The Impossible Hamster

What the impossible hamster has to teach us about economic growth. A new animation from nef (the new economics foundation), scripted by Andrew Simms, numbers crunched by Viki Johnson and pictures realised by Leo Murray.

www.neweconomics.org
www.onehundredmonths.org
www.wakeupfreakout.org
www.impossiblehamster.org

We wanted to confront people with the meaning and logical conclusion of the promise of endless economic growth. We used a hamster to illustrate what would happen if there were no limits to growth because they double in size each week before reaching maturity at around 6 weeks. But if a hamster grew at the same rate until its first birthday, wed be looking at a nine billion tonne hamster, which ate more than a years worth of world maize production every day. There are reasons in nature, why things dont grow indefinitely. As things are in nature, sooner or later, so they must be in the economy. As economic growth rises, we are pushing the planet ever closer to, and beyond some very real environmental limits. With every doubling in the global economy we use the equivalent in resources of all of the previous doublings combined.

Concept, script and narration: Andrew Simms
Animation: Leo Murray & Thomas Bristow
Sound: Louis Slipperz
Scientific Adviser: Victoria Johnson

Desde su nacimiento a su pubertad, un hámster duplica su peso cada semana

Si no parase de crecer cuando se hicieste adulto

como hacen los animales y continuase duplicandose en volumen,

en su primer cumpleaños

estaríamos ante un hámster de 9.000 Toneladas

este hámster podría comerse todo el maíz producido anualmente en todo el mundo

en un solo día y todavía tendría hambre

hay una razón por qué en la naturaleza, las cosas crecen en tamaño solo hasta cierto punto

así que ¿por qué la mayor parte de los economistas y políticos

piensan que la economía puede crecer para siempre,

indefinidamente...?