Page 51 - COVID-19: The Great Reset

Some have called for “degrowth”, a movement that embraces
zero or even negative GDP growth that is gaining some traction

(at least in the richest countries). As the critique of economic
growth moves to centre stage, consumerism’s financial and
cultural dominance in public and private life will be overhauled. [42]
This is made obvious in consumer-driven degrowth activism in

some niche segments – like advocating for less meat or fewer
flights. By triggering a period of enforced degrowth, the pandemic
has spurred renewed interest in this movement that wants to

reverse the pace of economic growth, leading more than 1,100
experts from around the world to release a manifesto in May 2020
putting forward a degrowth strategy to tackle the economic and
human crisis caused by COVID-19. [43] Their open letter calls for
the adoption of a democratically “planned yet adaptive,

sustainable, and equitable downscaling of the economy, leading to
a future where we can live better with less”.

However, beware of the pursuit of degrowth proving as
directionless as the pursuit of growth! The most forward-looking

countries and their governments will instead prioritize a more
inclusive and sustainable approach to managing and measuring
their economies, one that also drives job growth, improvements in
living standards and safeguards the planet. The technology to do

more with less already exists. [44] There is no fundamental trade-off
between economic, social and environmental factors if we adopt
this more holistic and longer-term approach to defining progress

and incentivizing investment in green and social frontier markets.

1.2.3. Fiscal and monetary policies

The fiscal and monetary policy response to the pandemic has
been decisive, massive and swift.

In systemically important countries, central banks decided

almost immediately after the beginning of the outbreak to cut
interest rates while launching large quantitative-easing
programmes, committing to print the money necessary to keep the

costs of government borrowing low. The US Fed undertook to buy
Treasury bonds and agency mortgage-backed securities, while

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