Dematerialization and What It Means for the Economy — and Climate Change

Andrew McAfee, co-director of the MIT Initiative on the Digital
Economy, explains how the U.S. economy is growing and actually
using less and less stuff to do so. Thanks to new technologies,
many advanced economies are reducing their use of timber, metals,
fertilizer, and other resources. McAfee says this dematerialization
trend is spreading to other parts of the globe. While it’s not
happening fast enough to stop climate change, he believes it offers
some hope for environmental protection when combined with effective
public policy. McAfee is the author of the book “More from Less:
The Surprising Story of How We Learned to Prosper Using Fewer
Resources—and What Happens Next.”