This is the first book to resolve the profound paradox between Schumpeterian innovation and ecological limits by proposing a complete, synthetic economic framework. It moves beyond the established debate between green growth and degrowth by introducing Post-Schumpeterian Economics (PSE), a novel approach designed to strategically re-direct the engine of creative destruction toward achieving long-term sustainability. The research and its outcomes presented here offer a unique integration of the dynamism of Schumpeter with the ecological foundations of Georgescu-Roegen, providing a new lens for understanding twenty-first-century challenges.
A major objective of this monograph is to validate this theoretical framework with rigorous, large-scale empirical analysis. The book presents an unprecedented data-driven typology of the diverse transition pathways being pursued across the G-20, G-7, and BRICS nations. Drawing on a comprehensive dataset and employing extensive cluster analysis, it reveals that there is no singular global transformation, but rather multiple, distinct archetypes. This comparative analysiscontrasting the innovation-led, high-risk approaches of the United States and China with the more balanced, policy-driven strategies in Europeprovides an invaluable map of the current geopolitical landscape of decarbonization.
By bridging this new theoretical model with robust empirical evidence, this work provides scholars, students, and policymakers with an actionable perspective on one of the most urgent and complex challenges of our time. It identifies strategic levers for transformation, including market-based mechanisms and state-led technology policies, offering a powerful tool for designing effective pathways to a sustainable future.