Degrowth is a growing economic, political, and social movement that reduces current levels of production and consumption to conserve natural resources and minimize environmental damage. As economist Jason Hickel describes, “the objective of degrowth is to scale down aggregate resource use, energy demand and emissions, focusing on rich, high-consuming nations, and to do this while improving people’s well-being.”

This course focuses on how degrowth can support urban sustainability, how degrowth policies can shape urban resilience and
how urban planners can employ degrowth strategies. We will look at cities in particular, given the role that urban development has played in environmental issues related to housing, transportation, waste, energy, and land use.