Across Australia, more and more people are questioning the promise that economic growth will solve our social and environmental crises. In fact, many are quietly sensing the opposite: that the push for continual expansion is driving resource depletion, social isolation, and the erosion of community life. Yet amid this uncertainty, new ideas and new visions are emerging—visions that offer a grounded pathway towards a future built on sufficiency, collective wellbeing and ecological repair.
In the latest episode of the Voices of the New Economy Podcast, community organiser Anisa offers a compelling introduction to degrowth and the broader movement for economic transformation. Her reflections capture something many people feel but rarely articulate: that a meaningful life is less about accumulating more, and more about reclaiming time, relationships and the skills we need to sustain ourselves and each other.
Reimagining the Economy: Local, Connected and Human-Centred
When asked about her vision for a new economy, Anisa begins not with abstract theory, but with a simple shift in perspective. She imagines a world where people have a direct relationship with the things they rely on—food, shelter, clothing, and the materials that sustain everyday life.
Today, global supply chains hide the social and ecological impacts of production. We rarely know who grew our food, made our clothes, or mined the minerals in our technology. By contrast, a new economy grounded in localisation would restore meaningful relationships between people and place.
This idea is not sentimental nostalgia. It is a practical response to ecological limits and resource inequity. Local living can be more resilient and far less wasteful. It can also be richer—more social, more participatory, and more human.
What Degrowth Really Means (and Why It Matters)
Perhaps the most misunderstood concept in economic debates is degrowth. Many assume it means recession or austerity. As Anisa explains, this could not be further from the truth.
Degrowth refers to a planned reduction in the material and energy throughput of wealthy economies. It recognises that ecological breakdown is driven by excessive extraction, consumption and waste. A sustainable society must therefore use less—not indiscriminately, but strategically—and must redistribute resources so that everyone has enough.
This vision does not reject progress. Rather, it asks what progress should actually mean. Should it be defined by rising GDP, even as mental health declines and ecosystems collapse? Or should it be measured by health, stability, equity and the flourishing of communities?
The degrowth movement argues for the latter, and offers a rich tradition of policy thinking—from shorter working weeks to universal public services, from community repair hubs to local food networks—that makes this shift not only possible but desirable.
Working Less as a Pathway to Collective Wellbeing
One of the most accessible entry points to degrowth, and one that resonates with many listeners, is the idea of working less in paid employment.
Anisa discusses how paid work consumes enormous amounts of time, energy and emotional bandwidth. It leaves many people with little capacity to participate in community life, local organising or creative pursuits. Yet, when people reduce their working hours—even modestly—they often discover new forms of abundance.
Working less changes how we see the world. We begin to notice the resources around us, including skills, relationships and local networks that become invisible under the pressures of full-time employment. We become more willing to share, to mend, to participate, and to build reciprocity with others.
Importantly, working less is not an individualistic lifestyle change. It becomes a collective strategy for shifting economic culture. As more people reclaim their time and reinvest it in community, we begin to erode the myth that a good life requires constant productivity and consumption.
Conflict, Community and the Skills We Need for Transition
Activist organisations and grassroots groups are not immune to conflict. Yet conflict is often misunderstood as a sign of failure rather than an inherent part of collective work.
Anisa offers an alternative view: conflict is unavoidable and, more importantly, incredibly productive when handled well. It reveals differences in priorities, perspectives and lived experience.
When communities learn how to navigate conflict openly, respectfully and without fear, they build stronger foundations for cooperation. These skills matter deeply in the emerging new economy, where collaboration, shared governance and mutual aid will form the backbone of local resilience.
Degrowth in Practice: Everyday Entry Points
For people new to these ideas, the first steps do not need to be grand or overwhelming. Anisa suggests simple, community-building actions that model the principles of degrowth:
- Joining a community garden
- Visiting a repair café or tool library
- Sharing meals or resources with neighbours
- Learning practical skills—growing, fixing, building
- Participating in local meetings or networks
- Reflecting on which forms of work truly matter
These practices deepen our sense of connection and demonstrate that alternative economic logics are already alive in many communities. They also help counter the myth that large-scale transformation must begin from government or industry. Change often starts locally—with conversation, experimentation and collective imagination.
Finding Hope in a Time of Uncertainty
At the heart of this episode lies a quiet but powerful message. Despite ecological crisis, political dysfunction and widespread burnout, many people are yearning for something different. Not faster growth, not more consumption, but more time, more connection, and a deeper sense of meaning.
Degrowth offers a language for these intuitions. The new economy movement offers a home for people exploring them. And conversations like this remind us that alternatives are not only necessary—they are already emerging.
For those curious to learn more, the Degrowth Network Australia and the New Economy Network Australia (NENA) provide resources, community events and opportunities to get involved. Links to key readings and tools are included in the episode notes.
