Decoupling economic growth from environmental degradation is a central tenet of green capitalism, which seeks to address climate change and ecological crises.
Historical precedents illustrate the pitfalls of such strategies. In Czechoslovakia, amid oil shocks and environmental pressures, the communist regime attempted to enhance energy efficiency and shift its economy towards a model that would minimise ecological damage. This included significant investments in technologies like nuclear energy. However, these efforts ultimately failed, leading to more profound ecological crises contributing to the regime's decline.
This paper examines the state socialist energetic and ecological policies implemented in Czechoslovakia, exploring their socio-ecological context and the implications of their failure. The central claim is that these policies aimed to decouple the economic growth of state socialist Czechoslovakia from the global energy market, the same as from ecological harms.
By analysing these historical examples, this paper aims to contribute to the ongoing discourse on green capitalism, highlighting the complexities and limitations of decoupling efforts in socialist and capitalist contexts.
Matěj Moravanský, PhD student, UK & LMU, climate reporter of Deník Referendum. Faculty of Arts, Charles University & Historisches Seminar der Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität München
Zoom-Link: https://us06web.zoom.us/j/82411073728?pwd=psXL3epre7SnKMCqV03WzsM4JRUocQ.1
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