Operationalising an ecosocialist approach to sustainability transition : a socio-metabolic analytical framework

In recent years, ecosocialist scholars have revived Marx's conceptual framework of metabolisms, thereby contributing to the conceptualisation of a radical sustainability transition that is both socially and environmentally committed. However, further research is needed to clarify what a sustainability transition entails from an ecosocialist theoretical position and how it can be promoted and assessed. This paper develops an innovative socio-metabolic analytical framework that integrates four key dimensions of ecosocialist theory: (i) the use-value of goods and services; (ii) their social distribution/access; (iii) the standard of working conditions; and (iv) the standard of care for nature. This model offers theoretical and methodological advancements that bring the ends and means of productive systems into focus to simultaneously challenge the root causes of wasteful production, social inequality, labour exploitation, and environmental degradation. It contributes to an ecosocialist theoretical approach in sustainability studies by effectively integrating social and environmental issues and targeting deep leverage points of system change.