Center for Sustainable Economy

CSE is a 25-year-old environmental economics think tank that works to speed the transition to a sustainable society. We do this by analyzing the impacts of public policy, programs, and projects, by developing creative solutions for government agencies, businesses, non-profits, and educators, and by providing expert support for legislative, administrative, and legal campaigns. We keep our organization lean and effective by minimizing administrative staff and overhead and by relying on a network of distinguished fellows with expertise in the fields of ecological economics, conservation biology, sustainability analysis, and public interest law. We serve our partners by providing expertise they need but also take initiative on our own campaigns when key opportunities arise.

Our Vision

We believe that a swift transition to a New Economy based on the principles of sustainable development is the only way to emerge from the converging crises of global economic collapse, climate change, and resource depletion in a manner that is just, rapid, and minimizes harm, especially to those least well-off. Hallmarks of the New Economy have been well-researched. It is the transition that needs to happen now. We need to marshal vast knowledge, skills, and resource of humanity to create a New Economy that:

• Measures progress by improvements in well-being and not expansion of the scale and scope of market economic activity.
• Recognizes the immense value and importance of relationships and activities outside the so called formal sector.
• Is based on a renewable energy platform, guarantees basic human needs, discourages wasteful consumption, and invests in rather than depletes natural, physical, social and cultural capital.
• Replaces brutal and wasteful competition between nations, businesses, and individuals with one that binds us together in cooperative frameworks for solving civilization’s most urgent problems.
• Is firmly ensconced within the Earth’s ecological limits and guided by our spiritual and ethical traditions.
• Is diverse, adaptable, localized, and resilient.