Coming to Our Senses: Beyond the Hubristic Illusions of Green Technology

Unsustainable resource flows and obscene inequalities are as inherent in the use of green technologies as in that of the fossil fuels they are meant to replace. The notion that the world economy is undergoing a green transformation is based on the illusion that renewable energy is replacing, rather than just adding to, fossil energy consumption. To move beyond this impasse, we must recognize that technologies are fetishized social relations and that money systematically obscures the material injustices on which modern civilization is based.

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Publication Details

Journal
Capitalism Nature Socialism
Published
2025-09-15
DOI
https://doi.org/10.1080/10455752.2025.2559085
Primary Topic
Space Science and Extraterrestrial Life
Type
article
Field-Weighted Citation Impact
0.00
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article

Coming to Our Senses: Beyond the Hubristic Illusions of Green Technology

Alf Hornborg
Capitalism Nature Socialism
Space Science and Extraterrestrial Life
article

Coming to Our Senses: Beyond the Hubristic Illusions of Green Technology

Alf Hornborg
article en

Abstract

Unsustainable resource flows and obscene inequalities are as inherent in the use of green technologies as in that of the fossil fuels they are meant to replace. The notion that the world economy is undergoing a green transformation is based on the illusion that renewable energy is replacing, rather than just adding to, fossil energy consumption. To move beyond this impasse, we must recognize that technologies are fetishized social relations and that money systematically obscures the material injustices on which modern civilization is based.

Capitalism Nature SocialismVol. 37(1)
Lund University (SE)
Openalex Percentile: Top 83%
Space Science and Extraterrestrial Life
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