable-consumption\/\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"Kathryn Royster\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/wrigley\/#\/schema\/person\/8d145e5d8f50e29acee6ca512632733e\"},\"headline\":\"Can we have green growth and sustainable consumption, too?\",\"datePublished\":\"2024-12-17T00:18:46+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2026-04-02T22:48:13+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/wrigley\/2024\/12\/17\/green-growth-and-sustainable-consumption\/\"},\"wordCount\":9,\"commentCount\":0,\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/wrigley\/2024\/12\/17\/green-growth-and-sustainable-consumption\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/wrigley\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/116\/2024\/12\/green-growth-stock-web.jpg\",\"keywords\":[\"consumer psychology\",\"economics\"],\"articleSection\":[\"Research\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"CommentAction\",\"name\":\"Comment\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/wrigley\/2024\/12\/17\/green-growth-and-sustainable-consumption\/#respond\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/wrigley\/2024\/12\/17\/green-growth-and-sustainable-consumption\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/wrigley\/2024\/12\/17\/green-growth-and-sustainable-consumption\/\",\"name\":\"Is sustainable consumption possible without limits on growth?\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/wrigley\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/wrigley\/2024\/12\/17\/green-growth-and-sustainable-consumption\/#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/wrigley\/2024\/12\/17\/green-growth-and-sustainable-consumption\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/wrigley\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/116\/2024\/12\/green-growth-stock-web.jpg\",\"datePublished\":\"2024-12-17T00:18:46+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2026-04-02T22:48:13+00:00\",\"author\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/wrigley\/#\/schema\/person\/8d145e5d8f50e29acee6ca512632733e\"},\"description\":\"Sustainable consumption and economic growth: can we have both, or are they at odds with each other? One researcher has a unique answer.\",\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/wrigley\/2024\/12\/17\/green-growth-and-sustainable-consumption\/#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/wrigley\/2024\/12\/17\/green-growth-and-sustainable-consumption\/\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/wrigley\/2024\/12\/17\/green-growth-and-sustainable-consumption\/#primaryimage\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/wrigley\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/116\/2024\/12\/green-growth-stock-web.jpg\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/wrigley\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/116\/2024\/12\/green-growth-stock-web.jpg\",\"width\":2387,\"height\":1267,\"caption\":\"a small human figure marches up a line graph above growing green plants and a glowing lightbulb\"},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/wrigley\/2024\/12\/17\/green-growth-and-sustainable-consumption\/#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/wrigley\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"Can we have green growth and sustainable consumption, too?\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/wrigley\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/wrigley\/\",\"name\":\"Wrigley Institute for Environment and Sustainability\",\"description\":\"Creating a more sustainable and environmentally just future for our planet and all who live on it\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/wrigley\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":{\"@type\":\"PropertyValueSpecification\",\"valueRequired\":true,\"valueName\":\"search_term_string\"}}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/wrigley\/#\/schema\/person\/8d145e5d8f50e29acee6ca512632733e\",\"name\":\"Kathryn Royster\",\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/wrigley\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/ac60c28082a9a6538663bfb0e8a3752867648c099100b2aa9409599b67af4b16?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/ac60c28082a9a6538663bfb0e8a3752867648c099100b2aa9409599b67af4b16?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"caption\":\"Kathryn Royster\"},\"url\":\"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/wrigley\/author\/kroyster\/\"}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"Can we have green growth and sustainable consumption, too?","description":"Sustainable consumption and economic growth: can we have both, or are they at odds with each other? One researcher has a unique answer.","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/wrigley\/2024\/12\/17\/green-growth-and-sustainable-consumption\/","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"Is sustainable consumption possible without limits on growth?","og_description":"Sustainable consumption and economic growth: can we have both, or are they at odds with each other? One researcher has a unique answer.","og_url":"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/wrigley\/2024\/12\/17\/green-growth-and-sustainable-consumption\/","og_site_name":"Wrigley Institute for Environment and Sustainability","article_published_time":"2024-12-17T00:18:46+00:00","article_modified_time":"2026-04-02T22:48:13+00:00","og_image":[{"width":2387,"height":1267,"url":"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/wrigley\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/116\/2024\/12\/green-growth-stock-web.jpg","type":"image\/jpeg"}],"author":"Kathryn Royster","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"Article","@id":"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/wrigley\/2024\/12\/17\/green-growth-and-sustainable-consumption\/#article","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/wrigley\/2024\/12\/17\/green-growth-and-sustainable-consumption\/"},"author":{"name":"Kathryn Royster","@id":"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/wrigley\/#\/schema\/person\/8d145e5d8f50e29acee6ca512632733e"},"headline":"Can we have green growth and sustainable consumption, too?","datePublished":"2024-12-17T00:18:46+00:00","dateModified":"2026-04-02T22:48:13+00:00","mainEntityOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/wrigley\/2024\/12\/17\/green-growth-and-sustainable-consumption\/"},"wordCount":9,"commentCount":0,"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/wrigley\/2024\/12\/17\/green-growth-and-sustainable-consumption\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/wrigley\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/116\/2024\/12\/green-growth-stock-web.jpg","keywords":["consumer psychology","economics"],"articleSection":["Research"],"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"CommentAction","name":"Comment","target":["https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/wrigley\/2024\/12\/17\/green-growth-and-sustainable-consumption\/#respond"]}]},{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/wrigley\/2024\/12\/17\/green-growth-and-sustainable-consumption\/","url":"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/wrigley\/2024\/12\/17\/green-growth-and-sustainable-consumption\/","name":"Is sustainable consumption possible without limits on growth?","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/wrigley\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/wrigley\/2024\/12\/17\/green-growth-and-sustainable-consumption\/#primaryimage"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/wrigley\/2024\/12\/17\/green-growth-and-sustainable-consumption\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/wrigley\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/116\/2024\/12\/green-growth-stock-web.jpg","datePublished":"2024-12-17T00:18:46+00:00","dateModified":"2026-04-02T22:48:13+00:00","author":{"@id":"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/wrigley\/#\/schema\/person\/8d145e5d8f50e29acee6ca512632733e"},"description":"Sustainable consumption and economic growth: can we have both, or are they at odds with each other? One researcher has a unique answer.","breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/wrigley\/2024\/12\/17\/green-growth-and-sustainable-consumption\/#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/wrigley\/2024\/12\/17\/green-growth-and-sustainable-consumption\/"]}]},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/wrigley\/2024\/12\/17\/green-growth-and-sustainable-consumption\/#primaryimage","url":"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/wrigley\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/116\/2024\/12\/green-growth-stock-web.jpg","contentUrl":"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/wrigley\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/116\/2024\/12\/green-growth-stock-web.jpg","width":2387,"height":1267,"caption":"a small human figure marches up a line graph above growing green plants and a glowing lightbulb"},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/wrigley\/2024\/12\/17\/green-growth-and-sustainable-consumption\/#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/wrigley\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"Can we have green growth and sustainable consumption, too?"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/wrigley\/#website","url":"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/wrigley\/","name":"Wrigley Institute for Environment and Sustainability","description":"Creating a more sustainable and environmentally just future for our planet and all who live on it","potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/wrigley\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/wrigley\/#\/schema\/person\/8d145e5d8f50e29acee6ca512632733e","name":"Kathryn Royster","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/wrigley\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/ac60c28082a9a6538663bfb0e8a3752867648c099100b2aa9409599b67af4b16?s=96&d=mm&r=g","contentUrl":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/ac60c28082a9a6538663bfb0e8a3752867648c099100b2aa9409599b67af4b16?s=96&d=mm&r=g","caption":"Kathryn Royster"},"url":"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/wrigley\/author\/kroyster\/"}]}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/wrigley\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3190","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/wrigley\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/wrigley\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/wrigley\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/182"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/wrigley\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=3190"}],"version-history":[{"count":14,"href":"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/wrigley\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3190\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":6107,"href":"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/wrigley\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3190\/revisions\/6107"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/wrigley\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/3200"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/wrigley\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=3190"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/wrigley\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=3190"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/wrigley\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=3190"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}