Eco Marxism Flashcards
What are marxists opinions on ecological modernisation?
- EM hasn’t taken off but even if it did it wouldn’t be useful
- Green capitalism is not possible
What is the Treadmill of Production?
The fact that capitalism can never stop growing, and if it does there is an economic crisis
Ecological modernisation ignores this- they want better technologies and processes but don’t acknowledge that the type of growth they’re talking about would need to be ceaseless and exponential
What is surplus value
New value created by labour in production process- the profit made between labour and reselling
What is the jobless growth contradiction of capitalism?
Replacing workers with machines can mean- better efficiency= less jobs= people can’t buy goods
So economy needs to keep coming up with more sectors
What is the logic of the treadmill?
Exponential speeding- the more you make the more you need to make
Therefore: eco-marxists will say sustainability can never be achieved in this system
What is Jevon’s paradox?
• as you increase efficiency of resource use, the more people use it
ie coal in england, then the smog
• So efficiency is wiped out by increased volume use
What is the Treadmill as a political imperative?
• Ceaseless exponential growth common political objective
When is overshoot dat in 2017?
August 1st
What are the components of the treadmill of consumption
- Useless demand
- Consumer capitalism- demand manipulated to promote sale of commodities- detaching demand vs needs
- Built-in obsolescence- huge enviro impact
- False needs
- Conspicuous consumption- equating consumption w prestige
- False needs and political stability- “raising our living standards”
What is a degrowth economy?
downscaling production/ consumption
1. Consumerism is spiritual junk food that reduces well-being
2. Well-being increased by things capitalism cant make- art, love
3. Not everything valuable is profitable
4. Resources are finite
5. Economic growth is a means not an ends- should focus on well-being not profit
o Decentralised, democratic, self-organising process to allocate resources
• Reduction of growth
• Democratic decision-marking
• Open, localised and connected economies
What is a steady state economy?
o Constant stock of physical wealth and population
o Gov body promotes vitality and durability of these
o Extract renewable resources at a rate no faster than they can be regenerated
o Consume non-ren no faster than they can be replaced by science
o Generate waste at a rate no faster than it can be safely bio-degraded
What is eco-socialism?
o Economy valuing use-value over exchange-value
• Looking at ‘real-need’ over profit
o Goal: develop logic of a change to current order and develop steps towards it
