Frame of Reference -- The Quest so Far – and Why it has Failed -- Risk and Uncertainty – Crucial Issues in Finance and Innovation -- Realigning Finance to its Original Purpose -- Reengineering Capitalism -- Introducing Energy Accounting -- Technological Development – Necessary but not Sufficient -- The Role of the Government -- The End of the Beginning.

This book provides an innovative approach to sustainable development, one based on insights gleaned from the Industrial Revolution to the present, and which highlights the importance of aligning economic interests with sustainable development considerations. It investigates how a broad-based systematic approach can be used to develop societies sustainably by integrating environmental issues into the capitalist system without value-laden approaches, which produce little more than politics and inaction as we are witnessing today. The proposed approach focuses on realigning the financial markets to providing capital at reasonable cost to fuel innovation towards sustainable development across the entire economy. This requires government policies that level the playing field and also intervene strategically in cases where the playing field is weak or missing . Intended for researchers, policy-makers and graduate students, the book will also benefit non-governmental organizations, economists and the general public.