Sustainable Economy
Pinning a community's prosperity on expansion is not a sustainable strategy for economic development. Expansion is neither essential, nor is it necessarily an economic plus for a community.
Myth: A community must be growing in order to have
prosperity.
Fact: There
are many ways to maintain a good standard of living without relying
on expansion (sustainable economic development). Expansion
cannot be sustained indefinitely, so a community that pins its hope
for prosperity on expansion is guaranteed eventual failure.
Myth: Community expansion is good for the local economy and raises per capita income.
Fact: When all the costs of our expansion are accounted for, our community suffers a net loss. Numerous studies document various aspects of this phenomenon. SaveTheSprings places a high priority on shining the spotlight on the hidden costs of growth, so we can make informed decisions about embracing, pursuing, and even subsidizing growth. This is particularly important in the face of a severely limited water resource.
Community Profit and Loss Statement:
Our community makes many decisions based on growth’s false promises of “prosperity for all.” One of our most important projects at SaveTheSprings is to develop a complete accounting for all the true costs and benefits of expansion. Once we have a complete “Growth P&L,” we believe our community will realize it’s “okay” not to be mesmerized by the siren song of growth. If you’re interested in contributing some research, systems or economic expertise to this project, please contact us.
Plugging the Leaks
A key facet of local sustainable economic development is to focus on
plugging the leaks (money leaving town) vs. continuing to fill a leaky
bucket (recruiting companies and in-migrants to move into town). This
is especially important in an area with limited carrying capacity. We
simply don’t have the water resources to base our economic prosperity
on continued community expansion. See
how some other communities are plugging the leaks, here.
One simple way we can all help is to buy locally. Frequently we have a choice between shopping on the internet or at a big chain store and shopping at a locally owned store. Profits from internet or chain store shopping immediately leave town, while the profits of a local merchant are largely spent here in town, helping to maintain a vibrant economy. We’ve lost Chinook Bookstore and McKinsey-White because many of us shopped at Borders and Amazon.com. What other treasured local merchants will we lose?
Buy locally – support locally owned enterprises. Pikes
Peak Independent Business Alliance
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