ABSTRACT
When neo-classical and most Keynesian crisis interpretations tend to focus on the extrinsic and accidental causes and features of crisis, Marxist crisis theory emphasizes crisis as stemming from intrinsic and systemic contradictions within capitalism itself. The essence of crisis is interpreted within Marxist political economy and how the abstract possibility for crisis inherent in capitalism as a system translates into concrete periodical/sectorial crises. Historically, Marxist crisis theory has been used to analyse both periodical manifestations of economic crisis as well as the mechanisms leading towards the final end-crisis of capitalism. More recently, a growing ecological Marxist literature has developed a rich palette of environmental crises analyses with the help of the Marxist political and economic toolbox. The global environmental crisis is not reducible to any micro-economic mechanisms in a strict sense, but still, examining the micro-economic underpinnings of the capitalist process of accumulation helps highlight how and why capitalism seems to be heading straight for ecological collapse.
