An ecological monetary theory

Abstract

While money is critical to the modern world, ecological economics does not have a theory of money that is applicable to its theoretical framework and policy prescriptions. Accordingly, the field often defers to an orthodox conception of money that is historically inaccurate and ontologically inconsistent. The dualized nature of Western philosophy informs orthodoxy by defining money according its function as a medium of exchange. This conceptualization creates logical and historical problems that can be addressed by exploring an interdisciplinary literature that defines money according to its nature as a social relation expressed in a unit of account. This paper develops an ecological monetary theory that is simultaneously rooted in a socio-historical understanding of money's nature, and in an ontology of social and ecological embeddedness. Such a theory provides ecological economists, and others concerned with social and ecological equity, with a framework from which to address monetary systems and policy.