Donella H. Meadows, Jorgen Randers, Dennis Meadows
I nuovi limiti dello sviluppo

LA RECENSIONE

A small premise: the original edition of the book is titled "Limits to Growth," not "I limiti dello sviluppo." The Italian translation is incorrect, as there is a significant difference between growth and development, and it suggests a book with a pessimistic and backward approach. Nothing could be further from the truth.

The point here is not to encourage a return "backwards," but to urge moving forwards, beyond a system where, instead of development, attention is given to mere economic growth, a system based on inequality, individualism, fierce competition, a system that is seriously risking sinking into a downward spiral. The world the authors envision is quite different, a world where there aren't a few people holding most of the power and wealth, but where everyone can enjoy a well-being that today is for many a distant mirage, living in respect for the planet and all the forms of life that inhabit it.

This is the meaning of the word development.

In these 330 pages, the authors, reaching the third chapter of a journey that began in 1972 with this book, aim to raise awareness among readers about the true great challenge of the new millennium to carry out an epochal revolution. The language is technical, yet easily understandable for anyone curious to learn and willing to break free from the many dogmas preached in society over the past decades.

A book that everyone should read, almost moving in some passages due to the sincerity with which the authors address the reader.

The GDP measures neither our wit nor our courage, neither our wisdom nor our knowledge, neither our compassion nor our devotion to our country. It measures everything, in short, except what makes life truly worth living. (R. K.)