ICR199: Lorenzo Fioramonti, World After GDP

Today on the podcast, I'm joined by Lorenzo Fioramonti, author of The World After GDP.

Listen to this podcast to learn about the flaws in a system which values GDP as the primary measure for growth and also for prosperity, what the world after GDP might look like, and what a post-GDP world mean for politics and for politicians who seem to be completely obsessed with economic growth.

Lorenzo Fioramonti is Professor of Political Economy & Director of the Centre for the Study of Governance Innovation at the University of Pretoria, South Africa.

His new book is The World After GDP: Politics, Business and Society in the Post Growth Era.

GDP is much more than a simple statistic. It has become the overarching benchmark of success and a powerful ordering principle at the heart of the global economy.

But the convergence of major economic, social and environmental crises has exposed the flaws of our economic system which values GDP above all else as a measure of prosperity and growth.

In this provocative and inspiring new book, political economist Lorenzo Fioramonti sets out his vision of a world after GDP.

Focusing on pioneering research on alternative metrics of progress, governance innovation and institutional change, he makes a compelling case for the profound and positive transformations that could be achieved through a post-GDP system of development.

Welcome to World After GDP with Lorenzo Fioramonti, in episode 199 of Informed Choice Radio.

 

Some questions I ask:

-What are some of the flaws in a system which values GDP as the primary measure for growth and also for prosperity?

-How did we get to where we are today as GDP being this main measure of what we use?

-Is it fair to say that politicians will always find a reason to continue using GDP, it always suits their particular aims?

-What would an alternative measure look like and does it exist already or is it something we need to create?

-What would the world after GDP look like?

-Would there be any negatives associated with that world?

-Are politicians like Donald Trump compatible with a post-GDP world?

Thank you for listening!

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