Louison Cahen-Fourot

What is your area of research?

My research investigates the long-term evolution of capitalism by integrating socio-economic, financial, and ecological dynamics to understand how they mutually shape each other. Topics include, among others, the interplay between growth regimes, institutions and social metabolism; the social relationship to the environment across the diversity of contemporary capitalism; the link between the monetary and financial system and sustainability; and the conditions for economic and financial stability in a post-growth economy. Currently, I focus mainly on the ongoing integration of environmental criteria into monetary policy and financial regulation.

Why is it so important?

Our societies increasingly overshoot planetary boundaries, threatening the viability of human and non-human life. The deepening ecological crisis exacerbates socioeconomic instability, while political responses often fall short in addressing antagonisms arising from finance-led globalized capitalism. Aligning economic activities with planetary boundaries is essential to reach political stability, social cohesion, and individual and collective wellbeing. Understanding our societies’ unsustainability and what do to about it requires robust theoretical frameworks and empirical analyses of the intertwined evolution of socio-economic, financial and ecological dynamics.

A project you are proud of?

Two of my works became go-to references in their fields. The first, a 2016 article with Marc Lavoie, explores how an economy based on credit money—like today’s—can reach stable zero growth while managing debt and interest. Why does it matter? Because high-income countries may need to abandon GDP growth to achieve sustainability and allow poorer countries to grow. The second, a 2021 article with four colleagues, examines how productive capital depends on fossil fuels and may lose value in a rapid low-carbon transition. Why does it matter? Because important economic and financial instability could arise if firms fail to shift fast enough to low-carbon productions.

Updated June 2026

Through his participation in Policy Fellowship 2025-2026, Louison is working with Gro Høyer Thielst, journalist at Dagbladet Børsen