Faced with an ecological crisis of existential proportions, the economic relations of capitalism have only fanned the flames. The transformation of property relations is an urgent necessity, but not, in itself, enough to save us. Enter ‘degrowth’: a concept that radically challenges contemporary life, culture and economics as we know it.

Through an impressive synthesis of the traditions of eco-Marxism and feminist ecological economics, Éric Pineault presents a well-rounded critique of contemporary capitalist growth and its socio-ecological contradictions, in which growth is understood as both a biophysical and accumulation process.

The book provides fresh answers to key questions of current socio-ecological debates: Why does capitalist society depend on accelerating growth? Why is the constant upscaling of its economic process necessary for its social stability? How does this deepen the ecological contradictions that humanity now faces? And what can we learn from this for our understanding of emancipatory futures?

An original theory of contemporary capitalist growth and its socio-ecological contradictions

Introduction: The Postgrowth Condition and the Social Ecology of Capital
1. The Metabolism of Capitalist Society and the Biophysical Foundations of Accumulation
2. The Growth Imperative of Advanced Capitalism and the Corporate Form: On the Organization of Surplus Production and Absorption
3. An Escalatory Accumulation Regime: The Structural Coupling of Overproduction to Overconsumption as a Mode of Regulation and Way of Life
4. On Capitalized Sources, Sinks and Forcings: Accelerating the Throughput of Capitalist Society and Deepening its Socioecological Contradictions
5. An Impossible Transition: The Political and Cultural Dependence on Growth in Capitalist Society
Conclusion: The Degrowth Imperative: An Economy of Limits Beyond Capitalism and Growth

'A remarkably insightful analysis of the complex interface between capital and nature. This is indispensable reading for scholars, students and activists'

'A Social Ecology of Capital is essential reading for all interested in ecological crises, limits to growth, and alternatives. Its materialist-feminist analysis of growth as biophysical expansion and accumulation presents a much-needed foundation for understanding our current predicament'

'In systematically illuminating the material flows and constraints of fossil-fuelled capitalism, Pineault has compiled a useful guide to social metabolism for Marxists. He shows that, to understand our global ecological predicament, we must go beyond Marx in establishing a materialist social science'

'A timely and urgent analysis which seeks to comprehend our ecological plight through an elucidation of monopoly capital'

'Social ecology is further developed by Éric Pineault with this fascinating theoretical and empirical study. He shows how capital as a social relation exercises its domination - and how contested this is. A must read for scholars, students, activists, progressive politicians and the interested public!'

‘Eric Pineault's book is a true Capital in the 21st Century. One where ecology matters’

'Applying biophysical accounting methods from social ecology, Pineault analyses the metabolism of capitalism. It provides important lessons for scholars and activists about the root causes of ongoing environmental crises and the need for an encompassing social ecological transformation'

An original theory of contemporary capitalist growth and its socio-ecological contradictions