Upstream Slow Down or Die w/ Timothée Parrique
27 snips
Oct 21, 2025 
Economist Timothée Parrique, a researcher at HEC Lausanne and author of "Slow Down or Die," dives deep into the concept of degrowth. He explains its historical roots and critiques economic growth, advocating for downscaled production and consumption. Parrique distinguishes degrowth from recessions, arguing it can reduce poverty through better resource distribution. He also critiques GDP as a success measure, suggesting a focus on well-being indicators instead, and envisions a future with cooperative economies and more free time for all.
AI Snips
Chapters
Books
Transcript
Episode notes
Growth's Hidden Costs
- Economic growth is ecologically unsustainable and often socially harmful despite common assumptions about progress.
- Degrowth critiques growth's normalization and exposes trade-offs in time, democracy, and ecological limits.
Snowglobe Analogy For GDP
- Timothée uses the snowglobe analogy to distinguish adding new commodities from speeding turnover of existing ones.
- He shows GDP can rise by creating new market transactions without improving real well-being.
Plan Slowdown To Avoid Recession Harms
- Plan any downscaling intentionally to avoid crash-like recession effects such as mass unemployment.
- Use policies like reduced working hours, job guarantees, and redistribution to protect livelihoods during degrowth.
