Some Civil Society Groups and Activists Propose a Zero-Economic-Growth Policy

question 93

Essay

Some civil society groups and activists propose a zero-economic-growth policy in order to preserve the environment. Write an essay to discuss the pros and cons of this proposal. You may wish to refer, among other ideas, to the following:
∙ Economic growth needs to compensate for the increase in population.
∙ If population becomes older, the number of active persons decreases; therefore, productivity must increase to sustain a high standard of living.
∙ An increase in standard of living is only possible if an economy becomes more productive. (Income per person is closely related to labour productivity.)
∙ It is hoped that economic growth will eventually eradicate poverty.
∙ Economic measures of well-being, such as GDP per capita, are imperfect mainly because they disregard external costs of economic activity, as well as other aspects of life that people value, such as leisure, fairness, and income equality.

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Definitions:

Marginal Cost

The increase in total cost that arises from producing one additional unit of a good or service.

Drone

A remotely operated or autonomous flying machine, known as an unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV), which follows flight paths programmed through software.

Average Fixed Costs

The fixed costs of production (costs that do not change with the level of output) divided by the number of units produced.

Drones

Unmanned aerial vehicles or aircraft systems operated by remote control or onboard computers.