Ernest Friedrich Schumacher’s essay “Buddhist Economics” was
first published in 1966 in the book ASIA: A HANDBOOK. In 1973 it was included in Schumacher’s book
SMALL IS BEAUTIFUL: ECONOMICS AS IF PEOPLE MATTERED. This 47 year old essay jewel contains much wisdom
for how we need to refocus our economy if we want to have a healthy and
prosperous world. What follows are some
of the core concepts from the essay.
We need to admit that our current economic system based on
unlimited exponential growth on a finite planet has reached the end of its
useful life, and that it continued use is causing serious problems for our
State and our Planet.
We need to revise our view of work to see that its true
value comes from the following three functions:
1. allowing
people to utilize and develop all their skills and talents;
2. enable
them to overcome ego-centeredness by joining together with other people in a
common task;
3. and
to bring forth the goods and services needed for our communities to thrive.
We need to realize that using local resources to satisfy
local needs is to most efficient way to a sustainable future.
We need to adopt an environmental ethic where we no longer
view our “natural resources” as simply means to create more goods and services
- and instead start to embrace the reality that we are completely dependent on and
part of the ecosystems that sustain us.
We need to significantly reduce our energy consumption,
phase out the use of non-renewable energy sources and transition to the use of
renewable energy sources.
These five ideas will go a long way in guiding us to a sustainable future.
