political economy, capitalism and sustainable development政治经济,资本主义和可持续发展.pdfVIP

Sustainability 2010, 2, 2601-2616; doi:10.3390/su2082601 OPEN ACCESS sustainability ISSN 2071-1050 /journal/sustainability Article Political Economy, Capitalism and Sustainable Development George Liodakis Department of Sciences, Technical University of Crete, 73100 Chania, Greece; E-Mail: liod@science.tuc.gr; Tel.: +30-2821-037-317; Fax: +30-2821-037-843 Received: 13 July 2010; in revised form: 5 August 2010 / Accepted: 10 August 2010 / Published: 18 August 2010 Abstract: After a critical review of conventional approaches to sustainability, this paper contrasts orthodox (neoclassical) economic theory with a political economy approach, arguing that such an approach focusing on the historically specific organizational form of production and the inherent characteristics of the capitalist mode of production is crucial for exploring the preconditions, the content and the prospects of sustainability. Analyzing briefly these characteristics and the developmental trends of capitalism, we locate the basic causes behind the currently exacerbated economic and ecological crisis, and on these grounds we briefly explore the required systemic transformations necessary to ensure a socially and ecologically, truly sustainable development. Keywords: political economy; Marxist theory; capitalism; sustainability conditions; sustainable development 1. Introduction It would be expected that sustainability should be a major conc