Moral and ethical foundations for ecological economics

The physical reality of finite planetary resources coupled with an unbridled appetite for consumption by an increasing population brings humanity new questions about the nature of how we organize ourselves to sustain life. We examine the moral and ethical foundations of economics and how they influence behavior and outcomes to inform the ecological economics research agenda. We begin with two fundamental assertions: (1) economics is unavoidably moral, an ethical system through and through; and (2) governance based on economics reflects the fundamental values embedded in economics. The implicit ethical foundation of neoclassical economics is that consumers are sovereign, and the function of an economy is to satisfy their subjective individual preferences. A broad range of moral and ethical foundations of relationships with nature and economy are explored to stimulate research questions for ecological economics that move us toward more sustainable wellbeing futures.