What if growth isn't the answer?

Can we create welfare and quality of life for all people without endless economic growth – and if so, what does progress look like in the 21st century? That question is at the heart of this conversation, as French economist and researcher in ecological economics Timothée Parrique meets Zetland journalist Hakon Mosbech to discuss one of today's most urgent debates. 

Timothée is one of Europe's most prominent voices in the degrowth movement and author of Slow Down or Die: The Economics of Degrowth (2025) – a book that fundamentally rethinks the foundations of how we organize our economies. Hakon Mosbech has written about the way we work and live better – and what societal and economic structures this will take. Together, they explore the connections between economics and wellbeing as well as the planetary boundaries that may constrain continued economic growth. Timothée joins via video link from Lausanne, where he works, while Hakon is live on stage.

Questions about how to measure societal progress are increasingly entering mainstream policy debates. Both at UN and in the Danish government levels these new approaches to economic success are gaining attention, from wellbeing economics to alternative indicators that complement GDP. How can we channel this momentum building for a new way of thinking about the economy?