Re: new thread: PKT and ecology

[Jerry Courvisanos <Jerry.Courvisanos@xxxxxxxxxxx>]

Congratulations Stephen,

You have managed to get this very busy Post-Keynesian academic writing on
the PKT net again after many years absence (but still viewing the
discussions).

I have been concerned with the same contradictions between PK and
ecology. I agree with my "old" PKT friend Gernot K. that the
aim for PKs is to find ways to overcome the contradictions that
capitalism have placed in the way of achieving both objectives.

I have presented a paper recently at the International Society of
Ecological Economists Conference (ISEE 2000 Conf., Canberra, July) on the
way ecological economists can learn from PK economics about the way that
short-term employment objectives can be met with long-term ecological
sustainable development. The paper is available in "pdf form"
from my web page on the School of Economics in Univ. of Tasmania (staff
profile):
(http://www.comlaw.utas.edu.au/economics/staff/Courvisanos/jcourvisanos.html
)

Essentially it is capital investment (Gernot calls it CAPEX) which is the
crucial link to have the type of capital infrastructure and goods that
produce ecologically sustainable outcomes. Briefly I use three PK
elements:

• Stephen is correct to see Keynes as sympathetic, but no guidelines does he provide. we can still use his "socialism of investment" as the basis for the next two steps.
• Kalecki's perspective planning approach together with his two important "resource-saving parameters" which can act as ecological-efficient criteria for formulating investment rules.
• Adolph Lowe's "instrumental analysis" as a way of using instruments to achieve ecological long-term goals ALONG with short-term employment PK goals.

I adopt some new research in ecological economics to incorporate
their policy initiatives into a perspective plan for ecological
sustainable investment that ensures cumulative effective demand is also
sustained.

After many years researching investment from a PK perspective, I felt it
was time to challenge the ecological dilemma at the root cause...the type
of investment. Hope it provides some food for thought to other fellow
PKs
(p.s. Have a look at some of the ecological economists I refer to in my
paper there are many weaknesses in their work, but also some great
creativity as well).

Cheers from way down under (where there is still some fabulous wild
nature still in existence...the capitalists couldn't get into it because
of the wild weather),

Jerry Courvisanos