Renowned ecological economist Jon Erickson to speak at 敁珗曄部
敁珗曄部 University is proud to welcome renowned ecological economist Jon Erickson to deliver a presentation on The Progress Illusion: Reclaiming our Future from the Fairytale of Economics, after his book of the same name, on Thursday, Feb. 13, at 7 p.m. in Mercy Heritage Room. The talk is free and open to the public.
Erickson is the Blittersdorf Professor of Sustainability Science and Policy and associate dean of Research and Graduate Education at the University of Vermonts Rubenstein School of Environment and Natural Resources.
We are inviting Dr. Erickson to discuss ecological economics because of 敁珗曄部s commitment to the seven goals of Laudato Si, Pope Franciss 2015 encyclical that urges Catholics and all people to make substantial steps in mitigating climate change and empowering local communities, said 敁珗曄部 Sustainability Coordinator Molly Tarvin, who is coordinating his visit with support from a grant from the Sisters of Mercys Fund for Ministries.
One of the goals of Laudato Si is ecological economics, which takes a holistic approach to the connections among ethics, ecology, and economics. Chiefly, it serves to remind us that the economy is best understood as a subsystem of the environment. Degradation of the environment through the exploitation of finite resources has direct and noticeable impacts on our economic systems and, eventually, on our way of life.
Ecological economics emphasizes the importance of the many natural processes that support economic activity and human wellbeing, processes such as water filtration in a wetland and carbon sequestration in forests. It contends that measuring the positive economic benefit of such natural capital is one step in helping to protect these valuable assets.
Tarvin said Erickson is a firm proponent of the Genuine Progress Indicator (GPI), an alternative measure of progress that challenges the most common metric, Gross Domestic Product (GDP). GDP considers all economic growth to be positive, regardless of its environmental impacts or real consequences for human welfare. With this metric, cleanups in the wake of disasters and hospital bills due to unclean air are factored as a benefit to society. Erickson and others propose a more accurate accounting. GPI works with a baseline of economic progress, still factoring in such things as personal consumption and investment, before subtracting for bads such as fossil fuel use and wetland conversion, and adding goods, such as levels of higher education and volunteer work, Tarvin explained.
So far, she added, the GPI has been adopted as a metric by Maryland, Vermont, Hawaii, Minnesota, and Washington.
By starting the conversation around ecological economics, 敁珗曄部 hopes to inspire students and professors alike to study this field in more detail, Tarvin said. We also hope to attract members of the Erie community who may have an interest in local politics and economic progress.
Dr. Ericksons visit supports the universitys 2024 Sustainability Strategic Plan. In this four-year plan inspired by Laudato Si, 敁珗曄部 seeks to improve academic engagements in the field of ecological economics by encouraging student research and introducing a course that would explore the field in more depth.
About Dr. Erickson
Dr. Jon Erickson has published widely on the theory and practice of ecological economics, climate change policy, renewable energy economics, and bioregional planning, including his most recent book titled The Progress Illusion: Reclaiming Our Future from the Fairytale of Economics. He has led international research and education programs as a Fulbright Scholar in Tanzania and visiting professor in the Dominican Republic, Iceland, and Slovakia. He has also produced and directed award-winning documentary films on water, energy, food, and political system transitions, including the Emmy-award-winning PBS series, Bloom, on watershed science and policy in the Lake Champlain Basin. As a social entrepreneur, he has founded and led numerous nonprofit organizations, including the U.S. Society for Ecological Economics, Adirondack Research Consortium, Deportes para la Vida, and Bright Blue EcoMedia. His work is regularly covered by state, national, and international media, including the New York Times, Boston Globe, and CNN.純