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Economic Transition in the Anthropocene: Ensuring a Just and Sustainable Future for Humanity

We are in a period of systemic upheaval. For the first time in the evolution of life on Earth, human dominance of the planet’s biological, chemical and geological processes is seriously disrupting our critical life support systems. Profoundly related to this, the economic orthodoxy that has dominated western politics and culture for the past 40 years is rapidly losing legitimacy. In the face of multiple crises—environmental breakdown, increased inequality of income and opportunity, growing political polarization—the ideas and assumptions behind today’s economic theory fail to adequately explain or fix what is going so wrong.

Political economic paradigms do not last forever. The evident failings of mainstream economic theory, together with our growing understanding of the economy as complex, dynamic, embedded in natural environments, and deeply influenced by human history, cultures, values and behavior, suggest that the conditions for a new and better understanding of the economy are beginning to emerge. To create the space for transition we must go beyond debates focused on incremental policy change and develop a better analysis of our economic system as it is and not as we might like it to be.

This conference will explore today’s political economy and its role in shaping the Anthropocene and our future. We’ll explore questions relating to power, such as who gets what and why, how power becomes concentrated, and how can we increase opportunity and fairness while displacing entrenched vested interests. We’ll also investigate whether and how business as usual can enable us to live safely within the boundaries of nature, the ultimate arbiter of human well-being.

Speakers Include

• Nell Abernathy

  Roosevelt Institute

• Megha Agrawal

  Exposure Labs

• Eric Beinhocker

  Institute for New Economic Thinking and Blavatnik School of Government, University of Oxford
  

• Heather Boushey

  Washington Center for Equitable Growth

• Alejandro Camacho

  UCI School of Law, Center for Land, Environment, and Natural Resources (CLEANR)

• Joseph F.C. DiMento

  UCI School of Law

• Miatta Fahnbulleh

  New Economics Foundation

• Ronnie Galvin

  The Democracy Collaborative

• Leslie Harroun

  Partners for a New Economy

• Michael Jacobs

  SPERI; University of Sheffield; Strategy & Communications Group, Ltd.

• Tom Kruse

  Rockefeller Brothers Fund

• Laurie Laybourn-Langton

  Institute for Public Policy Research; Strategy & Communications Group, Ltd.

• Barry Lynn

  Open Markets Institute; Author of Cornered: The New Monopoly Capitalism and the Economics of Destruction

• Annie Neimand

  Center for Public Interest Communications, University of Florida College of Journalism and Communications

• William Patterson

  Climate Majority Project; United Auto Workers Retiree Medical Benefits Trust

• Mark Paul

  Roosevelt Institute; New College of Florida

• Daniel Pauly

  University of British Columbia

• Gayle Peterson

  Saïd Business School, University of Oxford; pfc social impact advisors

• Gabriela Ramos

  New Approaches to Economic Challenges, OECD

• Martin Rich

  Future-Fit Foundation

• Carl Safina

  The Safina Center; Stony Brook University

• Julia Steinberger

  University of Leeds
  

• Stewart Wallis

  Wellbeing Economy Alliance

• Helga Weisz

  Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research

• Jonathan Westin

  New York Communities for Change

Presented by: