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- I am an environmental scientist working on ecological economics and political ecology. I was a Marie Curie Internatio... moreI am an environmental scientist working on ecological economics and political ecology. I was a Marie Curie International Fellow at the Energy and Resources Group of the University of California at Berkeley before coming to Barcelona. I hold a PhD in Environmental Policy and Planning from the University of the Aegean in Greece, a Masters in Economics from Universitat Pompeu Fabra, and a Masters in Environmental Engineering and a Bachelors in Chemistry from Imperial College, London. From April 2015-16, I was a Leverhulme visiting professor at the department of Development Studies, SOAS, London. Follow at: https://twitter.com/g_kallis
Research interests
My research forms part of the inter-disciplinary field of environmental studies, that is, the study of the social and bio-physical causes of environmental degradation. I am motivated by a quest to cross conceptual divides between the social and the natural domains as, for example, in my collaboration with R. Norgaard at Berkeley, where we advanced the concept of socio-ecological coevolution. I am interested on the political-economic roots of environmental degradation and its uneven distribution along lines of power, income and class. My current research is motivated by the double global economic and ecological crisis. I explore the hypothesis of sustainable de-growth: a smooth economic downscaling to a sustainable future where we can live better with less.edit - Harry Coccosis, Peter Nijkamp, Richard Norgaardedit
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In Degrowth: vocabulary for a new era,
edited by Giacomo D'alisa, Federico Demaria and Giorgos Kallis, 45-59. London:
Routledge/Earthscan.
edited by Giacomo D'alisa, Federico Demaria and Giorgos Kallis, 45-59. London:
Routledge/Earthscan.
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Scholars and activists mobilize increasingly the term degrowth when producing knowledge critical of the ideology and costs of growth-based development. Degrowth signals a radical political and economic reorganization leading to reduced... more
Scholars and activists mobilize increasingly the term degrowth when producing knowledge critical of the ideology and costs of growth-based development. Degrowth signals a radical political and economic reorganization leading to reduced resource and energy use. The degrowth hypothesis posits that such a trajectory of social transformation is necessary, desirable, and possible ; the conditions of its realization require additional study. Research on degrowth has reinvigorated the limits to growth debate with critical examination of the historical, cultural, social, and political forces that have made economic growth a dominant objective. Here we review studies of economic stability in the absence of growth and of societies that have managed well without growth. We reflect on forms of technology and democracy compatible with degrowth and discuss plausible openings for a degrowth transition. This dynamic and productive research agenda asks inconvenient questions that sustainability sciences can no longer afford to ignore.
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In this article, I take issue with (eco-)socialists who embrace an ecological critique of growth under capitalism, but remain supportive or agnostic of the prospects for socialist growth. First, I argue that economic growth is... more
In this article, I take issue with (eco-)socialists who embrace an ecological critique of growth under capitalism, but remain supportive or agnostic of the prospects for socialist growth. First, I argue that economic growth is ecologically unsustainable—whether it is capitalist or socialist does not make a difference. Second, I claim that economic growth rests to a large extent on exploitation. While it is logically possible to have non-exploitative socialist growth, in practice it is unlikely. Third, socialist policies are likely to have a negative effect
on growth. A transition to socialism is a transition beyond growth.
on growth. A transition to socialism is a transition beyond growth.
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There is an exhaustive literature on Israel, Palestine and water, which has documented how the asymmetric power of Israel in the Oslo negotiations ensured its control of land and water over Palestine. Less attention however has been paid... more
There is an exhaustive literature on Israel, Palestine and water, which has documented how the asymmetric power of Israel in the Oslo negotiations ensured its control of land and water over Palestine. Less attention however has been paid on the interface of water, trade and agriculture, and the ways in which controlling trade, Israel controlled the virtual flows of water too. The concept of virtual water makes the water-agriculture-trade relationship visible, shedding light on agricultural trade flows in terms of water. Applying a political ecology approach, this paper shows how socio-ecological conditions are sustained by and organised through both social and metabolic ecological processes. A biophysical analysis-the agricultural flows of virtual water from and to Palestine in the Post-Oslo period-is combined with the examination of the power relations that governed these flows. The analysis reveals that virtual water flows are not static but instead evolve within the (geo)political-economic context in which they are embedded, bringing to light Israel's control over the flow of Palestinian agricultural virtual water. We argue that a political ecology approach to virtual water offers a theoretical basis to move beyond the currently techno-managerial emphasis in the virtual water literature, illuminating the link between the control of virtual flows and the consolidation of political and economic power.
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Why and how do alternative economies emerge, how do they develop and what is their contribution, if any, to transformative politics? Alternative economies proliferate in the countries worse hit by economic crisis and austerity, such as... more
Why and how do alternative economies emerge, how do they develop and what is their contribution, if any, to transformative politics? Alternative economies proliferate in the countries worse hit by economic crisis and austerity, such as Spain or Greece. Yet the existing literature is stuck in a counter-productive division between celebration and critique. We move beyond this division applying philosopher Daniel Bensaïd's understanding of politics to two alternative food economies, one in the Basque Country and one in Greece. We illuminate the activist strategies and specific conjunctures within which the two alternatives emerged and explain how they develop in the face of political-economic barriers. Alternative economies, we conclude, can be transformational when they are inserted in activist strategies directed to extend conflict, social struggles and challenge the capital–state nexus. Resumen: ¿Por qué y cómo emergen las economías alternativas, cómo se desarrollan y de que manera contribuyen, si es que lo hacen, a la política transformadora? En los países más afectados por la crisis económica y las políticas de austeridad, como España o Grecia, proliferan experiencias de economías alternativas. Sin embargo, la literatura no ha discutido más allá de las visiones o bien celebradoras o bien críticas de las economías alternativas, generando una división contra-productiva para la análisis. En este artículo vamos más allá de esta división, aplicando la comprensión de política de Bensaïd a dos economías alimentarias alternativas, una en el País Vasco y una en Grecia. Mostramos las estrategias de activismo y coyunturas específicas dentro de la cuales surgieron ambas alternativas y explicamos cómo se desarrollan frente a barreras institucionales y económicas. De esta manera, concluimos que las economías alternativas pueden ser transformadoras cuando se insertan en estrategias activistas dirigidas a ampliar los conflictos y las luchas sociales desafiando el nexo entre capital y estado.
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The emission targets agreed in Paris require a radical reduction of material extraction, use and disposal. The core claim of this article is that a radical dematerialization can only be part and parcel of degrowth. Given that capitalist... more
The emission targets agreed in Paris require a radical reduction of material extraction, use and disposal. The core claim of this article is that a radical dematerialization can only be part and parcel of degrowth. Given that capitalist economies are designed to grow, this raises the question of whether, and under what circumstances, the inevitable 'degrowth' can become socially sustainable. Three economic policies are discussed in this direction: work-sharing, green taxes and public money. This article is part of the themed issue 'Material demand reduction'.
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This paper adopts a coevolutionary perspective to criticize the dominant narratives of water resource development. Such narratives of progress portray a sequence of improving water technologies that overcame environmental constraints,... more
This paper adopts a coevolutionary perspective to criticize the dominant narratives of water resource development. Such narratives of progress portray a sequence of improving water technologies that overcame environmental constraints, supplying more water to satisfy the demands of growing populations for better living. Water supply appears as the response to an insatiable demand, exogenous to the water system. Instead, as the history of water in Athens, Greece illustrates water supply and demand in fact coevolve, new supply generating higher demands, and in turn, higher demands favouring supply expansion over other alternatives. This vicious cycle expands the water footprint of cities degrading environments and communities in the countryside. Far from being predetermined and inevitable, as progressive narratives wants it, water resource development has been contingent on geographical and environmental conditions, institutional struggles, accidents, experiments and external geo-political and technological forces. In the last part of this paper, I discuss the policy implications of this coevolutionary reframing with respect to a the transition to a “soft water path”.
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Abstract: The threat on water sources and supply systems emerges from a wide spectrum of natural and human sources. The events of September 11 in the USA focused the awareness on deliberate attack on water systems, mainly the use of... more
Abstract: The threat on water sources and supply systems emerges from a wide spectrum of natural and human sources. The events of September 11 in the USA focused the awareness on deliberate attack on water systems, mainly the use of possible con-taminants to contaminate water ...
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Page 1. Environmental Innovation and Societal Transitions 1 (2011) 160165 Contents lists available at ScienceDirect Environmental Innovation and Societal Transitions journal homepage: www.elsevier.com/locate/eist Sustainable prosperity... more
Page 1. Environmental Innovation and Societal Transitions 1 (2011) 160165 Contents lists available at ScienceDirect Environmental Innovation and Societal Transitions journal homepage: www.elsevier.com/locate/eist Sustainable prosperity and societal transitions: Long-term ...
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... (2006) examined the relation among the microclimate of urban ... few open and green spaces, which have been proven to have cooling functions, contribute to increasing the impacts ... During a heat wave in urban areas, hot days are... more
... (2006) examined the relation among the microclimate of urban ... few open and green spaces, which have been proven to have cooling functions, contribute to increasing the impacts ... During a heat wave in urban areas, hot days are often followed by hot nights because of the heat ...
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ABSTRACT
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DIVIn this book Nicholas A. Ashford and Ralph P. Hall offer a unified, transdisciplinary approach for achieving sustainable development in industrialized nations. They present an insightful analysis of the ways in which industrial states... more
DIVIn this book Nicholas A. Ashford and Ralph P. Hall offer a unified, transdisciplinary approach for achieving sustainable development in industrialized nations. They present an insightful analysis of the ways in which industrial states are currently unsustainable and how economic and social welfare are related to the environment, to public health and safety, and to earning capacity and meaningful and rewarding employment. The authors argue for the design of multipurpose solutions to the sustainability challenge that integrate economics, ...
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... Co-supervisor Filomena Cardoso Martins Universidade de Aveiro, Portugal Holly Jean Deems hdeems@gmail.com 701 Laurel Circle Grand Rapids, Michigan United States Tel 0034.660.088.965 Fax 001.616.336.6000 Page 2. Page 3. 5 Description... more
... Co-supervisor Filomena Cardoso Martins Universidade de Aveiro, Portugal Holly Jean Deems hdeems@gmail.com 701 Laurel Circle Grand Rapids, Michigan United States Tel 0034.660.088.965 Fax 001.616.336.6000 Page 2. Page 3. 5 Description of work ...
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... Stewart: The Global Uranium Rush and its Africa Frontier. Lessons from Namibia 8 Creative Commons License 2.5 Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 2.5 Generic http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/2.5/ OECD/NEA, 2009;... more
... Stewart: The Global Uranium Rush and its Africa Frontier. Lessons from Namibia 8 Creative Commons License 2.5 Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 2.5 Generic http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/2.5/ OECD/NEA, 2009; IEA, 2010). ...
... sites of European importance, many of which are aquatic ecosystems (rivers, lakes, etc), wetlands ... are'significantly modified', or when the reason for damage is a'sustainable human activity ... patterns, indirectly... more
... sites of European importance, many of which are aquatic ecosystems (rivers, lakes, etc), wetlands ... are'significantly modified', or when the reason for damage is a'sustainable human activity ... patterns, indirectly driven by the Funds (eg urban or tourism development), increase water ...
This is a collected volume with non-academic essays I've written over the years. The book is freely available at indefenseofdegrowth.com, donations welcome!
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Greek edition of "Degrowth: A Vocabulary for a New Era" (Routledge, 2015)
vocabulary.degrowth.org
vocabulary.degrowth.org