Women have been particularly affected by this crisis. While this ecological and social crisis is deepening, economic growth is becoming the central preoccupation of businesses and governments worldwide. The Asian and Pacific region, in particular, is seen as a showcase of economies for other regions to emulate. Regional case studies documented in this book illustrate the human and environmental costs of such growth. This book shows how economic growth and impoverishment are two sides of the same coin.
Money gives the power to buy up the resources of the world.
Twenty per cent of the world's population consume eighty per cent of the world's resources. This leads not just to environmental degradation, but also to widespread rural poverty as local communities, especially women, lose their livelihood resources. In a world of finite resources, the growth of some leads to the deprivation of others. This situation is both unsustainable and inequitable. A holistic strategy of transformation is needed.