Presentation short abstract

What does degrowth mean in relation to real-existing wellbeing alternatives in the global south that bear the destructive effects colonialism, hegemonic development, geopolitical shifts and neoliberal intervention? The paper explores conundrums of degrowth in the global south from a decolonial lens.

Presentation long abstract

Degrowth, as a socio-political movement, has expanded from the periphery to the center of debates of the way economics and ‘development’ can be reimagined and reconfigured. This shift is crucial and timely as the world faces global polycrises. Yet, as degrowth expands in the global north, gaps remain in its engagement and traction in the global south. What does degrowth mean in relation to real pre-existing wellbeing alternatives in the global south, which themselves bear the destructive effects of waves of colonialism, hegemonic formations of development, geopolitical shifts, and neoliberal intervention? Degrowth faces challenges in the global south, set against skewed relations of power and vested interests that privilege global north actors – and complex power relations in both locales. It also holds important potential for engagement of real-lived conundrums confronting those living in global south peripheries. Based on longitudinal ethnographic fieldwork in the remote highlands and spiritual-ecological landscapes of Bhutan, this paper explores the way climate change generated elsewhere on the planet and GDP-centric development are experienced by pastoralists and more than humans in the world’s first carbon negative country. It comparatively reflects on negotiations and contestations over the pursuit of endless economic growth, and development alternatives focused on happiness. The findings provide insights for centering indigenous wellbeing cosmologies, valuing of sentience, agency and rights of more than humans, and convergence of degrowth with real existing alternatives. The paper argues for expanding degrowth framings to account for complexities of coloniality and decoloniality, and relations of power that shape them.