Just and safe in the form of a donut

Donut-Economy: The economic model

On February 13, 2012, British economist, Kate Raworth, first explained the theory of Donut Economics. In 2017, she published “The Doughnut Economics: Seven Ways to Think Like a 21st-Century Economist.”

Donut economics (British English doughnut economics) assumes the existence of planetary and social boundaries. A safe and equitable space for human civilization to act derives from respect for these boundaries.

The graphic visualization of the concept is in the shape of a donut. The donut ring defines and sustainable economy as a sphere between the deficit and an overuse of various social and environmental factors.

The concept encourages and motivates. It exists, this sphere of sustainable and successful economic activity that benefits companies, the planet and people.

So, what is stopping us?

There is need for action

Even though the model is clear, catchy and motivating, the red zones make unsustainable imbalances abundantly clear and show that sustainable and equitable economic activity, is the future issue for the prosperity of all inhabitants on earth, yes and that it is high time to take action.

Kate Raworth (*1970) studied economics at Oxford. After 20 years working for the United Nations (UN) and Oxfam, she is currently a Visiting Research Fellow, Tutor and Advisory Board member of the Environmental Change Institute at the University of Oxford.

In 2020, she founded the Doughnut Economics Action Lab (DEAL) to translate the ideas of donut economics into concrete practices.

Since April 8, 2020, the model has served as a blueprint for the City of Amsterdam to reimagine urban and economic development.

Kate Raworth is the Recipient of the 2019 Kurt Rothschild Prize of the Karl Renner Institute / Vienna.