"Before 1870, humanity lived in dire poverty, with a slow crawl of invention offset by a growing population. Then came a great shift: invention sprinted forward, doubling our technological capabilities each generation and utterly transforming the economy again and again. Our ancestors would have presumed we would have used such powers to build utopia. But it was not so. When 1870-2010 ended, the world instead saw global warming; economic depression, uncertainty, and inequality; and broad rejection of the status quo. In this book, an economist tells the story of how this unprecedented explosion of material wealth occurred, how it transformed the globe, and why it failed to deliver us to utopia. Of remarkable breadth and ambition, this book reveals the last century to have been less a march of progress than a slouch in the right direction." -- Provided by publisher.

"In a world of growing environmental risks and ecological scarcities, ensuring a safe Anthropocene for humankind is essential. Managing an increasingly "fragile" planet requires new thinking on markets, institutions, and governance built on five principles: ending the underpricing of nature; fostering collective action; accepting absolute limits; attaining sustainability; and promoting inclusivity. Rethinking economics and policies in this way can help to overcome the global challenges posed by climate change, biodiversity loss, freshwater scarcity, and deteriorating marine and coastal habitats. It requires decoupling wealth creation from environmental degradation through business, policy, and financial actions aimed at better stewardship of the biosphere. In this book, renowned environmental economist Edward B. Barbier offers a blueprint for a greener and more inclusive economy, and outlines the steps we must take now to build a post- COVID world that limits environmental threats while sustaining per capita welfare"-- Provided by publisher.