Doughnut Economics
Explore the potential for Doughnut Economics
York & North Yorkshire with Kate Raworth
At Environmental Smart we seek to publicise new ways of thinking and promote ideas that will have a real benefit to society and humanity. The Doughnut offers a vision of what it means for humanity to thrive in the 21st century - and Doughnut Economics explores the mindset and ways of thinking needed to get us there.
Kate Raworth, the author of Doughnut Economics said prior to the meeting “As we emerged from the Covid emergency - while still in the midst of an ecological emergency - who do we want to become?
The Doughnut offers places everywhere, from neighbourhoods to nations, a one-off chance to set their ambition on the scale that this decade and indeed century demands. I look forward to discovering the ambitions that are brewing in York and North Yorkshire.”
Doughnut Economics proposes an economic mindset that's fit for the 21st century context and challenges, placing the things humans need to survive and thrive in a direct relationship with our planetary boundaries. Drawing on insights from diverse schools of economics, it sets out seven ways to think in order to identify pathways for residents, businesses, communities and the environment around us to thrive within greener, fairer and stronger economies.
The York & North Yorkshire Local Enterprise Partnership (LEP) and Steve Mason from Environmental Smart hosted a webinar with internationally- acclaimed economist and author Kate Raworth looking at how doughnut economics can help cities and regions thrive in a circular economy.
Run by Councillor Christian Vassie, Chair of City of York Council’s Climate Change Committee and including James Farrar, CEO and Katie Privett, Energy Programme Lead from the LEP and Sue Jefferson, co-founder of Circular Malton & Norton, the event attracted over 220 attendees from all across the UK and as far away as Australia and Dubai.
Kate, who revealed that her family come from North Yorkshire, talked about how she developed doughnut economics and later set up DEAL (the Doughnut Economics Action Lab) to inspire and encourage collaboration and action. Kate highlighted what doughnut-inspired actions are happening across the globe in places like Amsterdam and Seattle, as well as Cornwall and Preston.
She posed the question “how can York and North Yorkshire become a home to thriving people in a thriving place while respecting the well-being of all people and the health of the planet? ” which is question that is at the heart of doughnut economics.
Kate then answered this by looking at regenerative and distributive economies as well as five key design traits that help to make places thrive.
James Farrar, CEO of the LEP commented after the event, “Kate was such an engaging speaker and it’s obvious from all the questions and feedback, that doughnut economics is a subject that people are passionate about and want to engage in.
“It was great that Kate supported all that we are doing in York & North Yorkshire with Circular Yorkshire and our Carbon Abatement Pathways work and she congratulated us on having the ambition to be carbon-negative by 2040. Recognising the importance of peer to peer inspiration in driving change, she added that as a region, we would inspire other places to act”.
