The Resource Wende programme has organised a parallel session called “Don’t Look DOWN” during the National Sustainability Congress 2023 in Den Bosch, The Netherlands.

Based on the work of giants like Donella and Dennis Meadows, Jørgen Randers, Ernst Ulrich von Weizsäcker, Simon Michaux and Harald Sverdrup, we have shown that the desired sustainable future can not be realised without taking into account the resource shortages caused by our current focus on economic growth. As an example: The planned energy transition, required to move away from fossil fuels consumption and a devastating climate crisis, is causing a huge increase in natural resources demand. This will lead to hard and soft scarcity, combined with all kinds of “collateral damages” as shown below. 

The current EU, US and Chinese resource strategies focus on increasing primary and secondary supply of resources to meet their growing demand. Given the available worldwide resource reserves, this is a zero-sum game, will cause additional geopolitical tension and can only be achieved at the expense of less fortunate countries and future generations. Unfortunately, there is hardly any emphasis on strategies to manage the demand, prepare societies and economies for the coming resource shortages and strive for a more equal distribution.

We need to move from science fiction to science facts, and be prepared to look at the consequences of our economic growth paradigm and consumption levels. Indeed, this sounds scary for many politicians, businesses and individuals, but there are many reports showing that prosperity does not depend on continuous growth and individual consumption. Do you want to know more or would like to organise an awareness session for your organisation? Have a look at the presentation or fill the form here.