An account of the Italian experience of the Degrowth Movement, presented at a Vegan Information Project event in Dublin, Ireland, Jan 2014

1. “Happy Degrowth”
Social Movement of
Economic Downsizing
and Self-Sustainability
(the Italian experience)
Dublin, 22 January 2013
1

2. What is GDP....
A Country’s gross
domestic gross product
measures market
transactions. It ignores
social costs,
environmental impacts
and income inequality.
Ie. Increased crime
rates do not raise living
standards but they can
lift GDP by raising
expenditures on security
systems and home
insurances.
Dublin, 22 January 2013
2

3. GDP is a metric
developed in 1930/40s to
beat the great
depression
and the global war.. It
did not serve us well in
the first place, so why do
we keep using it?
In reality increased
GDP does not make
us any happier... It
does not measure our
well-being in terms of
social interactions or
richness of our lives
Dublin, 22 January 2013
3

4. A Contry’s GDP
measures “everything
except what which
makes life worthwhile”
Robert F. Kennedy
Dublin, 22 January 2013
4

5. We need less than we think...

Material possessions
slow us down.. It
takes time, money
and energy to keep
up with the Jonesses

Instead of GDP why
don’t we follow the
economy of
happyness and the
gift economy?
Dublin, 22 January 2013
5

6. We have a choice...
Dublin, 22 January 2013
6

7. Who is doing what?




Bhuthan has measured citizens’ wellbeing using gross national happiness
since 2008
It plans to become the first country in
the world to turn its agriculture
completely organic and it’s already
called the “poster child of sustainable
development”
More than 95% of the population has
clean water and electricity, 80% of the
country is forested and, to the envy of
many countries, it is carbon neutral and
food secure.
They have no fossil fuels or nuclear
Dublin, 22 January 2013
7

8. Other examples...
Transition Towns:
Brixton Energy is a not-for-profit cooperative based in south London.
They create cooperatively owned
renewable energy projects - financial
revenues stay within the local
community and providing training and
employment for local people
generating energy in Brixton
our
Transition Town Totnes (TTT) is a dynamic,
community-led and run charity that exists to strengthen
the local economy, reduce the cost of living and build
resilience for a future with less cheap energy and a
changing climate.
Dublin, 22 January 2013
8

9. 
In 2011 in Italy 1.75 million bicycles
were sold, about 2,000 more than the
number of new cars registered.
Dublin, 22 January 2013
9

10. What is degrowth...
Degrowth is a
downscaling of
production and
consumption that
increases human wellbeing and enhances
ecological conditions
and equity on the planet.
Dublin, 22 January 2013
10

11. Degrowth....
It calls for a future where societies live within their ecological means,
with open, localized economies and resources more equally distributed
through new forms of democratic institutions. Such societies will no
longer have to “grow or die.” Material accumulation will no longer
hold
a prime position in the population’s cultural imaginary. The primacy of
efficiency will be substituted by a focus on sufficiency, and innovation
will no longer focus on technology for technology’s sake but will
concentrate on new social and technical arrangements that will enable
us to live convivially and frugally. Degrowth does not only challenge the
centrality of GDP as an overarching policy objective but proposes a
framework for transformation to a lower and sustainable level of
production and consumption, a shrinking of the economic system to
leave more space for human cooperation and ecosystems.
Dublin, 22 January 2013
11

12. By 2015 the UN is
scheduled to announce the
Sustainable Development
Goals, a set of international
objectives to improve global
well-being
Dublin, 22 January 2013
12

13. Degrowth is...
… pizza and songs at your friends’ place
instead of a restaurant
... the smell of homemade jams and
shattered pots in the kitchen
... taking turns in whatching each other’s
kids once a week
... cycling to work or taking the bus
... packing your lunch from home
... visiting your friends instead of phoning
them
... supporting your community with
projects and ideas
... reducing our footprint, staying local
and sharing the resources
... relying on friends, family and
community to meet your needs
Dublin, 22 January 2013
13

14. Degrowth in practise...







Buy less, consume less, work less
Go slow and enjoy the journey
Cook and eat simple things
Handmade, homemade and DIY
Value and protect your
community
Create, participate, share,
educate yourself
Respect everything and everybody
Dublin, 22 January 2013
14

15. What’s a time bank?
Members join the time bank
and offers their expertise for
free in exchange of other
services that they might need
in the future.. Ie: a
webdesigner can help me build
a site, I can cook and decorate
a cake for your son’s
birthday.. The person who
receives is not necessarily
returning the favour to the
same person...
Dublin, 22 January 2013
15

16. The barter and
the gift economy

Dublin, 22 January 2013
It’s the highest
form of economy
where you give and
receive freely
without attaching
value to the single
transaction or
items exchanged.
16

17. What can we do...

A variety of food is available for
free... Why don’t we organize a
Sunday picnic and go mushrooms
and wild hers picking?
Nettle and porcini risotto anyone?

Dublin, 22 January 2013
17

18. A vegetable garden of the size of ¼ acre
can feed a family of 4 people for a year 
Dublin, 22 January 2013
18

19. Homemade with love...

Oat milk
50gr organic oat
1lt hot water (70/85°C)
sweetener of choice (date, agave or maple syrup)
Blend with handmixer for 2-3 minutes and
until there is a slight foam on the top. Filter
the liquid with a mesher or cheese cloth.
Whatever is left after the oat milk has been
poured into the bottle can be used, mixed
with flour and ingredients of your choice, to
make cookies.
Dublin, 22 January 2013
19

20. 

Dublin, 22 January 2013
Saurkraut
Hummus
20

21. 
Soaking Chickpeas

Soaking soya beans
(Dried pulses are cheaper and
healthier than ready made ones –
you decide what ingredients to
add when cooking)
Dublin, 22 January 2013
21

22. 
Homemade
pasta
(In Italy is mostly
associated with
Sunday meals at your
gramma’s place –
it’s a real treat)
Dublin, 22 January 2013
22

23. 
Deodorant
20gr bicarbonate of soda
20gr corn starch
20gr coconut oil
6 drops of essential oil
(tea tree, sage, peppermint)
Melt the coconut oil, add
the dry the ingredients and
last the essential oil. Mix and pour
into a container (you can recicle
one). Leave it for 4/5 hours to
solidify.
To apply, just rub a finger on it, it
will start to melt and you can apply it
on the skin. It will last up to 24h
Sourse: www.cosmesitascabile.it
Dublin, 22 January 2013
23

24. 
Handmade Soap
 Orange
and
Turmeric
 Tea Tree oil and
oat
Dublin, 22 January 2013
24

25. 
Handmade liquid soap
(recycle whatever container you have)
Dublin, 22 January 2013
25

26. Most important.... Get creative!!!
Why don’t you ask a friend to
assemble this together over a cup
of tea??
Coffee’ table made with recycled
and painted fruit boxes
Dublin, 22 January 2013
26

27. 
Homemade mittens made by recycling old
jumpers
Dublin, 22 January 2013
27

28. 
Homemade
lunch pockets.
Can be washed and reused. This means less
plastic or paper bags.
Dublin, 22 January 2013
28

29. Dublin, 22 January 2013
29

30. 
Useful links:
www.degrowth.org
www.transitionnetwork.org
http://www.transitiontowntotnes.org/
http://www.slideshare.net/degrowthconf/happydegrowth-vs-unhappy-growth
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Degrowth
https://brixtonenergy.co.uk/
http://www.goodshomedesign.com/sweater-mittens
http://leipzig.degrowth.org/en/
www.naturalmentefelice.com
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/12/29/feldhei
m-germany-renewable_n_1173992.html
www.unocookbook.com
http://newlifenewpurpose.wordpress.com/2012/11/
09/diy-bag-style-heat-retention-oven-fromupcycled-materials/
Dublin, 22 January 2013
30

31. Thank you for you time
Q&A
Dublin, 22 January 2013
31