Kate Raworth's 'Doughnut Economics' Framework Explained

When we think about the future of our planet, it can be easy to get lost in an endless cycle of doom and gloom. Today’s world is absolutely riddled with problems, from climate change to overpopulation to waste and pollution, that threaten to destroy us if we don’t take drastic action soon. But even with the challenges our planet faces, there are plenty of people and organizations that are working hard to find solutions.

Why we need a circular economy

The circular economy aims to address two big issues facing our planet—the waste problem and inequality—and builds a more sustainable future for us all. As ecological economist Kate Raworth explains, it’s based on a doughnut shape: It’s not enough to just reduce resources; we also need to ensure that everyone has access to them. That means ensuring that people in developing countries have equal access to natural resources as those in developed countries. That might sound utopian, but Raworth says there are lots of things we can do right now to start building a circular economy. For example, instead of producing new goods from scratch (like plastic bottles), companies could recycle their products into new ones—which would drastically cut down on waste and pollution.

The Doughnut of Sustainability

Food systems are fundamental to our economies, societies and futures. As Kate Raworth points out in her theory of Doughnut Economics, a sustainable food system must achieve three goals: it must maximize people’s well-being (the doughnut hole); do so within planetary boundaries (the doughnut) and build resilient communities (the chocolate sprinkles). The same is true for circular economies. In order to be truly sustainable, products should be designed with both resource efficiency and human health in mind. By keeping these principles at its core, we can create healthier, more prosperous and fairer societies that also protect our planet. That’s why we love Kate Raworth’s Doughnut Economics—it challenges us to think about how we can work together towards creating a better world!

Where Does Our Economy Stand?

You’ve probably heard of GDP—gross domestic product. It’s a popular measure of economic progress that does have some serious limitations, though. A new alternative called net national income (NNI) attempts to fill in those gaps by taking into account several factors that GDP doesn’t, such as environmental and social damage, unpaid work at home, pollution costs and investment in public infrastructure. This is where Kate Raworth comes in. In her book Doughnut Economics: Seven Ways to Think Like a 21st-Century Economist , she lays out seven key principles for thinking about our economy more holistically. She calls it doughnut economics because it shows how we can move beyond mere growth and toward an economy that works for everyone, not just for corporations or for people with money.

Real Life Examples of Circular Economy in Action

The idea of a circular economy is that we as humans must strive to keep resources in an unbroken, closed loop. We must create systems which allow for materials to be reused or recycled indefinitely instead of our current system which allows for maximum extraction and then waste or disposal.

Can you help move us towards a more circular future?

There’s no question that humans have a negative impact on planet Earth. Our societies consume more resources than Earth can replenish, and our waste has serious environmental implications. But what if we could change that? What if we can minimize our damage to our planet without dramatically changing how we live? Can a Doughnut Economy be possible?

We think so.

How can fashion support a circular future?

We think that good design should promote a circular economy. Products should last for years and be made to be reused. As for those products that are longer in our care, think about the implications for composting; products that outlive us could eventually be composted so that there is never a need for landfills. An example of our work is our totally circular fashion collection, which comes soon and is made from regenerative and recyclable materials, and 100% plastic free of course.

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In conversation with: The Fashion Psychologist

Who would have thought that Fashion Psychologist would be a professional title? Dr. Dawnn Karen did. After having gone through a personal trauma, she build herself back up starting with her wardrobe. No, she did not go shopping to feel better; she found a connection with a pink suit and leopard print heels she already owned. The moment she put those items on, her healing process slowly began.

Ever since I became aware of the atrocities that go behind the scenes of my wardrobe, I soon learned that psychology plays a vital role in the way we choose what we buy ánd how we treat our garments, shoes, and accessories. It is therefore a great honor to have interviewed thé fashion psychology pioneer for our Women's History Month campaign: Dr. Dawnn Karen.

Dawnn wears Positive Fibers® + Yelim Choi from the BLUE CORAL collection

Defining International Women's Day

"For me it is about highlighting women globally, particularly women of color as I feel that oftentimes we're overlooked." Although progress has been made, you can find individual moments where it appears that we are still stuck in a time warp where the gatekeepers are disallowing progress so we just have to keep pushing through. It is about genuinely being inclusive, not just talking about it, but actually putting in the work beyond one day in a year, she explains.

Circular Economy

When it comes to fashion, the biggest issue she helps to tackle is that of overconsumption. Therefore, she shops second-hand, repeats outfits often, and pushes for being cognizant of using the same materials rather than throwing them away without knowing where they're going. In her book "DRESS YOUR BEST LIFE" she empowers her readers (us included) to truly be mindful when deciding on a purchase. In order to get into a circular economy, a more mindful system, we need to practice that mindfulness first.

Wearing Your Values

Dawnn is a notorious outfit repeater and she's proud to do so as this is how she strives to minimize her fashion footprint. When standing in front of a classroom at FIT, appearing on a TV show, or when facing her clients as a psychologist (correction, the fashion psychologist), she proudly repeats the exact outfits she had worn priorly for years. She mostly shops second-hand and has pieces passed down such as Birkin bags and fur coats.

Challenges

Dawnn explains how during the pandemic it was tempting to shop but she resisted as she does not want to be a part of the problem that is overconsumption. She evangelizes the practice of shopping mindfully, which includes being aware of the problems that fashion industry has created. Being mindful, after all, is what psychology is about.

Influencing Others

First of all, she literally teaches others, as she is a professor at the Fashion Institute of Technology (FIT) in New York City. She teaches her students about their core value system so that they can shop mindfully, which includes learning to repeat outfits as well as not get distracted by ads or influencer posts. She finds a simple but important activity to be to simply give people permission to repeat outfits. A simple but powerful tool for positive change.

Courtesy of Fashion Psychology Success

Challenging the Status Quo

She is not only the first fashion psychologist, but also the first female black fashion psychology professor, based at the top fashion school in the world (FIT). In her book "DRESS YOUR BEST LIFE" she makes it easy for anyone who reads it to simply pause and think about how fashion choices can substantially make us feel better and simultaneously preventing you from falling prey to "buyer's remorse" [i.e. regretting that impulse purchase you made]. Through education, she puts her theories into practice.

Future of Fashion

"I see more psychology into fashion." This is about being more mindful every day, in particular pertaining to clothing. Making choices regarding who you shop from aligned with your value system will make it easy to no more participate in "fashion crimes" like indirectly supporting the existence of sweat shops, modern slavery as currently found with the Uyghurs in China, etc.

Courtesy of Fashion Psychology Success

Environmental Passion

Reducing plastic. She questions what we are dumping in seas and landfills and how we are dealing with waste in and outside of the fashion industry.

Defining Sustainability

Sustainability to Dawnn is about minimizing one's waste. When I asked her "Can we ever live in a waste free world?" she replied: "I don't know if it's possible unless we move to space... and then we'll be creating more waste up there" - it's somehow in our human nature to create, which today unfortunately has resulted in much waste. "Hopefully Elon Musk will come up with something to help us deal with all the waste" she jokes (although with a serious tone).

SDGs at Work

As an academic and an educator, the most prominent SDG her work targets is number 4: Quality Education. Being a staff member at one of the best fashion institutes, her own research is put into the curriculum and empowers the next generation creatives and psychologists. Dawnn deeply cares about good mental health as a priority in the fashion industry. "It should not be a trend", but embedded, long lasting, sustainable. Lastly, pertaining gender equality in fashion, women should just repeat outfits, like men do.

Advice to Young Self

"I would tell my young self... that many people will be inspired by you. Not only will they be inspired, but they will take the inspiration and try to erase you from it, but to keep going because no one can erase what's meant to be." This may come as a surprise, but Dawnn has frequently faced not being acknowledged for her work, have people of lighter skin colors overseas take full credit for her work, and that's just the tip of the iceberg. All we can say is that giving credit where credit is due matters a lot.

Courtesy of Fashion Psychology Success

To listen to her origin story, watch her 2017 TED Talk here. To follow Dr. Dawnn Karen, you can find her on Instagram, watch her YouTube channel or read her book "Dress Your Best Life". Spoiler alert: she's already working on book nr. 2 and I can't wait for it to come out!

If you'd like to discover the full magazine we made in honor of Role Models, then please take a look at our dedicated page.

6 Female Economists You Should Know

In light of the recent International Women's Day and our ongoing Role Models Campaign, we are highlight 6 female economists who are making a positive impact. There are still few female economists out there, but the ones that do exist are making huge strides in their field, and in society as a whole. Here’s our list of female economists who are paving the way for women in science, in sustainability, and fighting for a circular economy.

1) Kate Raworth

Kate Raworth is a Professor of Economics at Oxford University, teaching and researching on global sustainable development. Her book Doughnut Economics is a new economy manifesto and the vision set out in the book has been endorsed by the likes of Naomi Klein and Bill Gates. Fast Company named her one of the most creative people in business for 2018.

2) Mariana Mazzucato

Mariana Mazzucato is a public economist who advises policymakers worldwide and speaks frequently at OECD events. Her book The Value of Everything discusses how to create real wealth while tackling climate change, inequality, and gender issues. She’s been nominated for several awards, including The Economist Innovation Award. A proponent of a new theory called The Entrepreneurial State, she argues that governments play a bigger role in innovation than they get credit for—and entrepreneurs would be wise to look to public money rather than private capital when creating their companies.

3) Ann Pettifor

Pettifor was an economics professor before she went into full-time politics, but she remains a well-known figure in progressive economic circles. As founder of Policy Research in Macroeconomics (PRIME), Pettifor advocates for a financial transaction tax and capital controls to mitigate speculative investment. She also helped popularize the idea of Green Quantitative Easing or GQE, which calls for central banks to pump money into green energy projects.

4) Stephanie Kelton

A U.S.-based economist, Stephanie Kelton is a former Fulbright scholar and an Associate Professor of Economics at Stony Brook University in New York State. She currently serves as chief economist on U.S. Senator Bernie Sanders’ Economic Policy team (the same role she played for him during his 2016 presidential campaign). In addition to co-founding Economics for Democratic Social Sustainability, Kelton also co-founded New Economic Perspectives with L. Constantine Rangarajan—in 2014, she published The New School Economic Guide to Real World Economics: What Makers, Takers, and Neoliberals Don’t Want You to Know. Her book brought forth some fantastic theories that made sense out of complex economic issues like austerity; it has helped readers navigate their way through today's turbulent economy.

5) Esther Duflo

Duflo is a French economist best known for her contributions to development economics and randomized control trials. She has spent most of her career at MIT, becoming tenured in 2004 and receiving tenure as full professor in 2010. She serves on several government panels, such as: The Abdul Latif Jameel Poverty Action Lab (J-PAL) Global Board, The National Bureau of Economic Research Committee on Development Economics, and The Obama Administration’s Data Transparency and Integrity Advisory Group.

6) Carlota Perez

Carlota Perez is a global authority on innovation and long-term economic growth. She is known for her work on technological revolutions, growth theory, and creative destruction. She has stated that "green won’t spread by guilt and fear, we need aspiration and desire". In other words, people need to want to act on sustainability and green practices, not be pressured into doing so. It follows then that an economic revolution must also satisfy our desires; in order for a circular economy—and indeed any alternative model—to work, it has to provide a model that’s aspirational, where acting sustainably is something desirable rather than simply required.

Conclusion

This post highlighted 6 female economists working to create a more sustainable world. All of these women are researching sustainability and the circular economy. If you want to learn more about this, be sure to check out their work! We hope that you enjoyed this blog post. If you did, be sure to share it with others who might enjoy it as well. Also, make sure to follow us on LinkedIn and via our mailing list so that you can stay up-to-date with all of our latest posts.