ABSTRACT
Most degrowthers face the criticism of building their theories, practices and policy recommendations on utopias. While in the highly rationalised worldview of mainstream economic thought utopias are supposed to be avoided at all costs (even if they themselves are based on them), degrowth stands by its strong value choices, the normative nature of its messages, and by its slogan of decolonising the imaginary. Relying on the combination of behavioural science and systems thinking, this chapter in the Routledge Handbook of Degrowth (2025) suggests that not only ‘real utopias’ (as Erik Olin Wright in Envisaging real utopias (2010) calls them) but also true (theoretical) utopias can assist humanity face and act upon its massive challenges. We need utopias on both individual and collective levels to navigate a volatile, complex and uncertain world, deciding on our actions or non-actions and, hence, upholding or changing the institutions surrounding us through our social imaginaries. In an environment where foresight can make or break the future of human and non-human beings, we must not shy away from the normativity of these visions in our advocacy, practice and research.
