Herman E. Daly & Joshua Farley

I recently purchased 'Ecological Economics: Principles and Applications' (2004) by Herman E. Daly and Joshua Farley published by Island Press. Thus far, I have thoroughly enjoyed it; I thought I would share some quotes from the introduction.

French and British university students have formed a Society for Post-Autistic Economics. Their implicit diagnosis is apt, since autism, like conventional economics, is characterized by 'abnormal subjectivity; an acceptance of fantasy rather than reality.' Ecological economics seeks to ground economic thinking in the dual realities and constraints of our biophysical and moral environments. Current 'canonical assumptions' of insatiable wants and infinite resources, leading to growth forever, are simply not founded in reality. Their dire consequences are evident. And that truly is something new under the sun.

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Ecological economics views the economy as a part of a larger finite system. This means that the traditional goal of macroeconomic policy--unlimited economic growth in the physical dimension--is impossible. Thus, in ecological economics, optimal scale replaces growth as a goal, followed by fair distribution and efficient allocation, in that order. Scale and distribution are basically macroeconomic issues. Hence, in addition to the fiscal and monetary policy tools that dominate the discussion in traditional texts, we will introduce policies that can help the economy reach an optimal scale.