The Dilemma Between Growth and Degrowth

A reflective essay as part of an exercise in the class: Design Ethics and Sustainability Communication.

After studying at HNU for three months, I find myself grappling with a significant dilemma: the economic concepts of Growth versus Degrowth. On one hand, I have learned that growth creates jobs and improves lives, but it can also lead to environmental destruction. On the other hand, degrowth helps the environment, but it might lead to fewer jobs and more poverty. This dichotomy leaves me questioning which path humanity should take.

The Illusion of Sustainability

I’ve come to realize that “sustainability” is not really about saving the planet. Instead, it’s about saving ourselves. The truth is, the planet has its own cycles of life, death, and rebirth that stretch over millennia. Even if humans disappear, the planet will recover, resurrect and continue. But humans cannot recover in the same way. Should humanity perish, any resurrection might result in a completely different species, no longer human as we define it today.

This made me rethink what sustainability means. It’s not about being heroes for the Earth but about ensuring our own survival. We need the planet to live, so we need to take care of it—for our own sake. This makes the choices between Growth and Degrowth all the more critical.

Growth: Opportunities and Costs

Growth undeniably brings opportunities. It creates jobs and elevates the quality of life for millions. For a family trapped in generational poverty, economic growth can be life-changing. It provides hope for the younger generation, who are entering a competitive workforce and need access to resources, stability, and opportunities.

Yet, this comes at a cost. Growth relies on exploiting non-renewable resources, often faster than they (or we) can regenerate. The resulting environmental degradation—deforestation, pollution, and climate change—threatens the very ecosystems that support human life. The price of unchecked growth is, quite literally, planetary catastrophe. 

So while growth helps people in the short term, it harms the planet in the long run.

Degrowth: An Impractical Reality for Developing Nations

Degrowth, while good for the environment, presents significant challenges, particularly for developing countries like Indonesia. I’ve seen talks and podcasts discussing sustainable efforts worldwide, and I noticed that degrowth is not a practical choice for developing nations. For Indonesia, where many people are still struggling to meet basic needs, asking them to accept "less" would feel unfair and even cruel.

Consider a hypothetical scenario: if the Indonesian government were to announce degrowth measures, it would essentially be asking people who have never experienced economic stability to sacrifice even more. The prospect of “living with less” when so many already have so little is not only impractical but unjust. It’s a stark contrast to the lives of Europeans or Americans, who often have the privilege of advocating for sustainability from a position of relative abundance.

This disparity highlights a painful truth: while the global conversation about saving the planet calls for shared responsibility, the burdens are far from equally distributed. For Indonesians, whose meat consumption is already among the lowest globally and whose children often face stunting and malnutrition, the idea of degrowth can feel like a cruel joke. The Western world’s utopian vision of degrowth assumes a level playing field that simply doesn’t exist.

Rethinking Sustainability

The whole course at HNU has challenged me to think deeply about sustainability and its implications. I now believe sustainability is not about "saving the planet" but about finding smarter ways to ensure humanity’s survival. Historically, we’ve learned hard lessons about our resource use—be it overfishing, deforestation, or fossil fuel dependency. These mistakes have taught us the importance of regeneration and balance.

Therefore, I think, sustainability should be reframed as a mindset focused on balancing what’s good for humans with what’s good for the planet. After all, our survival depends on Earth’s ecosystems thriving. This isn’t about greed or self-sacrifice; it’s about mutual thriving.

And I think it’s very important to emphasize that idea of 'balance' rather than portraying sustainability as a heroic mission to save the planet.

Finding this balance requires us to move beyond the simplistic Growth versus Degrowth debate. Instead, we need to address underlying issues, such as overpopulation. While one group advocates degrowth, others still push for higher birth rates, creating a contradiction. We need to accept that the world is overpopulated and take steps to reduce birth rates globally. If we want to have less production and less consumption, to be honest, we also need less humans on this planet. No matter how harsh or unethical it may sound, this is a fact we must accept.

Additionally, we must also be prepared for fewer jobs in the future due to lower production and consumption. Universities and corporations should lead the charge by fostering innovative solutions. For example, alternative careers like sustainable farming should be incentivized and made more desirable—both financially and socially. If farmers were well-paid and respected, more people would likely choose this career path—similar to how IT programming evolved over the years. It wasn’t widely recognized as a desirable job before, but now programming is seen as a cool and well-paid profession.

Conclusion

The dilemma between Growth and Degrowth cannot be resolved with a one-size-fits-all solution. For developing nations like Indonesia, growth remains essential to alleviate poverty and improve quality of life, but this must happen in a way that doesn’t destroy the planet.

Ultimately, sustainability is about saving humanity—not just the planet. It requires a collective effort to balance economic needs with ecological limits. By controlling population growth, rethinking our economic models, and promoting sustainable practices, we can ensure a future where both humans and the Earth thrive together.

I think the Doughnut Economy by Kate Raworth could be a solution, but I also believe that without controlling the population, any alternative economic model would be a wasted effort.