Version 3.2

The unwritten Yugoslavian history of degorwth

How and why the self-governance in Yugoslavia is essentially important for the future degrowth policies?

Self-management in Yugoslavia was an authentic form of joint labour. It lasted four decades and was constantly built, re-shaped, and re-defined through institutional changes. Compared with the economic systems of a given time, it is possible to distinguish specific self-management features in Yugoslavia that are important for the history of degrowth and future theory. A minimum of three concepts are worth mentioning.
a) Social ownership of the means of production
Basic means of production (not all) were collectively owned, or more precisely, social ownership was introduced in self-management, which implied the main distinction–to most of the other socialist central-planned economies and other contemporary capitalistic systems of the time.
b) Direct democracy in market-oriented conditions, through substantial decentralization and management of the means of production, represented the main difference compared to centrally planned economies in most of the other (socialist and capitalist) cases.
c) Amortization rate as the base for sustaining simple reproduction.

Many authors from the times of self-management noticed that “the main problem” of self-governance in Yugoslavia was slowing economic growth. Self-management structural problems lay in the fact that simple reproduction was achieved in most cases, while extended reproduction was a challenge.
Furthermore, the importance of self-management as factual know-how and dissonant Yugoslav heritage for Degrowth is great. First, by self-management in Yugoslavia, new ways to finance "common and social" needs and services were introduced through the established institutions (SIZ and their operations with DPZ). As such, the institutions introduced in the 70s are the inspiration for future Degrowth eco-social-care provisioning systems. It was the last form of "direct democracy" in the management system at the micro, mezzo, and macro levels, while the category" of "social ownership" is essentially important - at least in terms of future polycentric systems to govern the natural, cultural and social goods and capital - that are endangered by the work of contemporary capitalism.

Info

Day: 2023-09-01
Start time: 10:30
Duration: 00:15
Room: ZV-8-1
Type: Paper Presentation
Theme: Degrowth as a political project?

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