The Full quote

Criticism of economic growth is almost as old as the phenomenon of economic growth itself. But the term ‘degrowth’, as it is used today, can be traced to relatively recent beginnings. Let us take a short look at its history. Some traditions of growth criticism date back to the late eight- eenth century and ranged from Luddite riots against the machines of industrialization to romantic unease with modernity or anti-colonial dissections of European civilization. (...) the second half of the twen- tieth century, changed public perceptions of the finiteness of resources on this planet also led to a popular surge in critiques of economic growth. The first report to the Club of Rome in 1972 initiated a global debate on ‘The Limits to Growth’ which has not yet subsided. The birth of the word décroissance, translated into English as ‘degrowth’, can also be dated back to the year 1972.