This vision is fascinating in multiple respects. It is
simultaneously dystopian and utopian, presenting a
narrative that combines an apocalyptic warning with
the possibility of a type of secular renewal achieved
through a process of personal and (especially) collective
transformation. Like Pinchot and the WCED,
this vision emphasizes the need to conserve natural
resources and ecosystems as the foundation of a sustainable
future, combined with the need to redistribute
wealth to achieve equity in an ecologically limited
world. Unlike the WCED, however, Meadows et al.
present the seemingly straightforward argument that,
because economic growth is the perceived driver behind
resource depletion and environmental degradation,
the cessation of economic growth should be embraced
an operational objective in the attainment of
sustainability