Title: Four principles for a human rights-based approach to development without growth

Authors: Manuel Couret Branco

Addresses: University of Évora, Largo dos Colegiais 2, 7000 Évora, Portugal

Abstract: Economists have frequently reflected on how to generate human wellbeing. Adam Smith presented economic growth as a tool to alleviate deprivation without extensive wealth redistribution. Since then, growth became the nuclear concept of mainstream economics. However, not only the promises of wellbeing associated with growth have not been fulfilled, as its ecological limits are evident today. How can economics strive for human wellbeing and abandon growth? The first step in that direction is to decolonise the social imaginary of economics, this being the main cross cutting theme of the paper. To achieve this purpose, I propose four principles rooted in human rights. The principles are: 1) non-utilitarian approach; 2) decommodification; 3) decoupling income from work; 4) cultural freedom. Heterodox economists have long addressed issues referring to human rights. Nevertheless, these approaches are not structurally built upon human rights, and therefore, the necessary synthesis is yet to be done.

Keywords: human rights; development; growth; non-utilitarianism; basic income; decommodification; reduction of working time; cultural freedom; Timor-Leste.

DOI: 10.1504/IJGE.2023.131330

International Journal of Green Economics, 2023 Vol.17 No.1, pp.20 - 35

Received: 18 Aug 2022
Accepted: 09 Jan 2023

Published online: 06 Jun 2023 *

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