Prof Tom Kuppens studied commercial engineering, because he wanted to understand how the world works both technologically and economically. He soon discovered that economics courses had a strong focus on the neo-classical theory of profit maximisation and infinite economic growth. The pressure on our planet, has seen new theories gradually emerge that haven’t yet reached students and teachers of economics. With a wide range of options, Tom hopes to reach the economics teachers of tomorrow, at UHasselt and VUB.

Economics and sustainability are not mutually exclusive. On the contrary, if we want to face the challenges of the 21st century, we have to reconcile them. The first step to reforming the economy is to start with young people.

“I always wanted to teach, and in my youth I was interested in everything,” says Tom. “I started studying commercial engineering in particular, because it was a multi-faceted course: mathematics, languages, technology... Profit and economic growth never really interested me. Inequality and environmental problems, however, did.

“For my PhD, I first dove into research around gender and equal opportunities, and after two years I changed to environmental economics. I researched how plants can be used to clean up soil in an environmentally friendly way. The answer from classical economics was as simple as it was sobering: it’s not profitable. I had the feeling that I wasn’t getting anything done with my publications in scientific magazines, that I wasn’t having any impact. And then the opportunity came to work on the economics teacher training programme at UHasselt, then later at VUB.”

Breaking through classical mindsets

“It’s true that in economics textbooks you read very little about the need to move away from the neo-liberal framework, the continuous pursuit of economic growth. Meanwhile, there are many economists who tell a different story, such as Esther Duflo, Mariana Mazzucato and Kate Raworth. Coincidentally or not, they are all women. I also want to offer these theories, and then it’s up to the young people to think for themselves. Above all, I want them to form their own opinions, and not to blindly adopt the traditional frameworks.

“The time is ripe; the seed has been planted. A lot is changing in society. A lot of companies are making a sustainable transition. There are the young people’s climate protests, the EU Green Deal, the new Brussels policy plan. The woolly liberal image is disappearing.”

Working with young people

“I am also active in the Copernicus Alliance, in which we try to bring together economics and sustainability education at an international level. We want to bring their Higher Education Summit to Belgium in 2022.

“At UHasselt we had the tradition of setting up an annual sustainability day with the trainee teachers, students and companies. I now want to take similar initiatives at VUB, for example with the DESIDERATRA project, supported by the King Baudouin Foundation. In it, we and our VUB students will work on the climate with young people in Brussels who are difficult to reach. They often live in vulnerable situations, so they have other concerns than rising sea levels or climate refugees. However, if you can make it clear to them what impact climate change has on their personal lives, you might be able to engage them. They often live in poorly insulated homes and are hit extra hard by the effects of climate change. Or they cannot afford cars that meet the latest emissions standards, so they will be taxed disproportionately through carbon taxes. These are issues that they experience directly themselves.”

Because it can be done

“The approach and tone around sustainability is essential. Stories of doom and gloom have a paralysing effect. It’s best to respond to emotion, explain the personal impact and emphasise the positive possibilities. You shouldn’t do it because you have to, but because you can.

“There is still a lot of work, but that work is possible. To meet the Paris climate targets, we need to get the global ‘circularity gap metric’ from 8 or 9% to 17%. These are not insurmountable challenges, but we still have work to do. Although Belgium ranks 11th according to the Sustainable Development Report, we have not yet fully achieved any of the 17 Millennium Development Goals.

“In the meantime, a lot of companies are leading by example with new business models that integrate the social and circular economy. Coffee roasting company Ray & Jules roasts its coffee beans using solar energy, and by setting up those panels and roasting activities with farmers in the South, it is also redistributing wealth. The 90/10 profit model becomes a 50/50. Honest Jeans makes jeans from old jeans. Permafungi grows mushrooms in recycled coffee grounds.”

The power of the doughnut

“In all these sustainable transition projects, you see the combination of measures for people and planet. This is also the essence of economist Kate Raworth’s doughnut economy. The inner circle of the doughnut is the minimum social threshold to guarantee basic welfare for all, the social foundation. On the outside you see the maximum limits for pressure on our natural resources, the ecological limits. We must fit our human activities between these two circles, into the doughnut. It’s a powerful image. Economics lives from powerful images and models. The doughnut is an economy for prosperity instead of profit.

“Traditional economics naively believes in growth of gross domestic product. Believers defend this with models in which the ecological footprint first rises with growth but then drops back from a critical point, known as the environmental Kuznets curve. If you did this for everyone, you would need five planets. You can’t do it.

“Everywhere you see the doughnut popping up as a sustainable compass. Brussels is the second city after Amsterdam to embrace the doughnut economy as a model for its new urban policy plan. Other cities are following. The mindset is changing, including very close to our university.”

The sustainability transition starts in the classroom. Give us another doughnut.

Do you want to find your purpose and join the fight for justice? Take a look at The World Needs You under Prosperity.

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