The poverty of money: Marxian insights for ecological economists

Karl Marx's philosophical, political and sociological analysis of the worki ngs of capitalism provides insights regarding the character of monetary val ue (price) and the role of the market that are relevant to ecological econo mists. Ecological economists are divided over the utility of pricing compon ents of ecological systems and the potential role of the market in achievin g ecologically sustainable societies. In the Marxian-influenced socialist m ovements of the 19th and 20th centuries, similar issues were raised by thos e preoccupied with organising state policy and manipulating the market to a chieve social justice. For example, at particular points in the Russian and Cuban revolutionary processes, the potential and limitations of monetary p ricing and market exchange were debated in a heated and detailed way. In as much as ecological economists hold certain interests in common, it is wort h reflecting on Marx's view of the human role within nature and analysing t he discussions and experiences of Marxian experimenters in social transform ation that relate specifically to exchange. (C) 2001 Elsevier Science B.V. All rights reserved.