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Moving Toward the Doughnut: Differences Between Nations

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Learning activity

Technology is advancing at a rapid rate around the world and provides opportunities for "leapfrogging."

In your country, please give ONE example of how the widespread adoption of a technology of your choosing can improve social or environmental outcomes.

Key Takeaways

The transition towards the Doughnut model must be tailored to each country's context, involving leapfrogging past degenerative technologies and embracing distributive and circular practices.

  1. Lower and middle-income countries have the opportunity to bypass degenerative technologies, as seen with telecommunications, and embrace distributive and regenerative models like solar energy.

  2. The shift from centralised, fossil fuel-based energy systems to distributed renewable energy sources like solar and wind power offers a chance for local ownership and income generation.

  3. Many societies, especially in lower-income countries, have maintained circular relationships with local resources, providing valuable lessons for sustainable practices.

  4. High-income countries face the challenge of transitioning from established, degenerative systems, such as car-centric cities and fossil fuel dependency, to more sustainable, circular models.

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Further Readings
  1. Aguinaldo dos Santos et al (2021)Distributed EconomiesDesignining Sustainability for All
  2. Paddy Le Flufy (2023)Cosmolocalism: the key to our economic transformationresilience
  3. Laura Collacott (2023)Locked in: what is linear lock-in and how can we break free?Medium
  4. Jim Watson (2021)Can low-income countries leapfrog to clean energy technologies?New Scientists