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Limits to Material Growth in a Resource Finite World

No Poverty

Part of the book series: Encyclopedia of the UN Sustainable Development Goals ((ENUNSDG))

Synonyms

Constrained growth; Finite growth; Limits to success

Definition

Limits to growth is reached when any system faces a set of constraints, either all together or sequential, that it can only overcome temporarily or not overcome at all in order to maintain its own growth. Limits here could be multiple and multi-dimensional but are generally understood as being physical in nature. The term became popular after the release of the book Limits to Growth (Meadows et al. 1972) and since then has been widely used in the sustainability and sustainable development discourse. Limits to Growth is also a system archetype in the systems thinking discipline.

Introduction

Limits to Growth (LTG) became a subject of debate, research, and reflection after the release of the book (Meadows et al. 1972). LTG became a best seller in several countries, eventually being translated into about 30 languages (Meadows et al. 2004). The fundamental principle of it was that Earth’s resources and its ability to...

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. DESTA Research LLP, New Delhi, India

    Mihir Mathur & Kabir Sharma

  2. Duke University, Durham, NC, USA

    Shubham Sharma

Authors
  1. Mihir Mathur
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  2. Kabir Sharma
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  3. Shubham Sharma
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to Mihir Mathur .

Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. European School of Sustainability, Hamburg University of Applied Sciences, Hamburg, Hamburg, Germany

    Walter Leal Filho

  2. Center for Neuroscience & Cell Biology, University of Coimbra, Coimbra, Portugal

    Anabela Marisa Azul

  3. Faculty of Engineering and Architecture, Passo Fundo University Faculty of Engineering and Architecture, Passo Fundo, Brazil

    Luciana Brandli

  4. HAW Hamburg, Hamburg, Hamburg, Germany

    Amanda Lange Salvia

  5. Istinye University, Istanbul, Turkey

    Pinar Gökcin Özuyar

  6. International Centre for Thriving, University of Chester, Chester, UK

    Tony Wall

Section Editor information

  1. Department of Built Environment, Central University of Technology, Bloemfontein, Free State province, South Africa

    Bankole Awuzie

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Mathur, M., Sharma, K., Sharma, S. (2020). Limits to Material Growth in a Resource Finite World. In: Leal Filho, W., Azul, A., Brandli, L., Lange Salvia, A., Özuyar, P., Wall, T. (eds) No Poverty. Encyclopedia of the UN Sustainable Development Goals. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-69625-6_16-1

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-69625-6_16-1

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  • Publisher Name: Springer, Cham

  • Print ISBN: 978-3-319-69625-6

  • Online ISBN: 978-3-319-69625-6

  • eBook Packages: Springer Reference Earth and Environm. ScienceReference Module Physical and Materials ScienceReference Module Earth and Environmental Sciences

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  1. Latest

    Limits to Material Growth in a Resource Finite World
    Published:
    05 August 2020

    DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-69625-6_16-2

  2. Original

    Limits to Material Growth in a Resource Finite World
    Published:
    02 June 2020

    DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-69625-6_16-1

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