In this article, core tenets and claims of the theory of ecologically unequal exchange (EUE) are synthesized. EUE theory postulates a net flow of natural resources from peripheral developing to core industrialized countries through international trade, a situation which undermines the development of the periphery while enhancing that of the core. The key claims and EUE mechanisms are categorized and discussed under three topics: 1) the structure of the capitalist world-economy, 2) monetary valuation, and 3) equity and justice. The treadmill logic of capitalism in which capital extracts ecological resources and release waste in an endless pursuit of profits creates an expansionary dynamic which draws peripheral countries into exploitative market relations. This peripheralization is supported by 'free trade' economic policies, while nation-states and other political-economic institutions such as the WTO and IMF provide the regulations which ensure proper functioning of the system. Monetary valuation caps it by obscuring the inverse relationship between thermodynamics and economics, in which low-entropy energy and materials indispensable in economic production processes are lowly priced while processed goods which have dissipated most of their matterenergy are highly priced, ensuring that biophysical resources and profits accumulates in the industrialized Northern countries. This EUE framework is applied to the EU's Raw Materials Initiative from the vantage point of policy as implicit theory. By challenging mainstream policies and their underlying theories, the EUE perspective demonstrates that alternatives to neoliberal policy prescriptions exist and policy can play a crucial role in bringing about the necessary structural changes. Key words: ecologically unequal exchange, environmental justice, EU, capitalism, free trade, policy RésuméDans cet article, les principes et les revendications de la théorie de l'échange inégal sur le plan écologique (EUE) de base sont synthétisés. La théorie soutient que naturellement il y a un flux de ressources à partir de la périphérie vers les pays centraux, par le commerce international. La périphérie souffre tandis que le centre est améliorée. Les principales revendications de l'article, ainsi que les mécanismes impliqués en EUE, sont classées sous trois thèmes et discutées: 1) la structure globale de l'économie capitaliste, 2) la valeur monétaire, et 3) l'équité et la justice. La logique de tapis roulant du capitalisme -dans une poursuite sans fin de profits -extrait les ressources écologiques et puis un des déversements de déchets. Il y a une expansion dynamique; certains groupes de pays périphériques sont attirés dans les relations de marché d'exploitation. Cette périphérisation est soutenue par des politiques économiques «libre-échange». Les états-nations et d'autres institutions politico-économiques, telles que l'OMC et le FMI, garantissent le bon fonctionnement du système par la réglementation. L'évaluation monétaire obscurcit la relation inverse entre la thermodyna...
The theory of ecologically unequal exchange (EUE) posits that international trade is structurally organized in a manner that allows a net transfer of resources from peripheral developing to core industrialized countries. The consequence, it is argued, is under-development in the periphery and augmented productive capacity in the core. EUE thus challenges the neoliberal free-market argument that exchange at market prices is symmetric and fair. An LCA-based methodology for estimating EUE that holds constant the variable market price is introduced and tested on contemporary trade of Dutch cheese and Kenyan coffee and roses. Specifically, the exchange of embodied land, water, energy, global warming potential, and labor is assessed. The results confirm the theory's hypothesis. At a fixed market price, more embodied Kenyan resources are exchanged for less Dutch resources. However, Kenyan roses give different results from coffee. EUE between countries can only be conclusively determined by considering the total biophysical trade balance, but by calculating quantities of embodied resources per unit of exchange value, it is possible to detect unequal exchange even at the level of individual commodities. While integration of biophysical metrics alongside monetary valuation is recommended, ultimately, rethinking the structure, policies and politics of international trade is necessary.
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