{"id":5073,"date":"2026-01-21T14:10:23","date_gmt":"2026-01-21T14:10:23","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/sites.manchester.ac.uk\/global-social-challenges\/?p=5073"},"modified":"2026-01-21T14:10:23","modified_gmt":"2026-01-21T14:10:23","slug":"the-growth-trap-how-endless-profit-keeps-the-planet-burning","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/sites.manchester.ac.uk\/global-social-challenges\/2026\/01\/21\/the-growth-trap-how-endless-profit-keeps-the-planet-burning\/","title":{"rendered":"The Growth Trap: How Endless Profit Keeps the Planet Burning"},"content":{"rendered":"

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Article by Binbin Mei<\/p>\n

Photo by: Lubna Badi. \u201cCommunism versus \u2018Degrowth\u2019: How to Combat the Climate Crisis.\u201d The Communist, 28 Mar. 2025<\/p>\n

Wildfires are over our summers. Floods drown our winters. Droughts kill millions of our population. And despite these, the world\u2019s richest companies are still posting record profits and economic achievements. Every year, the climate emergency grows louder,
but the solutions feel farther away than ever. Why? Because climate change isn\u2019t a glitch in our system \u2014 it is the system itself.<\/p>\n

Sociologist John Urry clearly argued this in his essay \u201cSociology and Climate Change\u201d (2009). He explains that our societies are built around a \u201chigh-carbon\u201d way of life. Almost every human activity, which are things we do everyday, from commuting to shopping to streaming online, relies on burning fossil fuels which are the emissions of carbon dioxide. And since our economy depends on constant growth, we\u2019re basically locked into a cycle that\u2019s nearly impossible to break. As Economic growth feeds capitalism, companies must always produce more, sell more, and make more profit. Every faster delivery, every long-haul flight and every newer technology contribute to the thickening of the ozone layer. Even products that seem \u201ceco-friendly\u201d, like electric cars, solar panels, recycled clothing, still rely on resource extraction and global supply chains that burn fossil fuels, they are more of a gimmick the companies came up with to make themselves appear more environmentally conscious.<\/p>\n

This isn\u2019t just an economic problem, but a social problem. Consumerism teaches us that buying more equals living better and owning more equals the more happy. Social media, luxury brands\u2019 high fashion, influencer culture, and endless advertising keep us hooked on endless consumption. And corporations assure us we can \u201cshop sustainably.\u201d according to their CSR policies. But in reality, every purchase feeds the same high-carbon logic. As journalist Naomi Klein once wrote, \u201cClimate change is a civilizational wake-up call.\u201d It\u2019s not just about saving polar bears; it\u2019s about confronting a system built to profit from destruction.<\/p>\n

Urry\u2019s analysis hits the mark: \u201cgreen growth\u201d is comforting but misleading. The system\u2019s core: endless profit and consumption, remains unchanged. Take greenwashing, as an example. Oil giants like BP and Shell brand themselves as \u201ceco-friendly\u201d while expanding fossil fuel production. Shell once wanted to sink an entire platform into the ocean. Not a shipwreck, but a massive offshore rig, part of its plan to expand fossil fuel extraction. While executives promise \u201cnet zero\u201d and greener operations, the company continues investing in projects that add more carbon to the atmosphere. Moreover, fashion brands release \u201csustainable\u201d lines made from recycled polyester, still derived from petroleum. You know what\u2019s more ironic? Even global climate conferences like COP28 are dominated by fossil fuel lobbyists, turning promises of reform into theatre.<\/p>\n

Why can\u2019t we just fix the problem? For this question, Urry compares capitalism to a \u201cgenie released from the bottle.\u201d Once released during the Industrial Revolution, it transformed the world, and now it\u2019s almost impossible to control. Our cities, our jobs, even our leisure depend on carbon-heavy infrastructures. Commuting, heating homes, air-conditioners, eating imported food , we barely notice how dependent we are, and even if we do, it\u2019s impossible to change in the short-run. We are powerless under a system that has runned for so many years. This dependency on high carbon emission lifestyles also exposes inequality: The richest 10% of population are responsible for over half of global emissions, while those in the Global South bear the harshest consequences: drought, flooding, and famine.<\/p>\n

Urry emphasizes that the hardest challenge isn\u2019t technology or money, it\u2019s imagination. It is the struggle for us to picture a world beyond fossil fuels because our \u201cnormal\u201d life is built on them. But hope exists if imagination is abundant. Grassroots movements are already imagining alternatives: circular economies, community-owned renewable energy, and youth-led activism like Fridays for Future. As Klein says, \u201cWe need an entirely new economic model.\u201d, we also need new ways of living and connecting, where success isn\u2019t measured by Economic growth but by sustainability, care, and equality.If nothing changes, global greenhouse gas emissions could triple by the end of this century. Future generations may face food shortage crises, extreme weather, and more natural disasters. The planet has been and is giving us warnings, but capitalism can\u2019t answer them and is not willing to change.<\/p>\n

Urry\u2019s message is correct and clear: Real transformation requires confronting our collective carbon addiction and rethinking how we live, work, and consume. The disaster has already begun, and calamity is imminent, but if we dare to imagine differently, and are willing to contribute as an individual, there\u2019s still time to rewrite the story.<\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/p>\n

References:<\/p>\n

Klein, Naomi. This Changes Everything: Capitalism vs. The Climate. Simon & Schuster, 2014.<\/p>\n

Urry, John. \u201cSociology and Climate Change.\u201d The Sociological Review, vol. 57, no. s2, 2009, pp. 84\u2013100.<\/p>\n

BBC News. \u201cShell and BP \u2018Greenwash\u2019 Accusations Amid Net Zero Pledges.\u201d BBC News, 29 Apr. 2023, https:\/\/www.bbc.com\/news\/business-65270309<\/a>.<\/p>\n

The Guardian. \u201cCOP28 Dominated by Fossil Fuel Lobbyists, Critics Say.\u201d The Guardian, 3 Dec. 2023, https:\/\/www.theguardian.com\/environment\/2023\/dec\/03\/cop28-fossil-fuel-lobbyists<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Oxfam. \u201cWorld\u2019s Richest 10 Percent Emit Half of Global Carbon Emissions.\u201d Oxfam, 19 Oct. 2022, https:\/\/www.oxfam.org\/en\/press-releases\/worlds-richest-10-percent-emit-half-global-carbon-emissions<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC). AR6 Synthesis Report: Climate Change 2023. IPCC, 2023, https:\/\/www.ipcc.ch\/report\/ar6-syr\/<\/a>.<\/p>\n

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