Eurocentrism, development, and the challenge of decolonization: Notes on the 2025 Degrowth Conference

Abstract

This article reflects on the 2025 International Degrowth Conference in Oslo, highlighting the tensions revealed in its treatment of Eurocentrism and “development alternatives.” It argues, first, that degrowth is Eurocentric, since it is rooted in critiques of capitalist modernity from the North; however, this does not preclude dialogue with the South as it can serve as a resource among other critical traditions. Secondly, the article contends that degrowth must move beyond blaming the North alone, by also interrogating the complicity of Southern states, elites, and NGOs in sustaining extractivism and dependency. Drawing on postdevelopment, decolonial thought, and Ivan Illich’s notion of the war on subsistence, the article argues that one of the central tasks of degrowth should be to confront the coloniality of development itself, rather than simply managing scale. It concludes that degrowth embodies contradictory impulses—between critique and reproduction—and that its relevance depends on orienting material downscaling toward concrete alliances with pluriversal, decolonial struggles.

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Carlos Tornel a

a Global Tapestry of Alternatives and the Ecoterritorial and Intercultural Pact of the South  

http://doi.org/10.36399/Degrowth.003.01.10 

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How to cite

APA

Eurocentrism, development, and the challenge of decolonization: Notes on the 2025 Degrowth Conference . (2025). In Degrowth Journal (Vol. 3). https://doi.org/10.36399/Degrowth.003.01.10

MLA

“Eurocentrism, Development, and the Challenge of Decolonization: Notes on the 2025 Degrowth Conference .” Degrowth Journal, vol. 3, Dec. 2025, https://doi.org/10.36399/Degrowth.003.01.10.

Chicago

“Eurocentrism, Development, and the Challenge of Decolonization: Notes on the 2025 Degrowth Conference .” 2025. In Degrowth Journal, vol. 3. https://doi.org/10.36399/Degrowth.003.01.10.

Harvard

“Eurocentrism, development, and the challenge of decolonization: Notes on the 2025 Degrowth Conference ”(2025) Degrowth Journal. Available at: https://doi.org/10.36399/Degrowth.003.01.10.