Escape from Overshoot: Economics for a Planet in Peril

In the lecture, Dr. Peter Victor talks about the evidence that humanity has overshot the capacity of the planet to support us. He describes how we got here, notes the neglected warnings of some famous economists, and highlights current trends that threaten a bleak future. He explains the inadequacy of green growth and points to other proposals for changing course, such as steady-state economics, doughnut economics, and degrowth. Dr. Victor presents 14 propositions for planning an escape from overshoot and presents computer simulations and photographic illustrations of what this might mean for Canada. Dr. Peter A. Victor is a Professor Emeritus at York University. He received his Ph.D. in economics from UBC in 1971 and has worked for over 50 years in Canada and abroad on economy and environment as an academic, consultant and public servant. His work on ecological economics has been recognized through the award of the Molson Prize in the Social Sciences by the Canada Council for the Arts in 2011, the Boulding Memorial Prize from the International Society for Ecological Economics in 2014, and membership of the Royal Society of Canada.