The meritocracy of preservation: Reimagining merit beyond production

Meritocracy is often discussed as an issue of distributive justice – that is, as the fair allocation of resources. Capitalist organizations are frequently structured around meritocracy, rewarding people hierarchically according to their talent and hard work. Amid concerns that these organizations also contribute to sustaining the ecological crisis, how does meritocracy contribute to, or maintain, environmental damage? In this Connexion piece, we explore this issue. Our analysis identifies a dominant system embedded within capitalism, which we call the Meritocracy of Production. This system views the world primarily as a collection of exploitable resources, rewarding maximization, efficiency and innovative exploitation aimed at unlimited outputs, often justifying extensive resource extraction with little regard for socio-ecological consequences. By contrast, we discuss practices (e.g. bricolage, upcycling, low-tech) that exemplify a Meritocracy of Preservation. This alternative emphasizes sustainable co-existence and collective robustness, valuing dignified, respectful and interdependent relations within ecological and social environments. It rewards practices that sustainably contribute to co-habitation and co-existence. We argue these two meritocratic systems are ontologically equivalent, each offering distinct worldviews, narratives and modes of engagement with the world. People and organizations navigate tensions between these poles by borrowing discursive and representational elements from both systems. While these elements simultaneously influence everyday practices, capitalist organizations are heavily skewed toward the Meritocracy of Production, placing little emphasis on valuing efforts of dynamic preservation—that is, on amplifying the worth and dignity of multiple things-in-the-world, not as a return to a pristine past, but as their ongoing rearrangements to enable their cohabitation. Recognizing this interplay highlights the need to shift towards greater ecological balance and environmental responsibility.