It identifies economic development as the main driver of increasing natural resource extraction and consumption. The practical insights this report offers centre around redefining prosperity, natural resource use, progress, metrics, competitiveness, incentives, consumption, finance, governance, and leadership in eight economic ecosystems (following the example of ecological ecosystems and functioning within the safe operating space of our planetary boundaries).

This resource is packed with practical suggestions on how to achieve systems change towards sustainability in eight economic ecosystems (Circular Materials, Healthy Food, Built Environment, Intermodal Mobility, Consumer Goods, Nature-based, Energy, Information & Processing). As a ‘system change compass’, it offers a systemic approach to multiple, inter-related issues by focusing on how European Green Deal goals can complement Sustainable Development Goals. The suggestions in the report are divided into steps where they are most useful in the process of system change; whether they belong to Mapping, Designing and/or Implementing actions. While some of the suggested actions and policies in this report may fall under the competence of national governments, cities and regions are sure to benefit from reflecting on how these can be downscaled to the regional/local context (e.g. measuring performance with circularly redefined metrics on a local scale).