A growth imperative doesnt exist in nature, except in the case of living organisms that have yet to reach maturity. When maturity is attained, however, growth stops. So why should it be that human society and economy never reach adulthood? Well, human population numbers continue to grow. Millions of people live in poverty and face life-long unemployment or marginal work. For their sakes, growth is highly desirable. But what is the situation in rich countries? Here too, people tend to call for ever more growth. But this is truly not the only option, as Reinhard Loske rightly demonstrates. I am grateful that he wrote this book, consisting of an older text from 2010 that evoked strong responses among so many people and the newer essay offering reasonable and reassuring answers to his critics. Of course, other literature exists on this theme []. Further afield, the mountain kingdom of Bhutan is experimenting with an economic model to replace Gross Domestic Product by a happiness index. Such approaches are both enlightening and invigorating. Yet Reinhard Loske goes further. He is at home in the world of politics where you always have to explain your doings to the electorate. He recognises the intelligent and less intelligent objections to his abandonment of the growth imperative and responds to these in a comprehensible way. From the Foreword by Ernst Ulrich von Weizsäcker, Co-President of the Club of Rome

Throughout his working life, Reinhard Loske (born in Germany in 1959), has been equally at home in the worlds of politics and academia. With a doctorate in economics and postdoctoral qualification in political science, he spent many years at the Wuppertal Institute for Climate, Environment and Energy, where he was responsible for international climate policy research and headed the Institutes Sustainable Germany study group. He currently holds a teaching and research position as Professor for Sustainability and Transformation Dynamics at the University of Witten/Herdecke. From 1998 until 2007, Reinhard Loske was a Member of the German Federal Parliament and both Environment spokesperson and Vice-Chairman of the Green Parliamentary Group. From 2007 until 2011, he was the Senator for Environmental Affairs, Construction, Transport and Europe for the Free Hanseatic City of Bremen. In 2008, he was awarded the highly-regarded Adam Smith Prize for Environmental Economic Policy by the Green Budget Germany (FÖS) organisation.

Contents- Foreword by Ernst Ulrich von Weizsäcker- IntroductionAbandoning the Growth Imperative: Shaping a Politics of Moderation- Contrary lines of thought in ecological policy1. A true measure of prosperity2. Rolling back a ubiquitous trend towards commercialisation3. New models for working and living4. A new direction for business5. Steering a new course through green and fair taxation6. Supporting socio-ecological innovations7. Protection of public goods and maintenance of public infrastructures8. Regionalisation of economic processes9. Reform of the monetary system- Responses to the book Abandoning the Growth ImperativeThe Growth Question: What Lies Ahead?- Foreword- Why we need more cogent arguments: a preliminary comment1. Doing without the term doing without?2. Would it be better just to talk about progress?3. Decoupling instead of degrowth?4. Does green growth offer a way out of the crisis?5. One last time?6. Post-growth society as a nightmare scenario?7. Growth critique: cynicism from the well-to-do?8. No jobs without growth?9. Will degrowth cause economic collapse?10. Growth weakness in the North: development crisis in the South?11. A loss of status for Europe?- The growth debate: What Lies Ahead?- A good society without growth compulsion!- Notes- Responses to the book The Growth Question: What lies ahead?Literature1. Additional literature2. ReferencesAbout the Author