Development as multidimensional environmental impoverishment
Martínez Alier, Joan (Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona. Institut de Ciència i Tecnologia Ambientals)
Rodríguez-Labajos, Beatriz (Universitat Pompeu Fabra. Departament de Ciències Polítiques i Socials)

Date:	2026
Abstract:	Poverty is multidimensional. Economic growth often implies environmental impoverishment and hence diminished options to choose valuable lives. People who are deprived of access to land, clean water and air because of extractive industries or as victims of waste disposal, often complain accordingly. They have lost freedom of choice regardless possible income increases, if they get them at all. We illustrate this with examples of ecological distribution conflicts collected in the EJAtlas. If you get some extra money but lose access to land, water and clean air because extractive industries grab your place and pollute your family, you are poorer in some dimensions than before, and poverty estimates need to take this into account.
Grants:	European Commission 101124195
Note:	Unidad de excelencia María de Maeztu CEX2019-000940-M
Rights:	Aquest document està subjecte a una llicència d'ús Creative Commons. Es permet la reproducció total o parcial, la distribució, la comunicació pública de l'obra i la creació d'obres derivades, sempre que no sigui amb finalitats comercials, i sempre que es reconegui l'autoria de l'obra original.
Language:	Anglès
Document:	Article de revisió ; recerca ; Versió publicada
Subject:	Development as freedom ; Ecological distribution conflicts ; Environmental impoverishment ; Multi-dimensional poverty
Published in:	World development, Vol. 199 (March 2026) , art. 107228, ISSN 0305-750X

DOI: 10.1016/j.worlddev.2025.107228

4 p, 424.5 KB

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Research literature > UAB research groups literature > Research Centres and Groups (research output) > Experimental sciences > Institut de Ciència i Tecnologia Ambientals (ICTA)
Articles > Research articles
Articles > Published articles