The concept of post-growth is no longer just a slogan or a marginal activist stance: it has become a major scientific field for thinking about human well-being in a world with limited resources.
Within a few decades, the concept of degrowth and post-growth has evolved from a marginal critique of the prevailing economic model to a structured field of research, now being mobilized by institutions such as the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development, or the European Commission.This book provides a precise and easy-to-understand introduction to this rapidly growing field of literature. It is based on a full translation of a groundbreaking scientific article published in 2025 in The Lancet Planetary Health, supported by an educational analysis that highlights its key concepts, contentious issues, empirical findings, and policy implications.At its core, the challenge is to understand how to sustainably improve human well-being without relying on GDP growth, especially after the planet's limits have been significantly exceeded. By demonstrating that economic growth is neither a prerequisite for social progress nor a guarantee of future prosperity, this book provides robust frameworks for rethinking the goals of economics and envisioning the future of human societies in the Anthropocene era.
