Can 'degrowth' solve our economic, social, and ecological problems? Economist Timothée Parrique thinks so. On this episode of the Mongabay Newscast, he joins co-host Rachel Donald to interrogate this 20+ year-old concept that critiques the notion of limitless growth in a finite world, and which offers tangible gains for people and planet.   The current economic model stretches the ecological limits of the planet – the Planetary Boundaries. Parrique says degrowth is a pathway for rich countries to scale back production and consumption – much of which contributes nothing to human well-being, research indicates – making room for low and middle-income nations to raise their standards of living, while allowing natural systems to continue supporting the ecosystem services humanity needs, like clean air and water.   Related reading:   ‘It’s Not the End of the World’ book assumptions & omissions spark debate The nine boundaries humanity must respect to keep the planet habitable   Please invite your friends to subscribe to the Mongabay Newscast wherever they get podcasts, from Apple to Spotify, or download our free app in the Apple App Store or in the Google Store to get access to our latest episodes at your fingertips.   If you enjoy the Newscast, please visit www.patreon.com/mongabay to pledge a dollar or more to keep the show growing, Mongabay is a nonprofit media outlet and all support helps!   See all our latest news from nature's frontline at Mongabay's homepage: news.mongabay.com or find and follow Mongabay on all the social media platforms.   Image Caption: A bicycle lane in Fürth, Germany. Image by Markus Spiske via Unsplash.    --- Timecodes:  (00:00:00) Introduction (00:02:35) What is degrowth exactly? (00:07:46) Is 'decoupling' the answer?  (00:12:52) Will 'limitless growth' improve quality of life? (00:18:23) Wasted GDP in the USA (00:25:28) Pushing the 'GDP button' (00:35:20) Implementing degrowth (00:47:57) A degrowth future (00:56:44) Rachel & Mike post-chat (01:12:45) Rachel asks Mike to imagine a day in a post-growth world (01:16:42) Credits