Meadowlark Economics: Sustainability, Economics, and the Environment

Is it possible for the economy and the environment to survive and thrive in harmony?

“Yes,” says Professor James Eggert in his new book, “Greenspan’s Heartbreak (Thoreau as Economic Prophet and Other Essays).”

“Ecology and economy have the same prefix, eco-, from the Greek oikos, which literally means ‘home.’ Thus, the original definition of economy implied careful stewardship of household resources, while ecology forces us to try to understand and appreciate the interrelationships within the ‘home’ of nature. I believe that these two households are becoming more interdependent and their futures are more and more closely linked. When we fail to calculate ecological values ​​or see the connections, we pave the way for losses that are neither intended nor wanted,” Professor Eggert writes in his essay, “Meadowlark Economics.”

“Greenspan’s Anguish” contains 19 essays that explore the relationship between the economy and the environment, sustainability, and our relationship with the universe.

In addition to “Meadowlark Economics,” which examines the value of the lark, as a symbol of what has gone wrong in our economy and as a symbol of what is essential to our existence, the book includes “Thoreau as Economic Prophet,” “The Darwin’s Finches and Ford’s Mustangs”, “Then the Sun Came Up”, “Crafts and Salvation”, and “The Coming Age of Repair”.

“The author is an economist, but not one devoted to the prevailing theology of his profession. Economists for the most part work with beavers’ dedication toward the great goal of More…now comes James Eggert, one of a small school of economists who have begun to think outside the box… there are delightful discussions about larks, about the nature of capitalism, about the “economist” Henry David Thoreau, about crafts and high jumping, about topsoil and the art of repairing and many other things that constitute a happy and complete life”. (From Bill McKibben’s foreword.)

“The author is an excellent professor of economics whose vision transcends his chosen discipline. This book will touch even those readers far removed from the dreary science.” (Alfred L. Malabre Jr. – former economics editor of “The Wall Street Journal”).

James Eggert is a writer and faculty member emeritus at the University of Wisconsin – Stout, where he taught undergraduate students for 33 years. He is also the author of “What Is Economics (Fourth Edition)”, “Invitation to Economics”, “Low-Cost Ground Shelters”, “The Wonder of the Tao”, and “Meadowlark Economics”.

“Greenspan’s Heartbreak” (copyright 2013; Green Dragon Books) is available at most local bookstores or online bookstores, including Amazon, Barnes and Noble, Books-A-Million, Powell’s Books, Green Dragon Books .

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