The True Cost of Growth: Sir Partha Dasgupta on Natural Capital

The True Cost of Growth: Sir Partha Dasgupta on Natural Capital

Renowned economist Sir Partha Dasgupta on why our economic models are failing us – and how rethinking value could save the planet.

For too long, economic success has been defined by one measure: growth. But what if this approach is incomplete? What if we’ve been overlooking the most valuable foundation of prosperity—nature itself?

Renowned economist Sir Partha Dasgupta challenges the way we think about wealth, arguing that true prosperity isn’t just about financial capital but also the natural world that sustains us. Clean air, water, and thriving ecosystems have been treated as limitless resources in economic models, but as climate change accelerates, ignoring their value is no longer an option.

At The Conduit Sir Partha Dasgupta joins Baroness Rosie Boycott for a conversation on redefining prosperity. Drawing on his groundbreaking work—shaping policies from the UN to global leaders like David Attenborough—we will explore how we can integrate nature into economic decision-making, rethink growth, and create a future where economic success and environmental sustainability go hand in hand.

Event Schedule

6:00pm: Pre-event socialising and networking

A cash bar will be available for refreshments.

6:15pm: Event begins

7:30pm: Event ends

Speakers

Partha Dasgupta is the Frank Ramsey Professor Emeritus of Economics at the University of Cambridge, Fellow of St John’s College, and Director of the Darwin-Hamied Centre for Biodiversity and Demography, Christ’s College, Cambridge. He is a Fellow of the Royal Society and a Foreign Member of the US National Academy of Sciences and the American Philosophical Society and was awarded the 2021 Kew International Medal of the Royal Botanic Gardens Kew. In 2022 he was made Knight Grand Cross of the British Empire by His Majesty King Charles III for ‘services to economics and the natural environment’.

Baroness Rosie Boycott is a former newspaper and magazine editor and currently a cross bench peer in the House of Lords. Baroness Boycott spent 10 years as chair of the London Food Board and is the vice chair of Peers for the Planet, the cross-party climate and nature action group in the House of Lords. 

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