--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: When politicians & economists understand…" description: "\"When politicians & economists understand we live in a finite world & act accordingly then a better future has a chance\" — Phil Harding" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ba8/phil-harding-17218_better-future_when-politicians-economists-understand-w_1028046.png" --- # When politicians & economists understand we live in a… ![“When politicians & economists understand we live in a finite world & act accordingly then a better future has a chance” quote by Phil Harding](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ba8/phil-harding-17218_better-future_when-politicians-economists-understand-w_1028046.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ba8/phil-harding-17218_better-future_when-politicians-economists-understand-w_1028046.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ba8/phil-harding-17218_better-future_when-politicians-economists-understand-w_1028046.png) > “When politicians & economists understand we live in a finite world & act accordingly then a better future has a chance” [Phil Harding](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/phil-harding/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Recognizing planetary limits and adjusting policies can improve long‑term outcomes. **In simple terms:** Accept limits, act wisely. Key Takeaway Policy must reflect scarcity. Themes sustainability economics politics future planning Mood concerned optimistic Type policy call‑to‑action When to use this quote - government budgeting - urban planning - corporate strategy - education curricula Key Concepts Ecology resource constraints systems thinking Questions to Reflect On - How can leaders prioritize long‑term health over immediate gains? - What incentives can align economics with ecology? A Different Perspective Implementation is hindered by short‑term political cycles. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Better future](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/better-future/) [Chance](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/chance/) [Economist](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/economist/) [Politician](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/politician/) [Politics](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/politics/) [Time](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/time/) [World](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/world/) ## Related quotes > [American economists can't understand the German fear of inflation and the effects of inflation when dealing with the world economic crisis. 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We live in a finite world with finite resources. Although it may sometimes seem quite big, earth…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-suzuki/and-that-quite-simply-is-the-issue-we-live-in-a-finite-world-with/) [David Suzuki](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-suzuki/) > [We need visions of a future in which we have applied our infinite creativity to the task of living on a finite world, where…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-grinspoon/we-need-visions-of-a-future-in-which-we-have-applied-our-infinite/) [David Grinspoon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-grinspoon/) > [In a finite world this means that the per capita share of the world's goods must steadily decrease.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/garrett-hardin/in-a-finite-world-this-means-that-the-per-capita-share-of-the-world-s/) [Garrett Hardin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/garrett-hardin/) > [How is it possible to find meaning in a finite world, given my waist and shirt size?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/woody-allen/how-is-it-possible-to-find-meaning-in-a-finite-world-given-my-waist/) [Woody Allen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/woody-allen/) > [I do not believe you can have infinite population or economic growth in a finite world. 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Schumacher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/e-f-schumacher/) > [Sustainable energy + food security + healthy environment = full employment + better future.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/phil-harding/sustainable-energy-food-security-healthy-environment-full-employment/) [Phil Harding](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/phil-harding/) > [There were various aspects of Sun Tzu's approach that appealed to Ho Chi Minh: a) to learn to understand both the enemy and yourself,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-j-duiker/there-were-various-aspects-of-sun-tzu-s-approach-that-appealed-to-ho/) [William J. Duiker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-j-duiker/) > [“That we can prescribe the terms of our own success, that we can live outside or in ignorance of the Great Economy are the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wendell-berry/that-we-can-prescribe-the-terms-of-our-own-success-that-we-can-live/) [Wendell Berry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wendell-berry/) ## More by Phil Harding > [To care for the natural world is the most effective insurance policy we can have](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/phil-harding/to-care-for-the-natural-world-is-the-most-effective-insurance-policy/) [Phil Harding](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/phil-harding/) > [Economic growth won't feed a growing population living on this finite planet](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/phil-harding/economic-growth-won-t-feed-a-growing-population-living-on-this-finite/) [Phil Harding](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/phil-harding/) > [A stable 21st century society requires 21st century solutions not 20th century economics](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/phil-harding/a-stable-21st-century-society-requires-21st-century-solutions-not/) [Phil Harding](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/phil-harding/) > [Sustainable energy + food security + healthy environment = full employment + better future.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/phil-harding/sustainable-energy-food-security-healthy-environment-full-employment/) [Phil Harding](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/phil-harding/) > [WHAT IF we all treat other people as we wish to be treated? MORE happiness. LESS selfishness, crime, fraud, hatred, terrorism, wars...](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/phil-harding/what-if-we-all-treat-other-people-as-we-wish-to-be-treated-more/) [Phil Harding](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/phil-harding/) > [Reasons to be positive. The economic downturn could be the catalyst for positive change. It should be translated into the wake-up call we need…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/phil-harding/reasons-to-be-positive-the-economic-downturn-could-be-the-catalyst/) [Phil Harding](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/phil-harding/) > [Without environmental sustainability, economic stability and social cohesion cannot be achieved](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/phil-harding/without-environmental-sustainability-economic-stability-and-social/) [Phil Harding](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/phil-harding/) > [The economic downturn is our wake-up call to slow down, consume less, help each other, & live more!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/phil-harding/the-economic-downturn-is-our-wake-up-call-to-slow-down-consume-less/) [Phil Harding](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/phil-harding/) > [Living in an orgy of unrestrained consumption and economic growth accompanied by population expansion that ignores the carrying capacity of local environments will lead…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/phil-harding/living-in-an-orgy-of-unrestrained-consumption-and-economic-growth/) [Phil Harding](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/phil-harding/) > [We can't always control what happens but we can control our response](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/phil-harding/we-can-t-always-control-what-happens-but-we-can-control-our-response/) [Phil Harding](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/phil-harding/) > [It's better to ask the right questions than accept the status quo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/phil-harding/it-s-better-to-ask-the-right-questions-than-accept-the-status-quo/) [Phil Harding](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/phil-harding/) > [The 20th Century approach to economics, resource depletion and over-consumption means we boom and bust until we bust more than we boom; that is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/phil-harding/the-20th-century-approach-to-economics-resource-depletion-and-over/) [Phil Harding](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/phil-harding/) > [Everybody talks about population growth and its disastrous effect on climate change, food security and resource depletion, but nobody does anything about it](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/phil-harding/everybody-talks-about-population-growth-and-its-disastrous-effect-on/) [Phil Harding](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/phil-harding/) > [The 2013/14 storms & floods show the UK needs to invest in a climate resilient, low carbon, food secure, full employment, positive future](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/phil-harding/the-2013-14-storms-floods-show-the-uk-needs-to-invest-in-a-climate/) [Phil Harding](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/phil-harding/) > [Large carbon and resource savings arising from efficiency and renewable energy programmes will be completely cancelled out by the added resource needs of even…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/phil-harding/large-carbon-and-resource-savings-arising-from-efficiency-and/) [Phil Harding](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/phil-harding/) [Explore all 37 Phil Harding quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/phil-harding/) ## More Better future quotes > [“Some women walk towards a better future. Others have chauffeurs.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ljupka-cvetanova/some-women-walk-towards-a-better-future-others-have-chauffeurs/) [Ljupka Cvetanova](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ljupka-cvetanova/) > [We are a party of innovation. We do not reject our traditions, but we are willing to adapt to changing circumstances, when change we…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barbara-jordan/we-are-a-party-of-innovation-we-do-not-reject-our-traditions-but-we/) [Barbara Jordan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barbara-jordan/) > [“Don't be afraid to go left when the world is going right. The French learned that the people have power to make change, they…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-r-lemieux/don-t-be-afraid-to-go-left-when-the-world-is-going-right-the-french/) [Martin R. Lemieux](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-r-lemieux/) > [“Arise for the work of humankind. Be humble. However grand you are today or may become tomorrow, you too will be forgotten. 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One arm being dragged into the past by the ethics…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/winy-maas/one-is-too-precious-about-the-past-the-other-too-hungry-for-the/) Winy Maas > [“Today, we exaggerate the differences between left-liberal egalitarianism and libertarian individualism because almost everyone shares their common indefinite attitude. In philosophy, politics, and business,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-thiel/today-we-exaggerate-the-differences-between-left-liberal/) [Peter Thiel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-thiel/) > [I would thank the past for a better future cause pain makes me stronger, tears makes me braver and heartbreak makes me wiser.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/i-would-thank-the-past-for-a-better-future-cause-pain-makes-me/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [The more prepared I am, the better my future.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alfonso-herrera/the-more-prepared-i-am-the-better-my-future/) [Alfonso Herrera](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alfonso-herrera/) > [Feminism is, I hope, a way to a better future for everyone who inhabits this world. Feminism should not be something that needs a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/roxane-gay/feminism-is-i-hope-a-way-to-a-better-future-for-everyone-who-inhabits/) [Roxane Gay](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/roxane-gay/) > [The nations of the Middle East will have to decide what kind of future they want for themselves for their country and, frankly, for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donald-trump/the-nations-of-the-middle-east-will-have-to-decide-what-kind-of/) [Donald Trump](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donald-trump/) > [No one is innocent in the tide of history. Everyone has kings and slaves in his past. Everyone has saints and sinners. We are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/diana-peterfreund/no-one-is-innocent-in-the-tide-of-history-everyone-has-kings-and/) [Diana Peterfreund](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/diana-peterfreund/) > [I hurt for every mother who's lost a son, every son who's lost a father, and every child whose life was taken far too…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lucy-mcbath/i-hurt-for-every-mother-who-s-lost-a-son-every-son-who-s-lost-a/) [Lucy McBath](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lucy-mcbath/) > [Cleaning out the past, packing up the present, and preparing for a much better future.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/punkinhead-abhishek/cleaning-out-the-past-packing-up-the-present-and-preparing-for-a-much/) [Punkinhead Abhishek](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/punkinhead-abhishek/) [Browse all 382 Better future quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/better-future/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "When politicians & economists understand we live in a finite world & act accordingly then a better future has a chance", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Phil Harding" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/phil-harding/when-politicians-economists-understand-we-live-in-a-finite-world-act/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Better future" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/phil-harding/when-politicians-economists-understand-we-live-in-a-finite-world-act/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ba8/phil-harding-17218_better-future_when-politicians-economists-understand-w_1028046.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ba8/phil-harding-17218_better-future_when-politicians-economists-understand-w_1028046.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ba8/phil-harding-17218_better-future_when-politicians-economists-understand-w_1028046.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“When politicians & economists understand we live in a finite world & act accordingly then a better future…” — Phil Harding", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } }, { "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Quotes", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "Phil Harding", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/phil-harding/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "When politicians & economists understand we...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/phil-harding/when-politicians-economists-understand-we-live-in-a-finite-world-act/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/phil-harding/when-politicians-economists-understand-we-live-in-a-finite-world-act/#breadcrumb" }, { "@type": "WebSite", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "publisher": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } }, { "@type": "Organization", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "logo": { "@type": "ImageObject", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png", "width": 512, "height": 512 } } ] } ```