Placing Sustainable and Inclusive Wellbeing at the heart of the economy: from research to transformative policy

This document synthesises the core highlights from the final conference of the SPES and ToBe projects, which call for a fundamental paradigm shift in Europe's economic framework. The central thesis is that the current model, fixated on GDP growth, is faili ng to deliver genuine prosperity and is actively creating societal and ecological crises. The conference established a clear consensus on the need to move "beyond GDP" and reorient economic and political goals toward Sustainable and Inclusive Well - being (SIW). Key takeaways include: The Failure of the Current Paradigm: Speakers unanimously identified the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) as a flawed and misleading metric that incentivises destructive activities, masks growing inequality and ecological damage, and fails to measure what truly matters to citizens. The existing neoliberal capitalist system is described as inherently designed to enrich a few at the expense of the many and the planet. A New Vision centred on Sustainable and Inclusive Wellbeing: The SPES and ToBe projects propose a new economic vision centred on well - being, sustainability, and inclusivity. This vision is grounded in frameworks that prioritise meeting universal human needs (health, autonomy, relatedness, agency), respecting planetary boundaries, and promoting sufficiency over overconsumption. It calls for an economy that serves people and the planet, rather than the other way around. A Political Window of Opportunity: There is a critical, time -sensitive opportunity for Europe to lead a global transformation. The UN Secretary - General's High - Level Group on "going beyond GDP" presents a pivotal moment. Speakers urged the European Union to leverage the scientific evidence from projects like SPES and ToBe to champion this change on the global stage and implement it within its own policy mechanisms. Concrete Pathways to Change: The path forward involves a multi - pronged strategy: fundamentally changing economic metrics (e.g., creating a quarterly SIW Indicator report ), embedding these new metrics into policymaking (e.g., the European Semester), implementing systemic fiscal reforms to redistribute wealth, and altering the legal and incentive structures for corporations to prioritise stakeholder value over shareholder profit.