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Plenitude: The New Economics Of True Wealth (2010)

by Juliet B. Schor(Favorite Author)

3.52 of 5 Votes: 3

ISBN

1594202540 (ISBN13: 9781594202544)

languge

English

genre

Nonfiction

publisher

Penguin Press HC, The

review 1: The key concepts in Plenitude are:(a) new allocation of time, reduced hours of market work(b) self provisioning(c) true materialism, low cost, low (ecological) impact but high satisfaction consumer life(d) enhanced relationships i.e. revitalization of community and social connectionIt argues that the current economic model of ignoring/ downplaying ecological impact is not sustainable and offers a new model of Plenitude. I also find the following concepts interesting ( that are being discussed in the book):(a) feedback loop - similar to George Soros' boom/bust model(b) rebound effectIn my mind, because it's a known unknown ( i.e. the fact that it's been thoroughly researched and argued in the book) as opposed to an unknown unknown, much of the impact/ damage would have been... more probably been factored in. Or at least it gets the stakeholders to start thinking about this matter. Precisely because the book is arguing against mainstream economics, at times, I find the arguments (however soundly) hard to swallow. I agree on the devastating ecological impact and a genuine concern that we need to do something about it, but I am still unsure if Plenitude itself can resolve the problems. Nevertheless, new allocation of time (i.e. reprioritizing one's life), self provisioning, true materialism and enhanced relationships are without a doubt, good practices/suggestions to adopt.
review 2: Very interesting. I think she makes some good points but it seems very idealistic to me. She concedes that working fewer hours is not a viable strategy for low-income families or poor countries. She advocates open source information -- I agree it is great, but somehow the people doing research and coming up with ideas have to get paid. They can't work for free forever. She doesn't really discuss how that will happen. I agree that the economic model of "grow or die" is unsustainable. Worth reading. less

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