Doughnut Economics warns: The world is growing beyond its limits
A new global analysis inspired by the Doughnut Economics framework warns that humanity continues to live beyond the planet’s ecological limits, while economic growth still fails to meet the basic needs of billions. Researchers call for abandoning GDP as the primary measure of progress and shifting toward an economy centered on human well-being and the restoration of Earth’s ecosystems, Kazinform News Agency correspondent reports, citing Phys.org.
What is the doughnut?
Doughnut Economics is a model developed by British economist Kate Raworth as an alternative to the idea of endless economic growth. The model is visualized as a doughnut: the inner ring represents the social foundation - access to food, water, housing, healthcare, education, and equality - while the outer ring marks the ecological ceiling, the limits of Earth’s natural resources. The space in between is the “safe zone,” where humanity can thrive by meeting everyone’s needs without exceeding the planet’s capacity.
Why it challenges GDP
Traditional economics measures success through GDP growth, which tracks the flow of money but says little about quality of life or sustainability. In recent decades, economies have expanded alongside growing inequality and environmental degradation. Raworth proposes a new benchmark for progress - not how much we produce, but how well we live within the doughnut: ensuring a good life for all while staying within the planet’s boundaries.
New research
In a study published in Nature, researchers unveiled an updated global “doughnut” based on 35 indicators tracking social deprivation and ecological overshoot from 2000 to 2022.
Despite the world’s GDP having doubled in that period, progress in reducing deprivation remains minimal. To achieve basic well-being for everyone by 2030, the pace of social improvements would need to increase fivefold. At the same time, humanity must halt ecological overshoot and double the speed of ecosystem recovery.
Planetary limits under pressure
Humanity has already crossed six of the nine planetary boundaries. Chemical pollution and species extinction are now exceeding safe levels by a factor of ten, threatening the stability of Earth’s systems. Meanwhile, 9% of the global population still lacks access to electricity, and 75% believe their societies are corrupt, a reminder that the challenge is not only material, but also institutional.
Inequality built into growth
The study also highlights how unevenly the benefits and costs of global growth are distributed.
The richest 20% of countries, home to just 15% of the world’s population, are responsible for 40% of ecological overshoot. Meanwhile, the poorest 40% of countries, accounting for 42% of the population, experience 60% of the world’s social shortfall. Wealthy nations live beyond the planet’s means through overconsumption, degrading ecosystems, while poorer ones remain within ecological limits but fail to secure a decent standard of living for their citizens. This imbalance reveals the deep structural inequality embedded in the global economy.
The doughnut in practice
The authors call for a paradigm shift — away from GDP growth as the main goal and toward an economy that restores ecosystems and distributes resources fairly. A regenerative economy heals nature; a distributive one meets everyone’s basic needs. The “new direction of progress,” they argue, is to close the social shortfall and the ecological overshoot at the same time. This, in their view, is what true success in the 21st century should look like.
Earlier, Kazinform News Agency reported that WTO raised 2025 global trade growth forecast to 2.4 pct.