Uneconomic growth, in human development theory, welfare economics (the economics of social welfare), and some forms of ecological economics, is economic growth that reflects or creates a decline in the quality of life. The concept is attributed to the economist Herman Daly, though other theorists can also be credited for the incipient idea. Note that economic degrowth is different from uneconomic growth (or uneconomic degrowth), it is meant as a reduction of the size of the economy that would bring well-being and sustainability.
The cost, or decline in well-being, associated with extended economic growth is argued to arise as a result of "the social and environmental sacrifices made necessary by that growing encroachment on the eco-system." In other words, "neconomic growth occurs when increases in production come at an expense in resources and well-being that is worth more than the items made."
Read more about Uneconomic Growth: Good Vs. Bad Growth, The Limits To Growth, The Role of Technology, and Jevon's Paradox
Famous quotes containing the word growth:
“There are enough fagots and waste wood of all kinds in the forests of most of our towns to support many fires, but which at present warm none, and, some think, hinder the growth of the young wood.”
—Henry David Thoreau (1817–1862)