Kate Raworth: A ‘renegade economist’

Economics is a field still dominated by men, with only an estimated 26.3% of economists being women. This harsh reality links to powerhouse economist Kate Raworth’s aims of modernising the discipline and building a more sustainable and just economy.

As well as being a pioneer of ecological economics, Raworth fittingly described herself as a “renegade economist”. She has expressed a desire “[to rewrite] economics so that it’s fit for … meeting the needs of all people within the means of the planet”.

Raworth is the author of the international bestseller, Doughnut Economics: Seven Ways to Think Like a 21st-Century Economist. In the book, she stresses the need for an economic model that the planet can sustain, in opposition to the unending growth that modern society has become financially, socially, and politically addicted to.

Her doughnut-shaped model of social and planetary boundaries illustrates this by placing humanity’s essentials – such as water, income, and gender equality – in the centre. This is surrounded by the doughnut – a ‘regenerative and distributive economy’. The diagram highlights how if resources are overused and rise beyond the doughnut’s outer ring, the ‘ecological ceiling’, this has negative environmental consequences, such as climate change, ocean acidification, and ozone layer depletion.

Doughnut Economics continues to be widely read, being translated into over 20 languages and receiving a nomination for the Financial Times Business Book of the Year 2017

Raworth’s model is significant, as it pushes people to reject the mainstream notion that economic growth is the primary solution to the world’s issues, particularly in developing countries. Unending economic growth should not be relied on, as the Earth’s resources are often wasted and not reused, affecting our planet negatively. Raworth has spoken of how “waste from one process is food for the next”.

Kate Raworth’s position as a renowned economist makes her a strong role model for women who want to work in the male-dominated field. Doughnut Economics continues to be widely read, being translated into over 20 languages and receiving a nomination for the Financial Times Business Book of the Year 2017.

Raworth is also a prominent voice in academia, holding positions at Oxford and Amsterdam University. Since graduating from the University of Oxford with a first-class degree in Politics, Philosophy and Economics – and an MSc in Development Economics – Raworth has worked with micro-entrepreneurs in Zanzibar, co-authored the Human Development Report for the United Nations Development Programme, and was a Senior Researcher at Oxfam for 10 years. Her dedication to finding a balance between the social and ecological boundaries, illustrated in her doughnut model, to give humanity the opportunity to thrive is inspiring.

Raworth is actively inspiring change in a society where the distribution of wealth, knowledge, and power usually ends up in the hands of the ‘one percent’

Following the publication of Doughnut Economics, she co-founded the Doughnut Economics Action Lab, which aims to bring together a community of people who collaborate and share their thoughts on how to practically implement the book’s ideas.

Raworth is actively inspiring change in a society where the distribution of wealth, knowledge, and power usually ends up in the hands of the ‘one percent’. Notably, her TED talk highlights how our systems, technologies, and institutions can be re-designed to benefit the masses, especially those less fortunate: “If we can harness today’s technologies, from AI and blockchain, to the Internet of Things and material science, if we can harness these in service of distributive design, we can ensure that health care, education, finance, energy, political voice [sic], reaches and empowers those people who need it most.”

With her work, Kate Raworth has broken the glass ceiling and proved to other aspiring female economists that they can follow suit.