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Degrowth through income and wealth caps?

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  • Buch-Hansen, Hubert
  • Koch, Max

Abstract

In the degrowth literature, maximum caps on wealth and/or income are frequently mentioned among the policy instruments that could support transitions towards ecologically and socially sustainable societies. Yet an in-depth discussion of concrete policy proposals has yet to be initiated. To facilitate such a discussion, the present paper reviews several proposals for placing caps on wealth and/or income. Some of these proposals consider environmental limits, others focus exclusively on social inequality. The paper moreover raises various critical issues concerning the introduction of maximum caps on wealth and income in a degrowth context, discussing the role of the state, the impact on economic growth and the risk of emigration of high-skilled employees and capital flight. We conclude that while, in an ecologically constrained world, there is an argument for imposing limits on wealth and income above a certain level, it is crucial not to dictate such policies as mere top-down measures but to develop and deliberate them in democratic forums.

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  • Buch-Hansen, Hubert & Koch, Max, 2019. "Degrowth through income and wealth caps?," Ecological Economics, Elsevier, vol. 160(C), pages 264-271.
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:ecolec:v:160:y:2019:i:c:p:264-271
    DOI: 10.1016/j.ecolecon.2019.03.001
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    1. Buch-Hansen, Hubert, 2018. "The Prerequisites for a Degrowth Paradigm Shift: Insights from Critical Political Economy," Ecological Economics, Elsevier, vol. 146(C), pages 157-163.
    2. Max Koch, 2012. "Capitalism and Climate Change," Palgrave Macmillan Books, Palgrave Macmillan, number 978-0-230-35508-8, October.
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    5. Sayer, Andrew & Wilkinson, Richard, 2015. "Why We Can't Afford the Rich," University of Chicago Press Economics Books, University of Chicago Press, number 9781447320791, Febrero.
    6. Alstadsæter, Annette & Johannesen, Niels & Zucman, Gabriel, 2018. "Who owns the wealth in tax havens? Macro evidence and implications for global inequality," Journal of Public Economics, Elsevier, vol. 162(C), pages 89-100.
    7. Leonardi, Emanuele, 2019. "Bringing Class Analysis Back in: Assessing the Transformation of the Value-Nature Nexus to Strengthen the Connection Between Degrowth and Environmental Justice," Ecological Economics, Elsevier, vol. 156(C), pages 83-90.
    8. Jan Drewnowski, 1978. "The affluence line," Social Indicators Research: An International and Interdisciplinary Journal for Quality-of-Life Measurement, Springer, vol. 5(1), pages 263-278, March.
    9. Ian Gough, 2017. "Heat, Greed and Human Need," Books, Edward Elgar Publishing, number 16991.
    10. Buch-Hansen, Hubert, 2014. "Capitalist diversity and de-growth trajectories to steady-state economies," Ecological Economics, Elsevier, vol. 106(C), pages 167-173.
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    Cited by:

    1. Stratford, Beth, 2020. "The Threat of Rent Extraction in a Resource-constrained Future," Ecological Economics, Elsevier, vol. 169(C).
    2. Lainé, Michael, 2023. "How to reconcile actual climate change mitigation with prosperity? A proposal," Ecological Economics, Elsevier, vol. 204(PA).
    3. Katharina Bohnenberger, 2020. "Money, Vouchers, Public Infrastructures? A Framework for Sustainable Welfare Benefits," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 12(2), pages 1-30, January.
    4. Koch, Max, 2022. "State-civil society relations in Gramsci, Poulantzas and Bourdieu: Strategic implications for the degrowth movement," Ecological Economics, Elsevier, vol. 193(C).
    5. Katharina Bohnenberger, 2022. "Greening work: labor market policies for the environment," Empirica, Springer;Austrian Institute for Economic Research;Austrian Economic Association, vol. 49(2), pages 347-368, May.
    6. Jana Brandl & Irina Zielinska, 2020. "Reviewing the Smart City Vienna Framework Strategy’s Potential as an Eco-Social Policy in the Context of Quality of Work and Socio-Ecological Transformation," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 12(3), pages 1-17, January.
    7. Michael Lainé, 2023. "How to reconcile actual climate change mitigation with prosperity? A proposal," Post-Print hal-04265121, HAL.
    8. Julien Vastenaekels, 2024. "Degrowth and capitalist power: A step towards a theory of change," Post-Print hal-04584989, HAL.
    9. Vogel, Jefim & Guerin, Gauthier & O'Neill, Daniel W. & Steinberger, Julia K., 2024. "Safeguarding livelihoods against reductions in economic output," Ecological Economics, Elsevier, vol. 215(C).
    10. Kapeller, Jakob & Leitch, Stuart & Wildauer, Rafael, 2023. "Can a European wealth tax close the green investment gap?," Ecological Economics, Elsevier, vol. 209(C).
    11. Bohnenberger, Katharina, 2022. "Is it a green or brown job? A Taxonomy of Sustainable Employment," Ecological Economics, Elsevier, vol. 200(C).
    12. François, Martin & Mertens de Wilmars, Sybille & Maréchal, Kevin, 2023. "Unlocking the potential of income and wealth caps in post-growth transformation: A framework for improving policy design," Ecological Economics, Elsevier, vol. 208(C).
    13. Mastini, Riccardo & Kallis, Giorgos & Hickel, Jason, 2021. "A Green New Deal without growth?," Ecological Economics, Elsevier, vol. 179(C).
    14. Buch-Hansen, Hubert & Nesterova, Iana, 2021. "Towards a science of deep transformations: Initiating a dialogue between degrowth and critical realism," Ecological Economics, Elsevier, vol. 190(C).
    15. Polewsky, Max & Hankammer, Stephan & Kleer, Robin & Antons, David, 2024. "Degrowth vs. Green Growth. A computational review and interdisciplinary research agenda," Ecological Economics, Elsevier, vol. 217(C).
    16. Toni Ruuska & Pasi Heikkurinen & Kristoffer Wilén, 2020. "Domination, Power, Supremacy: Confronting Anthropolitics with Ecological Realism," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 12(7), pages 1-20, March.
    17. Buch-Hansen, Hubert & Nesterova, Iana, 2023. "Less and more: Conceptualising degrowth transformations," Ecological Economics, Elsevier, vol. 205(C).
    18. Andreas Novy & Nathan Barlow & Julia Fankhauser, 2022. "Transformative Innovation," SRE-Disc sre-disc-2022_01, Institute for Multilevel Governance and Development, Department of Socioeconomics, Vienna University of Economics and Business.

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