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This paper seeks to initiate a conversation between degrowth (DG) and postdevelopment (PD) frameworks by placing them within the larger field of discourses for ecological and civilizational transitions and by bridging proposals emerging from the North with those from the Global South. Not only can this dialogue, it is argued, be mutually enriching for both movements but perhaps essential for an effective politics of transformation. Part I of the paper presents a brief panorama of transition discourses (TDs), particularly in the North. Part II discusses succinctly the main postdevelopment trends in Latin America, including Buen Vivir (BV), the rights of Nature, civilizational crisis, and the concept of ‘alternatives to development’. With these elements in hand, Part III attempts a preliminary dialogue between degrowth and postdevelopment, identifying points of convergence and tension; whereas they originate in somewhat different intellectual traditions and operate through different epistemic and political practices, they share closely connected imaginaries, goals, and predicaments, chiefly, a radical questioning of the core assumption of growth and economism, a vision of alternative worlds based on ecological integrity and social justice, and the ever present risk of cooptation. Important tensions remain, for instance, around the critique of modernity and the scope for dematerialization. This part ends by outlining areas of research on PD that could be of particular interest to degrowth scholars. The conclusion, finally, envisions the dissolution of the very binary of ‘Global North’ and ‘Global South’ by adopting a pluriversal perspective.

Strategies toward ambitious climate targets usually rely on the concept of 'decoupling'; that is, they aim at promoting economic growth while reducing the use of natural resources and GHG emissions. GDP growth coinciding with absolute reductions in emissions or resource use is denoted as 'absolute decoupling', as opposed to 'relative decoupling', where resource use or emissions increase less so than does GDP. Based on the bibliometric mapping in part I (Wiedenhofer et al, 2020 Environ. Res. Lett. 15 063002), we synthesize the evidence emerging from the selected 835 peer-reviewed articles. We evaluate empirical studies of decoupling related to final/useful energy, exergy, use of material resources, as well as CO2 and total GHG emissions. We find that relative decoupling is frequent for material use as well as GHG and CO2 emissions but not for useful exergy, a quality-based measure of energy use. Primary energy can be decoupled from GDP largely to the extent to which the conversion of primary energy to useful exergy is improved. Examples of absolute long-term decoupling are rare, but recently some industrialized countries have decoupled GDP from both production- and, weaklier, consumption-based CO2 emissions. We analyze policies or strategies in the decoupling literature by classifying them into three groups: (1) Green growth, if sufficient reductions of resource use or emissions were deemed possible without altering the growth trajectory. (2) Degrowth, if reductions of resource use or emissions were given priority over GDP growth. (3) Others, e.g. if the role of energy for GDP growth was analyzed without reference to climate change mitigation. We conclude that large rapid absolute reductions of resource use and GHG emissions cannot be achieved through observed decoupling rates, hence decoupling needs to be complemented by sufficiency-oriented strategies and strict enforcement of absolute reduction targets. More research is needed on interdependencies between wellbeing, resources and emissions.

The degrowth movement lacks a concrete vision for technology, thereby disregarding a crucial aspect of the green growth narrative. This paper helps fill this gap by exploring the compatibility of Artificial Intelligence with a degrowth-related concept: convivial tools - tools that promote autonomy, creativity, and relationships among humans and with nature.Degrowth has emerged as a strong voice against the green growth narrative. However, it has so far left largely unshaped its vision for technology, thereby overlooking a pivotal element of the green growth narrative. This article contributes to filling this gap by analyzing the appropriateness of a digital technology, Artificial Intelligence, to a degrowth context. It does so through the angle of conviviality, a concept introduced by Ivan Illich and frequently used by degrowth scholars, which states that convivial tools should foster autonomy, creativity, and relationships among humans and with nature. This paper specifically applies Vetter's Matrix of Convivial Technology to an application of machine learning with potential environmental benefits: predictive maintenance - a proactive maintenance technique based on real-time sensor monitoring. Three key limitations to its conviviality are identified: 1. the high complexity of machine learning, 2. its environmental impacts, and 3. the size of the infrastructure it relies on. These limitations prompt critical reflections on the appropriateness of machine learning (as a part of Artificial Intelligence) to degrowth but also act as inspirations for reshaping the technology towards more conviviality.

The emission targets agreed in Paris require a radical reduction of material extraction, use and disposal. The core claim of this article is that a radical dematerialization can only be part and parcel of degrowth. Given that capitalist economies are designed to grow, this raises the question of whether, and under what circumstances, the inevitable ‘degrowth’ can become socially sustainable. Three economic policies are discussed in this direction: work-sharing, green taxes and public money. This article is part of the themed issue ‘Material demand reduction’.

Globally there has been recognition that there is little consensus attributed to the definition of the blue economy. However, despite this acknowledgement, the blue economy is championed for its development potential by the African Union and subsequently, several African states. Having formalised the agenda in its fifth National Development Plan Namibia is working to implement a governance and management framework to “sustainably maximise benefits from marine resources” by 2020 (Republic of Namibia in Namibia’s 5th National Development Plan (NDP5) 2017). Concurrently, new entrants, such as marine mineral mining projects, have emerged in recognition of the potential offered within the state’s Exclusive Economic Zone. This article argues that the uptake of the blue economy is shaped by multiple, and often conflicting, interests. The emergence of the agenda is not apolitical, nor has it been established in isolation from exogenous actors and interests. Subsequently, this article suggests that the critique of the emerging blue economy should be applied to discussions of a blue degrowth movement, to avoid transposing a new agenda over another. As demonstrated with reference to Namibia, contextual and historical issues need to be recognised by degrowth discussions, and their inherent and continued structural effects analysed. This is of particular importance when considering whose voices are represented or excluded by such agendas, complicated by the (geo)physical characteristics of the marine sphere.

Marine and coastal tourism constitutes one of the largest and fastest-growing segments in tourism. Growth in marine tourism is now furthered through the ‘blue growth’ imperative, which this article problematises. The paper argues that there are already existing sustainability issues related to the marine tourism sector. These problems could be exacerbated if growth is additionally boosted. Since the social sustainability consequences of the growth of marine tourism are less known in the sustainability science literature, this paper thematically synthesises these types of sustainability problems in particular, as presented in the tourism studies, and brings them closer to sustainability science readers. The cases of cruise tourism, ecotourism, and tourism in marine protected areas, and community-based tourism studies are examined, wherein the latter represents a critical case for social sustainability matters. The paper reports several social and environmental injustices, produced through structural forces, and a manipulated access to natural resources, health services, and healthy environments. Social sustainability issues are most obvious in cruise tourism; however, also tourism in marine protected areas, ecotourism, and community-based tourism are not unproblematic. Thus, blue growth initiatives should be carefully examined and questioned.

This article lays out both a critique of the oxymoron 'sustainable development', and the potential and nuances of a Post-Development agenda. We present ecological swaraj from India and Degrowth from Europe as two examples of alternatives to development. This gives a hint of the forthcoming book, provisionally titled The Post-Development Dictionary, that is meant to deepen and widen a research, dialogue and action agenda for activists, policymakers and scholars on a variety of worldviews and practices relating to our collective search for an ecologically wise and socially just world. This volume could be one base in the search for alternatives to United Nations' 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, in an attempt to truly transform the world. In fact, it is an agenda towards the pluriverse: 'a world where many worlds fit', as the Zapatista say.

Following the renaissance of energy generation from renewable sources around the globe, it was suggested that the shift from fossil to renewable energy could potentially counter the growth orientation of economic activity. In this line of argument, small-scale technology and decentralised ownership, in the field of energy and beyond, are commonly regarded as potential precursors of a sustainable degrowth society. However, these systemic and conceptual considerations have been rarely assessed empirically. This paper wishes to address this research gap. It presents the exploratory findings of an EU-wide survey conducted in 2013 and further discusses the conceptualisation of small-scale ownership structures in renewable energy as an alternative to the community energy concept. Secondly, the paper relates the debates on degrowth to small-scale renewable energy schemes and illustrates its argument with four case studies from Wales, Italy, Spain, and Germany. These cases represent different organisational forms, diverse spatial settings, and varying national policy contexts. In its observations, this paper draws on the concept of collective and politically motivated renewable energy projects (CPE). While still mainly found in niches across Europe and essentially linked to environmental and social movements, we argue that CPE can potentially become blueprints for a turn towards a degrowth practice that will foster the democratisation of renewable energy production.

Increasing evidence—synthesized in this paper—shows that economic growth contributes to biodiversity loss via greater resource consumption and higher emissions. Nonetheless, a review of international biodiversity and sustainability policies shows that the majority advocate economic growth. Since improvements in resource use efficiency have so far not allowed for absolute global reductions in resource use and pollution, we question the support for economic growth in these policies, where inadequate attention is paid to the question of how growth can be decoupled from biodiversity loss. Drawing on the literature about alternatives to economic growth, we explore this contradiction and suggest ways forward to halt global biodiversity decline. These include policy proposals to move beyond the growth paradigm while enhancing overall prosperity, which can be implemented by combining top‐down and bottom‐up governance across scales. Finally, we call the attention of researchers and policy makers to two immediate steps: acknowledge the conflict between economic growth and biodiversity conservation in future policies; and explore socioeconomic trajectories beyond economic growth in the next generation of biodiversity scenarios.

As long as economic growth is a major political goal, decoupling growth from resource use and emissions is a prerequisite for a sustainable net-zero emissions future. However, empirical evidence for absolute decoupling, i.e. decreasing resource use and emissions at the required scale despite continued economic growth, is scarce and scattered across different research streams. In this two-part systematic review, we assess how and to what extent decoupling has been observed and what can be learnt for addressing the sustainability and climate crisis. Based on a transparent approach, we systematically identify and screen more than 11 500 scientific papers, eventually analyzing full texts of 835 empirical studies on the relationship between economic growth (GDP), resource use (materials and energy) and greenhouse gas emissions. Part I of the review examines how decoupling has been investigated across three research streams: energy, materials and energy, and emissions. Part II synthesizes the empirical evidence and policy implications (Haberl et al 2020 Environ. Res. Lett. 15 065003). In part I, we examine the topical, temporal and geographical scopes, methods of analysis, institutional networks and prevalent conceptual angles. We find that in this rapidly growing literature, the vast majority of studies-decomposition, 'causality' and Environmental Kuznets Curve analysis-approach the topic from a statistical-econometric point of view, while hardly acknowledging thermodynamic principles on the role of energy and materials for socio-economic activities. A potentially fundamental incompatibility between economic growth and systemic societal changes to address the climate crisis is rarely considered. We conclude that the existing wealth of empirical evidence merits braver conceptual advances than we have seen thus far. Future work should focus on comprehensive multi-indicator long-term analyses, conceptually grounded on the fundamental biophysical basis of socio-economic activities, incorporating the role of global supply chains as well as the wider societal role and preconditions of economic growth.