For over a century, capitalism has been the engine of global progress. It promised innovation, freedom, prosperity, and choice. And in many ways, it delivered. From the digital revolution to rising living standards in the world, capitalism’s capacity to create has been undeniable. But something is shifting. Beneath the glittering skyline of progress lies another reality of burnout, inequality, environmental collapse, and a growing sense that something is fundamentally broken.
The Shifting Landscape of Global Capitalism
Capitalism thrives on growth, competition, and consumption. Taken to the extreme, these strengths become liabilities because:
- Endless growth is incompatible with a planet of finite resources.
- Competition becomes exploitation when people are treated as tools for profit.
- Consumption feeds off dissatisfaction, selling the illusion that we are only one purchase away from fulfilment.
Over the last 40 years, capitalism has shifted into what many call “late-stage capitalism,” where the pursuit of profit has become increasingly disconnected from human well-being. While it continues to generate vast wealth and innovation, it also reveals deep cracks in rising inequality, social exhaustion, precarious work, and environmental harm. The following five points highlight the most visible symptoms of this strained and unsustainable model:
1. Extreme Wealth Concentration
The richest 1% now own more wealth than 99% combined (Oxfam, 2024). Billionaires have gained disproportionate wealth during crises (e.g. COVID-19), while average citizens have faced layoffs, debt, and inflation.
2. Stagnant Wages, Rising Productivity
Productivity has risen massively since the 1970s, but workers’ wages have barely budged, meaning profits flow to the shareholders, not the employees.
3. Gigification of Work
Stable, pensioned jobs are being replaced by freelance, gig, and short-term contracts. Young people face precarity despite being better educated than any prior generation.
4. Over-Financialization
Real value creation (goods and services) is often overshadowed by speculation and stock performance. Corporations prioritise share buybacks, mergers, and quarterly profits, not the human beings who are the engines that run the organisations.
5. Environmental Collapse
Capitalism’s engine requires infinite growth on a finite planet, a mathematical impossibility.
What’s Driving the Systemic Breakdown?
One of the major forces behind the current state of the global economy is the rise of neoliberal economic policies since the 1980s. These policies have pushed for less government involvement in business and more privatisation. While they helped create wealth in some areas, they also weakened the public service systems – they removed economic cushioning for average citizens and allowed large corporations to grow unchecked.
Many developing countries, especially in Africa and the Global South, are still operating in systems designed during colonial times. These systems focus on exporting raw materials and importing finished goods. This keeps wealth going out instead of building sustainable local economies.
Advances in AI, automation, and digital tools have made companies more productive but the benefits of this progress haven’t been shared equally. Instead of working less and enjoying more freedom, people work more for less in a 24/7 attention economy.
Rethinking the Growth Obsession: The Degrowth Alternative
For decades, global economies have measured success by how fast they grow. There has been a focus on more factories, more products and more consumption year after year. But increasingly, as people awaken, they are beginning to question growth and the cost behind it.
Degrowth challenges the idea that endless economic expansion is compatible with people and planet. It does not imply stagnation. Degrowth proposes that:
- We produce and consume less, particularly in overdeveloped economies.
- We shift focus from GDP to indicators like human well-being, equality, and environmental health.
- We invest in systems that care for people and planet, not just profit margins.
It’s a call to scale back what is excessive, so that what is essential can flourish. In many ways, degrowth lays the economic groundwork for Enoughism. Where capitalism urges us to always want more, degrowth reminds us that we already have enough.
What Comes After Capitalism?
1. Post-Capitalist Experiments
Around the world, new models are being tested to restructure the current capitalist model. One example is Universal Basic Income (UBI), a system where every citizen receives a regular, unconditional payment to cover basic needs. Trials in Finland and other regions have shown positive outcomes and restored dignity.
Another approach is the rise of cooperativism or the rise of worker-owned businesses—including tech platforms—where profits and decision-making power are shared among those who do the work. This model resists the exploitative tendencies of shareholder capitalism and prioritises fairness and autonomy.
Finally, there’s momentum behind degrowth and circular economy movements, which challenge the idea of endless growth. Instead, they advocate for smarter, regenerative systems that reduce waste, share resources, and restore ecological balance. This proves that growth doesn’t have to mean expanding.
2. Values Shift Among Millennials and Zennials
A generational shift is underway. Many Millennials and Zennials are turning away from the obsession with ownership – cars, homes, status symbols – and embracing pursuing purpose and fulfilment. They care less about “having it all” and more about freedom.
There’s also a strong demand for ethical business practices, transparency, and purpose-driven brands. Consumers are holding companies accountable, wanting to know not just what a product is, but who made it, how, and why.
At the same time, there’s a clear rejection of hustle culture. Younger generations are prioritising well-being, mental health, rest, and slow living, challenging the idea that constant productivity is the ultimate good. Balance is the new ambition.
3. The Rise of Enoughism
As capitalism’s “more, more, more” philosophy begins to fray, a deeper questioning is taking root: what is truly enough? Enoughism is not about shrinking or settling, it’s about reclaiming your inner sense of sufficiency in a culture of excess.
Capitalism at a Crossroads
For over a century, capitalism has been the dominant force shaping our world, driving innovation, and raising living standards. But as the system pushes for endless growth and constant consumption, it has begun to strain both people and planet. Many are questioning a model that equates success with accumulation, productivity with worth, and progress with profit. The result is a deep fatigue. A sense that while we may have more, we often feel less fulfilled. This moment calls for reflection, not just on what capitalism has built, but on what it may no longer serve. This is not a call to honour its innovations, while acknowledging its limitations. To examine what works and reimagine what doesn’t.
Join our subscription list and get thought leadership articles delivered straight to your inbox.