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Centre for the Understanding of Sustainable Prosperity
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Publication: Essay Series

  • Green Populism?—Action and mortality in the Anthropocene | Essay by Will Davies
    Will Davies

    Green Populism?—Action and mortality in the Anthropocene | Essay by Will Davies

  • Democratic Reform, Intergenerational Justice and the Challenges of the Long-Term | Essay by Simon Caney
    Simon Caney

    Democratic Reform, Intergenerational Justice and the Challenges of the Long-Term | Essay by Simon Caney

  • Democratising Firms—A Cornerstone of Shared and  Sustainable Prosperity | Essay by Isabelle Ferreras
    Isabelle Ferreras

    Democratising Firms—A Cornerstone of Shared and Sustainable Prosperity | Essay by Isabelle Ferreras

  • Bildung in the 21st Century—Why sustainable prosperity depends upon reimagining education | Essay by Jonathan Rowson
    Jonathan Rowson

    Bildung in the 21st Century—Why sustainable prosperity depends upon reimagining education | Essay by Jonathan Rowson

  • A Recovery of Practical Wisdom for Sustainable Futures—a theological perspective | Essay by Celia Deane-Drummond
    Celia Deane-Drummond

    A Recovery of Practical Wisdom for Sustainable Futures—a theological perspective | Essay by Celia Deane-Drummond

  • Who Will Sustain Sustainable Prosperity? | Essay by Miriam Ronzoni
    Miriam Ronzoni

    Who Will Sustain Sustainable Prosperity? | Essay by Miriam Ronzoni

  • Life beyond Capital | Essay by John O’Neill
    John O’Neill

    Life beyond Capital | Essay by John O’Neill

  • Where there is no vision, the people perish: a utopian ethic for a transformed future | Essay by Ruth Levitas
    Ruth Levitas

    Where there is no vision, the people perish: a utopian ethic for a transformed future | Essay by Ruth Levitas

  • Freedom and Responsibility—Sustainable Prosperity through a Capabilities Lens | Essay by Ingrid Robeyns
    Ingrid Robeyns

    Freedom and Responsibility—Sustainable Prosperity through a Capabilities Lens | Essay by Ingrid Robeyns

  • The Meaning of Work in a Sustainable Society: A Marxian View | Essay by John Bellamy Foster
    John Bellamy Foster

    The Meaning of Work in a Sustainable Society: A Marxian View | Essay by John Bellamy Foster

  • Settling Down and Marking Time | Essay by Roger Scruton
    Roger Scruton

    Settling Down and Marking Time | Essay by Roger Scruton

  • A New Professional Ethics for Sustainable Prosperity | Essay by Melissa Lane
    Melissa Lane

    A New Professional Ethics for Sustainable Prosperity | Essay by Melissa Lane

About

The Centre for the Understanding of Sustainable Prosperity (CUSP) is a cutting-edge research organisation core-funded by the UK’s Economic and Social Research Council and the Laudes Foundation. It takes the form of a rich international network, drawing together expert partners from academic and non-academic institutions as co-producers of the work programme. The overall research question is: What can prosperity possibly mean in a world of environmental, social and economic limits?—We work with people, policy and business to address this question, developing pragmatic steps towards a shared and lasting prosperity.

Contact

Centre for the Understanding of Sustainable Prosperity
University of Surrey
Guildford GU2 7XH

Email: info@cusp.ac.uk
Telephone: +44 (0) 1483 684316

 

Newsletter

A list of past newsletters can be found on the publications page. For future editions, please subscribe via Sender.net.

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Instagram

"The Question What shall we do about it? is only
"The Question What shall we do about it?  is only asked by those who do not understand the problem. If a problem can be solved at all, to understand it and to know what to do about it are the same thing."—Alan Watts, 1951 ⁠
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#WisdomOfInsecurity #AlanWates #AlanWattsQuotes #QuoteOfTheDay #Wisdom #TheCareEconomy #ÖkonomieDerFürsorge #PolicyMaking #PostGrowth #PostGrowthPolitics #LifeAfterCapitalism #ProsperityWithoutGrowth #WellbeingEconomy #Degrowth

“Care is a principle, not just a sub-sector of t
“Care is a principle, not just a sub-sector of the economy, not something that we wave around to try and claim the moral high ground for, but a principle. And the basis of that principle is restorative.

Ultimately, this way of thinking about care is a kind of a red pill. We’ve lived in the growth matrix for a long time. And it has created unpayable healthcare bills. It has created dysfunction. It’s driving us towards war. It’s a point in time in which we have to be prepared to look at the things as hard as we can in the way that they are presented to us in the world. And to explore into that depth and into that misery, even when it confronts our own prejudices.

And ask, in fact, whether the future for sustainable consumption and indeed for humanity might have much more to do with this idea that we are organic beings in search of balance. And that care is the restorative force that will lead us there.”

🎥 Full video via → cusp.ac.uk (🔝 or follow link in bio)

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#TheCareEconomy #PostGrowth #LifeAfterCapitalism #ProsperityWithoutGrowth #Degrowth #BeyondGrowth #PostWachstum #ÖkonomieDerFürsorge #WohlstandOhneWachstum #Postcroissance #Decroissance #decrecimiento #WellbeingEconomy #CareEconomy #HealthEconomics #Care #PhilosophyOfCare

🎙️Corporate Bodies: New podcast series about
🎙️Corporate Bodies: New podcast series about the strange world of #work.

Full trailer via ➡️ cusp.ac.uk or wherever you get your podcasts from (🔝 or follow link in bio).

A B O U T

Most of us have worked in companies at some point in our lives and know one thing for sure, working life is odd. The dynamics are messy, the hierarchies are often unjust and, when things go wrong, people start acting very strangely indeed.

#CorporateBodies is a new podcast series asking: why are organisations so weird? And what can we do to make them better? 

Over 11 weekly episodes, organisational development practitioners Kate Swade and Mark Walton explore how the idea of companies as ‘legal people’ shapes every stage of an organisation’s life—and affects everyone who works within it.

Each episode focuses on a different facet of organisational development, brought to life through conversations with guests who share their own lived experiences of organisational weirdness.

With an informal, irreverent tone, the show uses the human body as a guiding metaphor to structure the series, weaving in vivid language to demystify complex legal ideas like incorporation and limited liability.

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cc #CorporateBodiesPodcast #WorkplaceCulture #Podcast #OrganisationalDevelopment #NewPodcast #NewEconomics #SustainableBusiness #AlternativeBusiness #SocialEnterprise #SocEnt #wellbeingeconomy #TheCareEconomy @wellbeingeconomyalliance @sharedassets 

Corporate Bodies is a production by Mark Walton and Kate Swade, edited by @_katierevell. Artwork by @hanorbb. Supported by @CUSP_uk.

What We Care For 🌱 In our Spring edition of the
What We Care For 🌱 In our Spring edition of the CUSP newsletter:⁠
🟠 The launch of #TheCareEconomy in multiple languages⁠
🟠 New research on democratic renewal, youth wellbeing and #postgrowth macroeconomics⁠
🟠 A policy perspective in The Lancet⁠
🟠 A tribute to CUSP’s Roger Coward and his work in contemplative science⁠
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All details ▶️ cusp.ac.uk (🔝 or link in bio)⁠
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#ProsperityWithoutGrowth #Postwachstum #PostCroissance #Omgroei #ÖkonomieDerFürsorge #PostCrecimiento #LifeAfterCapitalism #Degrowth #Decroissance #Decrecimiento #BeyondGDP #BeyondGrowth #PostGrowthEconomy #SystemChange #WellbeingEconomy #EcologicalEconomics #RethinkingEconomics #NewEconomics #ManagingWithoutGrowth #NewEconomy #GrowthDependency  #SecularStagnation #PostConsumerism #DoughnutEconomics  #SustainableWelfare #PlanetaryBoundaries #CareEconomy⁠
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Image: © stock.com / Carme Parragon

On Tuesday, 18th March, we hosted a pre-release la
On Tuesday, 18th March, we hosted a pre-release launch event for #TheCareEconomy at the London Review Bookshop, bringing together a highly engaged audience for an evening of discussion and reflection on the book’s key themes.

Alongside author @ProfTimJackson, we were pleased to welcome Sir Sam Everington and Sir Michael Dixon, co-chairs of the College of Medicine, for a rich and wide-ranging conversation led by journalist Zoe Williams. Together, they explored the idea that true #prosperity lies not in relentless economic growth, but in health and human connection. Drawing on personal stories and professional insights, the discussion challenged the legitimacy of profit-driven systems that undervalue #care, over-medicalise society, and fuel chronic illness through industrialised food production geared towards commercial gain. From #SocialPrescribing to community empowerment, the speakers made a compelling case for reimagining the economy as a restorative force—grounded in balance, attention, and collective wellbeing. The event served as both a critique of the current model and a hopeful call for cultural and systemic change.

Thank you to everyone who joined us for this special occasion. We appreciate your time and contributions to the conversation. 

A video recording of the event is available on the CUSP website ▶️ cusp.ac.uk/events (🔝or follow link in bio)

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cc #PostGrowth #ProsperityWithoutGrowth #BeyondGrowth #Degrowth #ÖkonomieDerFürsorge #WellbeingEconomy #CareEconomy
#Postwachstum #PostCroissance #Omgroei #PostCrecimiento #LifeAfterCapitalism #Decroissance #Decrecimiento #SystemChange #BigFood #BigPharma #HolisticMedicine #EcologicalEconomics #RethinkingEconomics #NewEconomics #GrowthDependency #RethinkingProsperity #PostConsumerism #DoughnutEconomics #SustainableWelfare @ffc_commission @wellbeingeconomyalliance @sociologysurrey @institutesustainability

"The sad truth is that most evil is done by people
"The sad truth is that most evil is done by people who never make up their minds to be good or evil."—Hannah Arendt, The Life of the Mind, 1978⁠
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#QuoteOfTheDay #HannahArendt #TheLifeOfTheMind #BanalityOfEvil #MenInDarkTimes #Wisdom #Reflection #HumanCivilisation #Humanity #HumanRights #Politics #Peace #Futures

Ringing the Changes | CUSP Newsletter⁠
⁠Welcom

Ringing the Changes | CUSP Newsletter⁠
⁠Welcome to our end-of-year newsletter. As 2024's turmoil reshapes the political and ecological landscape, CUSP continues to address the urgent question of sustainable prosperity. Explore insights on economics, resilience, and change from our researchers, alongside major collaborations shaping policy and practice. Here's to our tenth year of inquiry and action!⁠
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Find it online ➡️ cusp.ac.uk/newsletter (🔝 or follow link in bio)⁠
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cc #ProsperityWithoutGrowth #PostGrowth #Postwachstum #PostCroissance #Omgroei #PostCrecimiento #LifeAfterCapitalism #Degrowth #Decroissance #Decrecimiento #BeyondGDP #BeyondGrowth #PostGrowthEconomy #SystemChange #WellbeingEconomy #EcologicalEconomics #RethinkingEconomics #NewEconomics #ManagingWithoutGrowth #NewEconomy #NewEconomicThinking #GrowthDependency #RethinkingProsperity #SecularStagnation #CircularEconomy #SustainableWelfare #PlanetaryBoundaries #CareEconomy #Capitalism #PostCapitalism cc @sociologysurrey @institutesustainability⁠
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Image © istock.com/Vizerskaya

Caring consumption and sustainability: Insights fr
Caring consumption and sustainability: Insights from early motherhood | Journal paper by Kate Burningham and Sue Venn⁠
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ℹ️ Households play a key role in sustainability transitions but remain under-explored. This longitudinal study shows how motherhood shapes sustainable food practices through relational, flexible approaches prioritising care, thrift, and time management. It calls for holistic, practical discourses that support sustainable everyday practices of care.⁠
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🔗 Paper via cusp.ac.uk/publications (🔝 or follow link in bio.)⁠
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cc #SustainableConsumption #SustainableLifestyles #ConsumptionResearch #Materialism #Consumerism #PostConsumerism #PostGrowth #WellbeingEconomy #BeyondGrowth #Food #FoodConsumption #PlantBasedDiet #LessMeat #DairyFree #ConsumerBehaviour #SustainableFood #ConsumerSociety #WellbeingPolicies #FoodResearch #EnvironmentalPsychology #MomentsOfChange⁠ #Motherhood
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Image: ©istock.com/MonikaBatich

Decolonisation, dependency and disengagement—the
Decolonisation, dependency and disengagement—the challenge of Ireland’s degrowth transition | Blog by Seán Fearon⁠
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ℹ️ Advancing #degrowth in Ireland requires an understanding of, and a reckoning with, the economic legacy of its colonised past, CUSP fellow Seán Fearon writes. A post-colonial economy within planetary boundaries must break with relationships of dependency and structures of unsustainability.⁠
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🔗 Blog via → cusp.ac.uk/blog (🔝 or follow link in bio).⁠
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cc #ProsperityWithoutGrowth #PostGrowth #Postwachstum #PostCroissance #Omgroei #PostCrecimiento #LifeAfterCapitalism #Degrowth #Decroissance #Decrecimiento #BeyondGDP #BeyondGrowth #PostGrowthEconomy #SystemChange #WellbeingEconomy #EcologicalEconomics #RethinkingEconomics #NewEconomics #ManagingWithoutGrowth #NewEconomy #NewEconomicThinking #GrowthDependency #RethinkingProsperity #SecularStagnation #PostConsumerism #DoughnutEconomics #CircularEconomy #Transformation #PlanetaryBoundaries ⁠
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Image:


Parliamentary Work

APPG Logo
CUSP is acting as the secretariat for the UK All-Party Parliamentary Group (APPG) on Limits to Growth. The APPG provides a platform for cross-party dialogue and collaboration on shared and lasting prosperity in a world of environmental, social and economic limits. It aims to contribute to a growing international debate on redefining prosperity and developing new measures of progress. The APPG is chaired by Caroline Lucas MP and Clive Lewis MP, and its membership is drawn from both Houses and all main political parties.

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