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Penguin Press
May 2010
On Sale: May 13, 2010
272 pages ISBN: 1594202540 EAN: 9781594202544 Hardcover
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Non-Fiction
At a moment of ecological and financial crisis, bestselling
author and economist Juliet B. Schor presents a
revolutionary strategy for transitioning toward a richer,
more balanced life. In Plenitude economist and bestselling author Juliet B.
Schor offers a groundbreaking intellectual statement about
the economics and sociology of ecological decline,
suggesting a radical change in how we think about consumer
goods, value, and ways to live. Humans are degrading the planet far faster than they are
regenerating it. As we travel along this shutdown path,
food, energy, transport, and consumer goods are becoming
increasingly expensive. The economic downturn that has
accompanied the ecological crisis has led to another type of
scarcity: incomes, jobs, and credit are also in short
supply. Our usual way back to growth-a debt-financed
consumer boom- is no longer an option our households, or
planet, can afford. Responding to our current moment, Plenitude puts
sustainability at its core, but it is not a paradigm of
sacrifice. Instead, it's an argument that through a major
shift to new sources of wealth, green technologies, and
different ways of living, individuals and the country as a
whole can actually be better off and more economically
secure. And as Schor observes, Plenitude is already
emerging. In pockets around the country and the world,
people are busy creating lifestyles that offer a way out of
the work and spend cycle. These pioneers' lives are scarce
in conventional consumer goods and rich in the newly
abundant resources of time, information, creativity, and
community. Urban farmers, do-it-yourself renovators,
Craigslist users-all are spreading their risk and
establishing novel sources of income and outlets for
procuring consumer goods. Taken together, these trends
represent a movement away from the conventional market and
offer a way toward an efficient, rewarding life in an era of
high prices and traditional resource scarcity. Based on recent developments in economic theory, social
analysis, and ecological design as well as evidence from the
cutting-edge people and places putting these ideas into
practice, Plenitude is a road map for the next two decades.
In encouraging us to value our gifts- nature, community,
intelligence, and time-Schor offers the opportunity to
participate in creating a world of wealth and well-being.
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