Current state of the world

Kristín Vala Ragnarsdóttir and Ásgeir Brynjar Torfason

Chapter 1 in The Elgar Companion to Creating a Regenerative Economy for Wellbeing, 2026, pp 2-20 from Edward Elgar Publishing

Abstract: The first chapter conveys the planetary emergency being faced in the current state of the world. Humanity has breached seven out of nine planetary boundaries and observed exponential biodiversity loss, ecosystem destruction, natural resource depletion, CO2 emissions with climate change and atmospheric heating. The world leaders ignored the need for limiting factors as proposed more than 50 years ago. There is an emphasis on exponential growth in current economics, ignoring planetary boundaries and lacking grounding in ecological economics. The systems view of the Earth as a set of interdependent limits provides a foundation for the discussion in later chapters. The planetary boundaries framework from Rockström et al. offers a useful visual and conceptual anchor. The chapter uses simple explanations to complex issues and problems, for example, getting readers to understand exponential mathematics, system dynamics and the dangers of 3–7% annual growth as an effective way for resource depletion.

Keywords: Population; Resource Depletion; Exponential Growth; Planetary Boundaries; Climate Change; Economic Growth (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2026
ISBN: 9781800884960
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