Despite current debates, many stakeholders in politics, economy and society continue to cling to the well-established growth doctrine. Furthermore, improvement and economic growth are still considered to be the dominant tools for combating inequalities and promoting a certain level of prosperity. However, socioeconomic and ecologic crises of recent decades have shown an urgent need for alternative societal and economic models. What challenges will small and medium-sized businesses face in rejecting the common dogma of growth? How can they prepare for a post-growth-economy and how can they promote and communicate the need for an alternative approach within their company?

The Conference "Rethinking Growth. Alternative Governance of Economy and Society" organized by the Center for Advanced Studies of Eurac Research aims to address these questions together with representatives from academia, politics, business and society and to stimulate a discussion about the transformation of the thinking regarding economic and societal growth.

The opening event takes place on October 3rd, 2019 in Bolzano. The focus of the first conference day is on the increasing network and the changes taking place at a global level, as well as their impact at the regional level.