Can natural capital be replaced? How the weak versus strong sustainability divide will shape our common future

This event celebrates the open access publication of the 5th edition of Weak versus Strong Sustainability. First published in 1999, the book has remained a reference point in the debate on sustainable development. Eric Neumayer will discuss how the question of whether natural capital can be substituted by other forms of capital lies at the heart of the controversy.

Proponents of weak sustainability maintain this is possible, whilst followers of strong sustainability regard natural capital or at least certain critical forms of natural capital as non-substitutable. Looking at natural resource availability and economic growth and using global warming and other major environmental issues as examples, he shows how policies and solutions radically differ depending on which paradigm is more plausible.