There are three distinct, but connected feedback loops between technological Innovation and Economic Growth:
- Productivity enables economic growth, which enables investment,
which increases innovation and productivity, which enables further
growthHarari 2014
- Innovation increases productivity, which reduces need for labour,
which necessitates growth on pain of economic collapseJackson 2017
- Growth exhausts scarce resources which necessitates paradigm
shifts to avoid collapses which lead to further growth.West 2017
This also means delaying and accumulating nature’s feedback and humanity’s maturing in its Adaptive Cycle.
This results in a System Dynamics of continuous, seemingly unstoppable economic growth, regardless of its negative effects. In the second half of the 20th century this led to the so-called Great Acceleration through Consumerism and, as a consequence of that, to Climate and Ecological Breakdown.
This dynamic is part of the wider dynamic that Capitalism is dominant because it feeds growth.
To break out of this cycle, We need social, not technological innovation.
References
- Harari (2014): Sapiens
- Jackson (2017): Prosperity without Growth
- West (2017): Scale