Synopses & Reviews
Human progress is heading toward collapse. There are converging ecological crises looming on the horizon: climate change, peak oil, water shortages, fish depletion, food scarcities. The world is on a collision course against the limits of the ecosystem. Modern societies are consuming, polluting and growing as if there is no tomorrow. Indeed, there may not be one.
In Progress or Collapse, Roberto De Vogli guides us through the multiple, converging global crises of economic progress. He explores the connections between the environmental crisis and the psychological, social, cultural, political and economic emergencies affecting modern societies. It is not a coincidence, the author argues, that global ecological destruction is occurring in tandem with other crises: rising mental disorders, mindless consumerism, rampant conformism, status competition, civic disengagement, startling social inequalities, global financial instability, and widespread political impasse.
In this hard-hitting analysis, Roberto De Vogli identifies the root cause of all these symptoms of societal breakdown: neoliberalism, defined as market greed. He argues that in recent decades, modern societies have been dominated by a suicidal economic doctrine based on two articles of faith: the greed creed and the market God. The greed creed states that people are nothing but selfish profiteers in perpetual search for status and wealth. The market God is the belief that all societal and human affairs are best regulated as market exchanges.
What is to be done? Can we stop progress toward collapse? Given the current distribution of power and wealth, and the state of psychological and political inertia in which we are trapped, chances to redefine progress around alternative values and embrace a new philosophy of life are slim. Yet, the history of human emancipation has often been shaped by giant leaps forward. In the past, civic struggles have overcome the limits of the possible. Whether this will happen again in the future is the central question of our time.
This book will be of interest to researchers and students of ecology, psychology, public health, epidemiology, human development, political philosophy, economics, sociology and politics.
Synopsis
Global warming and the depletion of natural resources are widely recognized as the major threats to the future of industrial society and the survival of human species. However, this environmental destruction is paired with an often-overlooked deterioration of psychosocial wellbeing.
In spite of the rapid material success of the last two centuries, mental disorders have become one of the leading causes of death and disability in industrial societies. Depression, anxiety, stress and distrust are increasing. This original and compelling book explores the links between ecological collapse and psychosocial decay. It argues that the power and profit driven nature of contemporary notions of progress cause five damaging behaviours which in turn contribute to both types of breakdown:
- excessive consumerism
- mass conformity
- pervasive inequalities
- civic disengagement
- eco-estrangement.
Having identified and analyzed the major problems of the current model of human development, this book discusses the implications for action and societal change, concluding that we must redefine progress and overcome the inertia of our model of development by tailoring society around a new organizing principle. It will be of interest to researchers and students of ecology, psychology, public health, epidemiology, human development, political philosophy, economics, sociology and politics.