Shaping sustainable economies-holistic strategies and principles. Policy Brief #2012/03

A society acts sustainably if it ensures the long-term stability and productivity of ecological, sociopolitical and economic systems. In the past, issues of sustainability were typically handled separately, neglecting individual measures’ effects on other elements implied by a comprehensive conception of sustainability. The challenge ahead is to develop a holistic strategy for sustainable economic activity that takes into ac-count interdependencies between the various aspects of sustainability, and does not seek to solve problems of sustainability at other aspects’ expense.

Green and fair economy – a holistic concept for a sustainable economy. Policy Brief #2013/02

Solution approaches based purely on economics do not lead to optimal success – at least, not in the medium to long term. Rather, a sustainable economy requires an equal consideration of the ecological and social dimensions. The green economy concept, or, better said, the green and fair economy concept, is in principle suitable for, if not avoiding an economic and financial crisis as experienced in the last five years, at least moderating its negative effects. The important thing here is to integrate the design of the concept as much as possible at the political, economic and individual level.