Development Cooperation and Degrowth

The general idea of post-growth movements is to restore balance, ecologically as well as socially. Degrowth can thus be understood as a practical framework towards an ecological civilization, its urgency stemming from the lived experience of Homo Oeconomicus according to the state of our world under capitalism. This translates into e.g. a sustainable shift away from practices such as wealth hoarding, extractivism and anchoring the human existence in (racialized) labor. Degrowth could be a bridge to Native knowledge and practice of symbiosis, reciprocity and simply put: balance; a transformative way to become a postcolonially informed Homo Oecologicus.

In this talk, we will discuss if and how development cooperation (being a tool of material development under capitalist logic) can hold space for post-growth strategies and practices.

Speaker:
- Nele Cölsch is a trained social worker and team member of FairBindung, offering education on Degrowth and alternatives to the current economic system.
- Tonny Nowshin is a trained economist and a Degrowth and Climate Justice activist, putting forward antiracist and decolonial perspectives.

 Host: Saad Malik holds a degree in Social and Cultural anthropology; in his work, he is dedicated to Social and Global Justice.