Daly argues that if sustainable development means anything at this historical moment, it demands that we conceive of the economy as part of the ecosystem and, as a result, give up on the ideal of economic growth. We need a global understanding of developing welfare that does not entail expansion.

With reference to India.

The concept of sustainable development was accepted by the world leaders in Rio de Janerio in 1992. The concept was vague and this is natural when an international consensus has to be achieved. It was also based implicitly on the dominant Western paradigm with its stress on science and technology, its stress on management of technology and the meshing of economics and ecology as the answer to the environmental crisis. Value systems were not included in the concept of sustainable development. The book studies the Eastern paradigm base on the concepts and values of Hinduism, Buddhism and Islam and suggests that for a truly global ethic the Western and Eastern paradigms need to be integrated. This can be done through the mediation of modern science easily for the best of the properity.