Is Capitalism the Cause of the Ecological Crisis?

Economic systems do matter but other things do as well

The private incentive to gain and accumulate wealth is a powerful driver of innovation, consumption, and environmental damage. Even population overgrowth. It delivers the goods, so to speak, often with little or no regard for ecological and social consequences.

But how does capitalism match up with anthropocentrism or prevailing religious beliefs as a cause of ecological destruction? (Recall “The Historical Roots of Our Ecological Crisis, ” Lynn White’s 1967 paper).

And how does it compare with socialism? Is socialism good for the environment? The answer seems to be, it depends: sometimes yes, sometimes no.

It’s tempting to solely blame capitalism for the ecological crisis. But this may absolve individual business owners, corporate board members, shareholders, and politicians from doing the right thing when it comes to the environment. Just blame “the system,” which, they might add, must feed and keep happy eight billion aspiring human beings. Certainly, there are companies that are eco-friendly.  https://www.careeraddict.com/environmentally-friendly-companies

A central theme of Scale Down is that there’s no single cause of ecological destruction. There are causes behind the causes — and you’ve got to address all of them.

However — as to whether in the end there will be an Earth livable for most life — the massive scale of the human enterprise is what matters most. It boils down to us simply being too big.

Note: See my related article “Are Buffoons Running the World ­— Destroying Paradise in Order to Save It.”  Soon to appear right here!

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