Buku ini ditulis oleh ekonom lulusan Oxford yang juga aktivis di organisasi lingkungan hidup yang bermarkas di Inggris, Oxfam, Kate Raworth. Buat dia, belajar ekonomi bukan sekedar mempelajari teori yang ditulis oleh Adam Smith dan Keynes puluhan dan ratusan tahun silam. Dunia berubah, tantangan aktivitas ekonomi juga semakin besar, bagaimana terus bertumbuh sementara sumber daya alam terus berkurang. Kata Raworth, kalau ada yang bicara tentang pertumbuhan ekonomi menyelesaikan masalah sosial dan lingkungan, coba tanyakan buktinya. Sampai kapan pertumbuhan ekonomi akan menuntaskan isu lingkungan? Sampai pada tingkat pertumbuhan seperti apa masalah itu akan selesai? Apakah pertumbuhan ekonomi serta merta menyelesaikan masalah kesenjangan ekonomi dan pelanggaran hak asasi manusia?
Kalau bukan Gross Domestic Product, lalu mengukur ‘kesejahteraan’ itu pakai apa?
Raworth ini orang yang visual, lebih mudah menjelaskan kata dia dalam bentuk gambar. Jadi ekonomi donut yang dia ciptakan, bentuknya tuh seperti ini:
Ekonom abad 21 itu mesti punya tujuh cara berpikir dalam Doughnut Economy yang diciptakan Raworth dan karena masing-masing cara ini unik, perlu rasanya untuk dibahas satu persatu dalam bagian tersendiri.
Pertama, ubah tujuan/goal. Dari GDP menuju yang lebih besar; memastikan hak asasi manusia setiap orang terpenuhi dalam kerangka daya dukung alam. Tujuan ini ada dalam kerangka ekonomi donut, aktivitas ekonomi tidak boleh melewati toleransi ekologis yang akan menambah buruknya perubahan iklim, dan aktivitas tidak boleh mencederai kebutuhan dan prinsip dasar kemanusiaan atau sosial foundation yang berarti akan memicu konflik sosial.
Tentang batasan sosial dan ekologi, lembaga-lembaga international memiliki batasan yang sudah disepakati bersama. Di antaranya dalam tabel.
Tabel 1. The social foundation and its indicators of shortfall (page 296)
| Dimension | Illustrative Indicators
(percent of global population unless otherwise stated) |
% | Year |
| Food | Population undernourished | 11 | 2014-15 |
| Health | Population living in countries with under-five mortality rate exceeding 25 per 1.000 live births | 46 | 2015 |
| Population living in countries with expectancy at birth of less than 70 years | 39 | 2013 | |
| Education | Adult population (aged 15+) who are illiterate | 15 | 2013 |
| Children aged 12-15 out of school | 17 | 2013 | |
| Income and Work | Population living on less than the international poverty limitof $3.10 a day | 29 | 2012 |
| Proportion of young people (aged 15-24) seeking but not able to find work | 13 | 2014 | |
| Water and sanitation | Population without access to improved drinking water | 9 | 2015 |
| Population without access to improved sanitation | 32 | 2015 | |
| Energy | Population lacking access to electricity | 17 | 2013 |
| Population lacking access to clean cooking facilities | 38 | 2013 | |
| Networks | Population stating that they are without someone to count on for help in times of trouble | 24 | 2015 |
| Population without access to the internet | 57 | 2015 | |
| Housing | Global urban population living in slum housing in developing countries | 24 | 2012 |
| Gender Equality | Representation gap between women and men in national parlemens | 56 | 2014 |
| Worldwide earnings gap between women and men | 23 | 2009 | |
| Social Equity | Population living in countries with a Palma ratio of 2 or more (the ratio of the income share of the top 10% of people to that of the bottom 40%) | 39 | 1995-2012 |
| Political Voice | Population living in countries scoring 0.5 or less out of 1.0 in the Voice and Accountability Index | 52 | 2013 |
| Peace and Justice | Population living in countries scoring 50 or less out of 100 in the Corruption Perception Index | 85 | 2014 |
| Population living in countries with a homicide rate of 10 or more per 10.000 | 13 | 2008 – 13 |
Sources: FAO, World Bank, WHO, UNDP, UNESCO, UNICEF, OECD, IEA, Gallup, ITU, UN, Cobham and Sumner, ILO, UNODC, and Transparency International. All percentages are rounded to the nearest integer
Table 2. The ecological ceiling and its indicator of overshoot (page 299)
| Earth-System Pressure | Control Variable | Planetary Boundary | Current Value and Trend |
| Climate Change | Atmospheric carbon dioxide concentration, parts per million (ppm) | At most 350 ppm | 400ppm and rising (worsening) |
| Ocean Acidification | Avarage saturation of aragonite (calcium carbonate) at the ocean surface, as a percentage of pre-industrial levels | At least 80% of pre-industrial saturation levels | Around 84% and falling (intesifying) |
| Chemical Polution | No global control variable yet defined | – | – |
| Nitrogen and Phosphorus Loading | Phosphorus applied to land as fetiliser, millions of tons per year | At most 6.2 million tons per year | Around 14 millions tons per year and rising (worsening) |
| Reactive nitrogen applied to land as fetiliser, millions of tons per year | At most 62 milions per year | Aroun 150 milions tons per year and rising (worsening) | |
| Freshwater Withdrawals | Blue water consumption, cubic kilometers per year | At most 4.000 km3 per year | Around 2.600km3 per year and rising (intensifying) |
| Land Conversion | Area of forested land as a proportion of forest-covered land prior to human alteration | At least 75% | 62% and falling (worsening) |
| Biodiversity Loss | Rate of species extinction per million species per year | At most 10 | Around 100-1000 and rising (worsening) |
| Air Pollution | No global control variable yet defined | – | – |
| Ozone Layer Depletion | Concentration of ozone in the stratosphere, in Dobson Units | At least 275 DU | 283 DU and rising (improving) |
Source: Steffen et al (2015)
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