Article: World War II and its lasting legacy: an overview of socio-metabolic transition, environmental impacts and resource flows Journal: International Journal of Sustainable Development (IJSD) 2026 Vol.29 No.5 pp.1 - 62 Abstract: World War II (WWII) was a pivotal catalyst for demographic, economic, industrial and environmental transitions. This paper provides an overview of the socio-metabolic transition in eight key Allied and Axis countries during 1935-1960. Unlike previous studies of WWII's immediate economic and political impacts, or of single countries, we undertake a cross-country comparison and identify the causal mechanisms through which wartime disruptions established new developmental trajectories. Examining prewar conditions, direct wartime impacts and postwar structural change across five dimensions - demography, economy, energy systems, material flows and environmental consequences - we show how WWII catalysed three transition pathways: acceleration, redirection and reset effects. Our analysis reveals how the different political-economic systems emerging from the war mediated these transitions, creating distinctive socio-metabolic regimes with varying resource intensities and environmental impacts. By connecting wartime mobilisation to the 'Great Acceleration', the findings offer insights for contemporary sustainability transitions and governance. Inderscience Publishers - linking academia, business and industry through research

Title: World War II and its lasting legacy: an overview of socio-metabolic transition, environmental impacts and resource flows

Authors: Ladan Abrari; Nima Rezaei; Lassi Linnanen

Addresses: Department of Sustainability Science, LUT School of Energy Systems, Lappeenranta-Lahti University of Technology, P.O. Box 20, 53850 Lappeenranta, Finland ' Department of Separation Science, LUT School of Engineering Sciences, Lappeenranta-Lahti University of Technology, P.O. Box 20, 53850 Lappeenranta, Finland ' Department of Sustainability Science, LUT School of Energy Systems, Lappeenranta-Lahti University of Technology, P.O. Box 20, 53850 Lappeenranta, Finland

Abstract: World War II (WWII) was a pivotal catalyst for demographic, economic, industrial and environmental transitions. This paper provides an overview of the socio-metabolic transition in eight key Allied and Axis countries during 1935-1960. Unlike previous studies of WWII's immediate economic and political impacts, or of single countries, we undertake a cross-country comparison and identify the causal mechanisms through which wartime disruptions established new developmental trajectories. Examining prewar conditions, direct wartime impacts and postwar structural change across five dimensions - demography, economy, energy systems, material flows and environmental consequences - we show how WWII catalysed three transition pathways: acceleration, redirection and reset effects. Our analysis reveals how the different political-economic systems emerging from the war mediated these transitions, creating distinctive socio-metabolic regimes with varying resource intensities and environmental impacts. By connecting wartime mobilisation to the 'Great Acceleration', the findings offer insights for contemporary sustainability transitions and governance.

Keywords: sustainability; socio-metabolic transition; material and energy flow; war environmental impacts; World War II; WWII; Great Acceleration.

DOI: 10.1504/IJSD.2026.155697

International Journal of Sustainable Development, 2026 Vol.29 No.5, pp.1 - 62

Received: 07 Jul 2025
Accepted: 01 Jul 2026
Published online: 10 Aug 2026 *

Title: World War II and its lasting legacy: an overview of socio-metabolic transition, environmental impacts and resource flows

Keep up-to-date