FMM: Global Implications of Socio-Ecological Transformation PLENARY SESSION II Discussion

25th FMM Conference: Macroeconomics of Socio-Ecological Transition
28.10. - 30.10.2021

Plenary Session II: Global Implications of Socio-Ecological Transformation
Isabella M. Weber (University of Massachusetts)
Antoine Godin (Agence Francaise de Développement)
Usha Natarajan (Columbia University)

Social inequalities, climate change and environmental pollution question the sustainability of capitalist modes of pro-duction, consumption and policies. Macroeconomists of both orthodox and heterodox traditions have long focussed on economic growth as the central means to development of the global South, prosperity and solution to distributional conflicts. However, the externalities of economic growth should be taken into account, because they have an impact on welfare and its distribution – within and between countries, within and between generations. At our conference, we will discuss what macroeconomists can contribute to this debate and learn from other fields. How does global capital-ism shape the environment? What can macroeconomic policies do to facilitate a just transition towards a sustainable world economy? What are the feedbacks from distributional effects and ecological developments back to the macro economy? How to improve macroeconomic modelling by including socio-ecological dimensions?