Reading Material - Unit 2

This article presents the limitations of GDP as a measure of economic growth - there are some useful points as well as evaluations in here. Stiglitz raises an interesting point - is there a trade off between GDP growth and the protection of the environment (i.e. do we choose to increase one at the expense of the other)? Or should GDP actually begin to reflect the fact that choices made to protect the environment can actually be good for the economy, and conversely, choices made that destroy the environment can reduce GDP in the long run? This article is also useful for Unit 4.

See related article from the Economist on the relationship between GDP and the environment in developing countries, and also a handy GDP Q&A by the BBC.