17 May 2018 — Growth rates for the first quarter of this year are positive again. We are still being flooded with good news about how the economy is running in our country and wider in the world right now. Yet I always get an uncomfortable feeling about these kinds of messages and figures. Of course, it's nice to have unemployment fall and when the government has more money for people's fun. But on the other hand, it gnaws. Because more growth generally means more traffic and consumption and consequently also greater degradation of nature and the environment. The benefits of growth seem to be becoming more and more one-sided among those who already have it right, with more inequality as a result.

Economic growth is only good if it is aimed at the good society and then not only in the here (our country) and now (loose from the effects for future generations). That is why it is very good that the CBS recently issued a report with all kinds of data from a broader concept of prosperity (see: https://www.cbs.nl/en/publication/2018/20/monitor-wide-welfare-2018 ). Our eastern neighbours are also given thorough and nuanced thought about economic growth. At the recent Katholikentag in Münster I attended a forum discussion on this subject. Under the auspices of the German Bishop's Conference, an excellent study has been published under the catchy title ""Raus aus der Wachstumsgesellschaft?[i]. The chairman of the writer's collective, Prof. Wallacher from Munich, presented the most important findings. At the heart of his speech is that economic growth is desirable and even necessary to combat world poverty. But this growth should be decoupled from growth in the consumption of natural resources. Growth is therefore needed to satisfy the basic needs of all and to create development opportunities for all (including participation in education and the labour market). However, in order to also be legitimate debt-to-GDP growth, social and environmental requirements must be met. This can only be done through smart innovation, by incorporating broad welfare effects into the price mechanism (energy tax, meat tax, flight tax, etc.) by compensating for low income groups (redistribution) and by promoting a culture of the sufficient carcinogenicity and socio-ecological awareness among consumers. "Good life, rather than many have pedigree, from an intrinsic motivation and provoked by an adequate incentive structure of pricing and government interventions.

Only if we work hard on this at local, national and international level can we really be happy with further economic growth and development in the long term.

[i] Raus aus der Wachstumsgesellschaft? Eine sozialethische Analyse und Bewertung von Postwachsumstrategyen, Wissenschaftliche Arbeitsgruppe für weltkirchliche Aufgaben der Deutschen Bischofskonferenz (Hrsg.), Bonn 2018, can be ordered via wissenschaftliche-arbeitsgrupe@dbk.de.