E. F. Schumacher (1911-1977) was the author of Small is Beautiful (1973), a pioneer of intermediate technology (ecologically friendly) and a leading light of the Green movement. He argued that capitalism brought higher living standards and the cost of deteriorating culture. Here are some of his thoughts:

“Any intelligent fool can make things bigger and more complex…It takes a touch of genius – and a lot of courage to move in the opposite direction.”

“Even bigger machines, entailing even bigger concentrations of economic power and exerting ever greater violence against the environment, do not represent progress: they are a denial of wisdom. Wisdom demands a new orientation of science and technology toward the organic, the gentle, the elegant and beautiful.”

“An entirely new system of thought is needed, a system based on attention to people, and not primarily attention to goods…”.

“The real problems of our planet are not economic or technical, they are philosophical. The philosophy of unbridled materialism is being challenged by events.”

“If greed were not the master of modern man, how could it be that the frenzy of economic activity does not abate as higher standards of living are attained, and that it is precisely the richest societies which pursue their economic advantage with the greatest ruthlessness.”