Can we promote sustainability over growth?

[fusion_builder_container hundred_percent="yes" overflow="visible"][fusion_builder_row][fusion_builder_column type="1_1" background_position="left top" background_color="" border_size="" border_color="" border_style="solid" spacing="yes" background_image="" background_repeat="no-repeat" padding="" margin_top="0px" margin_bottom="0px" class="" id="" animation_type="" animation_speed="0.3" animation_direction="left" hide_on_mobile="no" center_content="no" min_height="none"]A new report from the Sustainable Development Commission says that the pursuit of economic growth was one of the root causes of the current financial crisis and governments should respond to the credit crunch by abandoning a ‘growth at all costs’ policy in favour of a more sustainable, greener economic system. The SDC, an independent adviser to the UK Government, said that the developed world’s reliance on debt to fuel continued growth had left the global economy unbalanced and unstable. The report, Prosperity without Growth? Calls on governments to develop sustainable economic systems that do not rely on ever increasing consumption by improving fiscal and financial prudence; giving priority to public assets and infrastructure over private affluence; allowing individuals to flourish by tackling inequality; improving work-life balance; reversing the culture consumerism; establishing ecological limits on economic activity. The report concludes that “the clearest message from the financial crisis is that the current model of economic success is fundamentally flawed. For the advanced economies of the western world, prosperity without growth is no longer a utopian dream. It is a financial and ecological necessity”.[/fusion_builder_column][/fusion_builder_row][/fusion_builder_container]