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Economic Growth: An Exception in Human History
For centuries humanity lived in a condition of minimal development, with progress being limited and never long-lasting. Only in the past two centuries has a radically new phenomenon emerged: continuous economic growth, capable of lifting millions of people out of poverty and building the foundations for modern prosperity. The Swedish National Bank highlights how this phase represents a true historical anomaly, never seen before.
The Contribution of Nobel Laureates: Innovation driving development
The Nobel Prize in Economics was awarded to Joel Mokyr, Philippe Aghion and Peter Howitt, scholars who explored the link between technological innovation and economic growth.
Their conclusion is clear: innovation is a powerful driver but it is not guaranteed. To generate stable growth, an open social environment is needed— one that is capable of welcoming new ideas and transformations.
The Decisive Role of the Scientific Method
According to Mokyr, Western economic expansion arises from the systematic application of the scientific method. The willingness to challenge dogmas and traditions—from Copernicus to Galileo, from Newton to Darwin—created the conditions for the Industrial Revolution and for subsequent cycles of innovation.
This critical culture fostered emancipation, material progress and a profound transformation of society.
Aghion and Howitt: Growth Between Innovation and “Creative Destruction”
Aghion and Howitt developed a mathematical model of growth based on Schumpeter’s concept of “creative destruction”: each new technology eliminates obsolete companies, generating progress but also social tension.
Their analysis highlights two fundamental needs:
- preventing established groups from stifling innovation;
- protecting those at risk of being excluded from technological change, especially with the arrival of artificial intelligence.
Without informed public debate, innovation can widen inequality and instability.
Europe, China and the United States: Three Models in Conflict
The global landscape reveals profound differences among the world’s major economic regions; differences that today manifest themselves more as divergent trajectories than as mere alternative approaches to development.
In Europe stable democracy prevails, but one marked by cultural stagnation and an inability to generate new growth.
China, on the other hand, offers a model characterised by extremely tight political control over both material and cultural production. Despite the absence of an open and pluralistic system, the country has achieved significant economic results.
The United States finds itself in an identity crisis: despite being historically the cradle of economic freedom and innovation, it is now showing signs of progressive polarisation and an increasingly intrusive central power. This shift risks eroding the very principles of openness and competition that have sustained the vitality of its economy for decades.
Freedom of Thought as the Foundation of Progress
History shows that freedom, openness and critical thinking are essential conditions for sustainable development and responsible progress.
Development measured by GDP growth must be accompanied by a society’s ability to progress whilst:
- including those who remain marginalised,
- distributing rights and opportunities fairly,
- fostering participation and collective responsibility.
Only a community that protects freedom of thought can transform innovation into widespread well-being.
Giancarlo Castagnoli
President and CEO
