Approaches to green economy: A conceptual overview

Abstract: This study is a literature review examining theoretical approaches to sustainable green economic growth. Recently, the global economy has faced challenges such as the 2008 crisis, the Russo-Ukrainian War, the Covid-19 pandemic, stress in the Asia-Pacific region, and tensions in the Middle East. Green Economics, on the other hand, proposes appealing structural solutions that prioritize nature and offer competitive sustainable development. The first of the three well-known perspectives on Green Economics, the optimistic green growth view, is expressed in conjunction with the Environmental Kuznets Curve, while the Growth-Agnostic view can be considered a critique of this optimistic view. The optimistic green growth view posits that technological progress and economic development are key to solving environmental problems. The Growth-Agnostic view, on the other hand, emphasizes a focus on social welfare, arguing that economic growth or environmental sustainability alone are insufficient. Each perspective can be considered internally consistent or requiring further proof. In this context, in light of both perspectives, developing and implementing green sustainable development plans centered on social welfare theoretically presents a challenging option. However, considering the example of the Scandinavian countries, which have made significant progress in this area, it's clear that it's not impossible. A third view, the degrowth approach, represents a school of thought that favors economic degrowth. *The full text is currently accessible via the official journal website (ijesos.com); it will become available on this platform on December 31, 2025.