Economics, socio-ecological resilience and ecosystem services.

Area of Science:

• Ecological economics
• Sustainability science
• Systems theory

Background:

• Economic activity converts resources into products and waste.
• Continuous economic growth on a finite planet risks exceeding critical socio-ecological thresholds.
• Ecosystem services, vital for all life, are threatened by surpassing these thresholds.

Purpose of the Study:

• To identify the central economic challenge as maintaining socio-ecological resilience.
• To argue for reducing economic impacts to avoid critical ecological thresholds.
• To propose strategies for ensuring economic necessities while safeguarding the environment.

Main Methods:

• Analysis of conventional economic assumptions regarding growth and resilience.
• Application of Panarchy theory to understand system dynamics (growth, conservation, release, renewal).
• Consideration of Black Swan theory for risk management and technological advancement.

Main Results:

• Conventional economics' focus on continuous growth and reliance on price mechanisms are insufficient for addressing ecological thresholds.
• The price mechanism fails to account for unowned ecosystem services and the needs of the poorest populations.
• Sustained focus on growth or conservation can destabilize higher-level systems, threatening collapse.

Conclusions:

• Economic degrowth (planned release) is necessary to avert catastrophic collapse.
• Publicly funded, open-source information can foster technological breakthroughs crucial for resilience.
• Maintaining socio-ecological resilience requires a paradigm shift beyond continuous economic growth.