The cost of growth: rethinking the economic narrative to save the planet
What if the climate crisis requires us to fundamentally transform our economic systems? As global decision makers remain wedded to economic growth at any cost, this event responds to the urgent need to explore alternative approaches to sustaining life on Earth.
We begin with a screening of The Cost of Growth, a powerful new documentary which follows climate activists Anuna De Wever and Lena Hartog as they travel through Italy, Serbia, and Sápmi, documenting grassroots resistance to extractivism. The film connects these local struggles with broader debates on war, justice, and democracy - showing how extractive violence is a form of structural warfare on communities and ecosystems.
The screening will be followed by a live Q&A with the film's co-producer, Lena Hartog. This is a unique chance to reflect on the film’s themes, creative process, and the broader questions it raises about growth, climate justice, and civic resistance.
Meet your speaker and chair
Lena Hartog is a PhD candidate at Utrecht University, working on power dynamics, Emotions and movements building alternatives. She co-produced the Cost of Growth, a documentary that exposes the exploitative systems behind Europe's growth story; and highlights the efforts and solidarity of communities resisting extraction.
Frédéric Basso is Associate Professor of Economic Psychology in the Department of Psychological and Behavioural Science, and Research Officer and Advisory Board Member of the Jeremy Coller Centre for Animal Sentience at the London School of Economics. He is also the programme director of the MSc Societal and Environmental Psychology and member of the Post-Growth Transformation Lab at LSE. His academic work aims to apply, improve and extend the literature on embodiment in order to promote a greater understanding of economic life and encourage transformative social and behavioural change that will enable us to flourish within planetary boundaries and in harmony with other living beings and Earth’s life-supporting systems.
Imogen Hamilton-Jones is a Policy Fellow at LSE Cities. Her research centres on urban environmental politics, city government innovation, and the cultural politics of post-growth in European cities. Previously, she was Research Fellow at the Centre for Urban Studies and lecturer in the Anthropology Department at the University of Amsterdam. Before that, she spent several years working in London urban policy.
More about this event
This event is part of the LSE Festival: How to save the planet running from Monday 15 to Saturday 20 June 2026. This year's Festival explores how existential threats including the climate crisis, conflict and AI are affecting all parts of the world, transforming the way and where we live, and how our societies function. With a series of events asking what can we be doing to save the Earth, its people and environment? Booking for all Festival events will open on Monday 18 May.
LSE Cities is an international centre that investigates the complexities of the contemporary city. It carries out research, graduate and executive education, engagement and advisory activities in London and abroad.
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