No. 1 - Ecological lessons for a sustainable economic future
In search of root causes
Our traditional approach to economics has created a world of great wealth imbalances while degrading social and environmental systems across the Earth. The root cause of this failure, according to a MIT economist Dr. Simon Johnson, is that economists have not understood the structure of a sustainable economy1. Earth’s ecosystems, it so happens, operate on the same systems principles as our economies,2 and offer timely lessons to restoring our economies to a sustainable state.3
Eco-Nomics articles stem from news and political articles, conversations in coffee shops and pubs, and notes from readers and public audiences. Articles put ecological knowledge (the rules of nature) to the test, offering solutions to pressing social, environmental, and economic challenges. Can nature’s wisdom arm humanity with the tools needed to reshape the way we do business, govern, shop, eat, share resources, create, and love? There is a lot riding on the answer.
Ecological Insights into our Economies
When we are not in pure awe of nature, we might ponder nature’s rules that, for instance, allow a great diversity of life to thrive on Earth under a regime of constant disturbance. What, exactly, are the benefits of diversity? Is stability really possible? What does resilience mean for a pine forest, meadow, or jungle? Is there ecological equivalents of the wealth gap, productivity growth, innovation, profit, and so on?
In ecosystems such as forests and meadows, resilience and resistance increase with the diversity of species, mirroring the common investment strategy “Don’t put all your eggs in one basket.” Economists and ecologists both refer to this coupling of resistance and resilience as stability. This is covered in the Eco-Nomics article, ‘The Yang of Resilience,’ including eight benefits of diversity for our economies.
Just as we study other mammals to better understand how to maintain healthy human bodies, we study ecosystems in part to find clues to maintaining healthier economies, and how to restore our economies to a sustainable state. Sustainable economies are capable of supporting a region’s—or a nation’s—needs into perpetuity, without jeopardizing the needs of others, nor impairing the health of the ecosystems our survival depends upon.
In pursuing a sustainable economic model, don’t we jeopardize our quality of life? Through this series of articles, we might conclude that sustainability is not an obstacle to a quality life, but is in fact necessary to sustaining our quality of life in a highly turbulent century. We simply need to define sustainability differently, and pursue it with a new set of policies and programs.
The Power of Mutual Benefit (and the key to unlocking it)
In nature, the survival of every plant, bird and insect rests on its ability to meet its own needs. Only, in pursuing one’s own needs the interests of others are also served. Natural systems are structured to thrive via mutual benefits, or reciprocity.
A classic example is a garden pea plant, which must obtain nitrogen to thrive in a garden. It so happens that Earth’s atmosphere is comprised mostly of nitrogen. That nitrogen, however, is not in a form that can be absorbed by plant roots. Peas solved this dilemma eons ago, by forming a biological bond with nitrogen-fixing bacteria, which convert nitrogen from the air into plant-usable nitrogen in the soil (e.g., ammonium).
Still, the basic rules of nature dictate that the bacteria must also benefit.
Bacteria need sugar, which plants produce in abundance during photosynthesis—a critical processes for sustaining life on Earth. Pea plants have evolved small nodules on the surface of their roots, to house nitrogen-fixing bacteria. Inside, bacteria receive a reliable source of sugar, and the pea plant receives an abundance of usable nitrogen. This sort of mutual benefit is what ecologists refer to as symbiosis. Such beneficial relationships emerge naturally, when systems are structured in a way that rewards them.
Mutual benefit (symbiosis) is one of the most primeval rules of life on Earth. Honey bees provide the service of pollination in exchange for a plant’s sugar-rich nectar. Both species benefit, and humans receive a tasty treat: honey. Photo by J.H. Giordanengo.
In Search of Root Causes
Principles such as symbiosis, resilience, and resistance provide great guidance for our economies. But unearthing the actual structure of an economy that would naturally reward such principles requires we dig deeper. To create lasting change, we must first discover the root causes of the social, environmental, and economic problems we face. The mission of Eco-Nomics is to explore the common structure of ecosystems and economies, and to apply this root knowledge to restoring our economies—to a sustainable state.
In symbiotic fashion, economic restoration not only benefits our communities financially and socially, but it has far-reaching implications for the health and resilience of Earth’s ecosystems. Eco-Nomics articles cover a wide range of industries and sectors, with implications for energy and food security, circularity and recycling, productivity and profitability, job creation, and more.
In economies and ecosystems, everything is connected. When our economies are structured in a way that allows business and industry to meet fiscal needs in the process of generating social and environmental benefits, those sustainable advantages are difficult to undermine with future political shifts and other global turbulence. That is, the solutions are sustainable by design.
Economic restoration is the process of healing what is broken, policy by policy, consumer by consumer, business by business, and nation by nation.
About the Author
John H. Giordanengo (jor-da-nayn-go) asked two simple questions in business school in the early 90s: “Are Earth’s ecosystems and economies built around the same model? If so, how can we apply this knowledge to forge a sustainable future?” In the process, John founded three companies and four NGOs dedicated to sustainability, ecological restoration, and conservation. His newest venture, the Economic Restoration Institute, works across public, private, and philanthropic realms to restore regional and state economies. John engages audiences around the globe on the structure of sustainable economies, and practical strategies for industry leaders, consumers, and policy makers to forge lasting environmental and social change. His investigative interviews with economists, farmers, academics, manufacturers, and others bring a global perspective to our understanding of sustainable economics and conservation. Those stories are woven into the 2nd edition of his book Ecosystems as Models for Restoring our Economies, Anthem Press. Work has a way of adding up over time. John has authored over 150 articles, books, and professional papers, and has lectured across the globe on subjects of ecology and sustainable economics. John’s work is inspired by the awe of nature, music, and our shared human struggle.
Wessel, D. 2007. “Why Economists Are Still Grasping to Cure Global Poverty.” Wall Street Journal. 11 Jan, 2007. Accessed on 11 Nov, 2022. https://www.wsj.com/articles/SB116845440351672808
Giordanengo, J.H. 2025. Ecosystems as Models for Restoring our Economies (to a sustainable state). Anthem Press.
Sustainability is the ability of a community, region, or nation to meet its economic and social needs into perpetuity, without jeopardizing the ability of other communities or nations to meet their needs, and without degrading the health of ecosystems we rely upon.