Katherine Trebeck
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About Dr Katherine Trebeck

Katherine is a political economist, writer and advocate for economic system change. She co-founded the Wellbeing Economy Alliance and also WEAll Scotland, its Scottish hub. She is writer-in-residence at the University of Edinburgh’s Edinburgh Futures Institute and a Strategic Advisor to Australia’s Centre for Policy Development. She sits on a range of boards and advisory groups such as The Democracy Collaborative, the C40 Centre for Urban Climate Policy and Economy, and the Centre for Understanding Sustainable Prosperity.

She is a New Economics Senior Fellow at the ZOE Institute, a Fellow of The Leaders Institute and a Distinguished Fellow of the Schumacher Institute. She has over eight years’ experience in various roles with Oxfam GB, where she developed Oxfam’s Humankind Index and led Oxfam’s work on downscaling the ‘doughnut’ for various national contexts.

Katherine instigated the group of Wellbeing Economy Governments (WEGo) – comprising Scotland, New Zealand, Finland, Wales, Iceland, and Canada. She was Rapporteur for Club de Madrid’s Working Group on Shared Societies and Sustainability, was a member of the Scottish Government’s Sustainable Renewal Advisory Group, and Zero Waste Scotland’s Demystifying Decoupling Advisory Group.

Katherine has Bachelor Degrees in Economics and in Politics (University of Melbourne) and holds a PhD in Political Science from the Australian National University. She worked for the University of Glasgow as a Research Fellow from 2005-2009 and was Honorary Professor at the University of the West of Scotland and Senior Visiting Research Fellow at the University of Strathclyde (based at the Fraser of Allander Institute).

Her most recent book The Economics of Arrival: Ideas for a Grown Up Economy (co-authored with Jeremy Williams and published by Policy Press) was published in January 2019 and her major report Being Bold: Budgeting for Children’s Wellbeing was launched in March 2021.

Katherine splits her time between Australia and Scotland and perhaps unsurprisingly loves Australian gum trees, the rain, and the Scottish mountains. When life allows she is invariably cooking for friends (whether in Canberra or Glasgow), ideally accompanied by a glass of wine or two from Australia.

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VIDEOS PODCASTS BLOGS & ARTICLES BOOKS PROJECTS

Katherine takes audiences into a conversation about the root causes of today’s great challenges.

What happens when we ask ‘but why?’ and turn our attention to the underlying patterns of power, inequality and environmental impact?

With a blend of humour and insights of a range of prospects and evidence she makes the complex accessible, sparks new ways of thinking and spurs audiences to explore their role in making the world a better place.

VIDEOS

The economic basis of happiness

Happiness and its causes conference

Global Ethical Finance Initiative

Conversation with Kaisie Rayner

Vandaag het gesprek met Katherine Trebeck

Erno Hannink interview.

Why the future economy should focus on well-being and not just GDP.

ABC News.

What a wellbeing economy can do for all Australians

George Institute webinar.

What comes after neoliberalism?

Debating Europe discussion alongside Yanis Varoufakis & Martin Wolf.

It’s time to stop business as usual

Policy Press webinar with Carl Rhodes et al.

WEAll Meets

In conversation with Isabel Nuesse

In conversation: the economy and climate

With Caroline Lucas MP & Jimmy Paul at Common Ground fest

Ecological Economics at COP 26

Facing the Future event

VPRO documentary on an economy that is better than growth (Other contributors mainly in Dutch)

Actions speak louder than words: high hopes for Cop26

Kirsty Innes’ Women in Sustainability conversation

Delivering wellbeing with Doughnut Economics
Conversation with Kate Raworth & Sophie Howe, hosted by WEAll Cymru Wales Hub

Keynote for Institute of Directors annual conference
Building an Economy of Wellbeing

Interview for Victorian Council of Social Services
Understanding the Wellbeing Economy

Brussels Economic Forum debate
“For a sustainable post-covid recovery, this forum believes we should replace GDP with an alternative well-being indicator”. June 2021

Keynote to Australia 21 conference

Wellbeing budgets and the Wellbeing Economy Agenda

Postgrowth and Degrowth: the (Im)possibility of GreenGrowth and its altneratives

d/carb event with Tim Jackson and Susan Paulson

Keynote to ICIC conference
Population Health and Wellbeing and Resilient Communities

ZERO conference on Wellbeing Economy
From 45 minutes (but the first section is worth watching!)

Discussing Climate Change and the Wellbeing Economy with the Researchers Desk (Sweden)
In conversation with Dr Jen Hinton

Launch of WEAll Netherlands hub
Soft launch of a new WEAll hub

Power to the People: Wealth & Wellbeing
Development Trusts NI conference

Campaign launch for a new parliamentary petition
Hosted by Caroline Lucas MP & the APPG on Limits to Growth

In conversation with Professor Ben Friedman
For the David Hume Institute

Visit Scotland journey to change
Why collaboration is crucial for building a wellbeing economy

Scottish Laity Network
What are economists saying that gives us hope?

Trinity College Build Back Better webinar
Discussing a better future with Martin Johnstone & Karyn McClusky

Scottish Climate Assembly
Why our measures of progress need to change to address the climate emergency

New Economy Discussion
What is the Wellbeing Economy and why should we value the wellbeing of people and the planet more? Hosted by Pakhuis De Zwijger.

Scotland: The Recovery
Exploring how Scotland can move forward to build an inclusive post-pandemic society and well-being economy

Prospects for a Wellbeing Economy
Schumacher Lecture

Interview with Kees Klomp
The Thrive Institute for RVO

Opening address to the Upstream conference
Upstream’s online event

For more videos see my video archive here

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PODCASTS

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The Art of Living Together
On this episode of Policy Forum Pod, political economist Katherine Trebeck and author and advocate Tim Hollo join us to discuss reshaping political and economic systems that help us to better care for ourselves, each other, and the planet.

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The RegenNarration Podcast

This conversation was recorded online at the Derby Media Aboriginal Corporation on Nyikina Country in the West Kimberley, with Katherine at home in Glasgow and Mike in Melbourne, on 12 October 2021.

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EXALT Podcast · Katherine Trebek - Should the economy work for society and the environment?
Politics Galore! · Politics Galore! Ep27. 6Sept2018

For more podcasts see my podcast archive here

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BLOGS & ARTICLES

‘Not about ashrams and yoga retreats’: Nation’s wellbeing a focus of October budget

December 2, 2022/by Katherine Trebeck

Principles for an effective wellbeing budget

October 3, 2022/by Katherine Trebeck

Time off and next steps

March 29, 2022/by Katherine Trebeck

Where are we headed? Rethinking the economy

January 12, 2022/by Katherine Trebeck

New Cambo oil field is incompatible with ‘code red’ emergency and Scotland must oppose it

December 6, 2021/by Katherine Trebeck

Time for Canadians to redefine economic success

June 5, 2021/by Katherine Trebeck

Let’s not get back to normal – it wasn’t so nice

May 1, 2021/by Katherine Trebeck

From a harmless bet to Russian roulette

April 16, 2021/by Katherine Trebeck

A more apt measure for a healthier future?

April 10, 2021/by Katherine Trebeck

Into a year of ‘hand picking your yes’

February 19, 2021/by Katherine Trebeck

A wellbeing economy agenda to help shape the post coronavirus economy

January 2, 2021/by AdminKT

New financial forum magazine

December 19, 2020/by Katherine Trebeck
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For Blogs and Articles pre-dating 2018 please click PDF button below

View archive blogs & articles

BOOKS

Towards Sustainable Well-Being: Moving beyond GDP in Canada and the World

Towards Sustainable Well-Being (edited by Anders Hayden, Céofride Gaudet and Jeffrey Wilson) examines existing efforts and emerging possibilities to improve upon gross domestic product as the dominant indicator of economic and social performance. Contributions from leading international and Canadian researchers in the field of beyond-GDP measurement offer a rich range of perspectives on alternative ways to measure well-being and sustainability, along with lessons from around the world on how to bring those metrics into the policy process.

Available Here

Thrive: fundamentals for a new economy

In ‘Thrive. Fundamentals for a New Economy’, Kees Klomp and Shinta Oosterwaal provide insights into alternative approaches that are sustainable and just for both society and the planet. In twenty-four essays, internationally renowned economic thinkers share the alternatives, such as doughnut economics, wellbeing economics, common good economics, regenerative economics, commons economics, local economics, bioregional economics, indigenous economics and degrowth economics. Each provides a realistic and enticing vision of a thriving future.

Available Here

Scotland After The Virus

Scotland After the Virus is a book responding to Scotland’s experience of the COVID pandemic and imagining Scotland after the virus.
Edited by Gerry Hassan & Simon Barrow who have previously collaborated with A Nation Changed in 2017 and Scotland the Brave? in 2019, this is their first book to include fiction and poetry as well as nonfiction. The book has sections covering politics, wellbeing, equality, culture and more.

Available Here

The Economics of Arrival: ideas for a grown-up economy (with Jeremy Williams)
What do people and planet really need from the economy? Is the quality of life undermined by the drive for economic growth at all costs? In this provocative book, Trebeck and Williams describe a new challenge: a move from expansion to inclusion.

Available Here

New Thinking for the British Economy
Neoliberalism – the set of economic ideas and policies that have dominated politics for the past 40 years – is rapidly losing legitimacy in the face of multiple crises: stagnant or falling living standards, sharply rising inequality of income and wealth, financial fragility and environmental breakdown. At this critical juncture, new ideas about the kind of society we want to live in, and the future we want to see, are needed more than ever.

Available Here

‘Fletcher and Steve’
Chapter in Knock Twice (edited by Andrew Simms), a new collection of 25 modern folk tales for troubling times. Realising the limits of facts and policy alone to change the world, an innovative group of leading experts on many of the most critical issues facing us – from climate change to inequality and corrupt corporations- has written folk tales for our troubling times.

Available Here

Tackling Timorous Economics

What is the best way to run a country? How long should a person be obliged to work every day? What will the economy look like after Brexit?

In this new take on the Scottish economy, experts Trebeck, Boyd and Kerevan address how our economy can serve us, as opposed to the people serving the economy. They believe that current economic policies are not aligned with what we as people need in these times of rampant inequality and inequitable distribution, advocating an increased focus on the quality of Scotland’s economy.

Available Here

Wellbeing and Quality of Life Assessment
Human development may encompass social, cultural and spiritual facets as well as economic improvement, and development organizations are beginning to recognize this fact. But building into programming a wider understanding of development throws up a number of questions: how do our organizations define wellbeing and quality of life?

What do target communities in the global north or south mean by a quality of life? How can we measure change in wellbeing, and attribute it to our programming?

Available Here

After Independence

At the height of the Scottish Independence debate, After Independence offers an in-depth and varied exploration of the possibilities for Scotland, from both pro and anti-independence standpoints.

Drawing together over two dozen leading minds on the subject, After Independence offers a comprehensive and balanced analysis of Scotland’s current and prospective political, economic, social and cultural situation.

Available Here

Marketing for Morality? The Scottish Case and the Humankind Index
Place marketing strategies are becoming increasingly sophisticated with city branding, in particular, developing as an important subfield within this literature (Kotler et al., 2002). City branding campaigns often highlight consumption opportunities which may be seen as a means of promoting recovering from the identity crisis caused by de-industrialization. Indeed, Miles (2010) suggests that the consuming city has become central to urban life to the extent that policy-makers and urban planners focus on consumption at the expense of anything else.

Available Here

Mothering, Poverty and Consumption

Chapter (with Kathy Hamilton and Lisa Glass) in Motherhoods, Markets and Consumption The Making of Mothers in Contemporary Western Cultures (edited by O’Donohoe, Hogg et al).

This chapter focuses on the experiences of mothers in poverty within the context of UK consumer culture. We follow relative poverty definition, referring to those who lack the resources necessary to participate in the normal customs of society and are unable to obtain goods and services needed for an ‘adequate’ and ‘socially acceptable’ standard of living (Darley and Johnson 1985: 206).

Available Here

PROJECTS

The Democracy Collaborative

Member of the Board

Being Bold: Wellbeing Budgets for Children

Lead author

Wellbeing Economy Alliance Scotland
Co-Founder

Schumacher Institute 

Distinguished Fellow

Wellbeing Economy Alliance

Senior Strategic Advisor

Wellbeing Economy Governments

Instigator

Scottish Government Sustainable Renewal Advisory Group
Member

Wellbeing Economics Film

Subject matter

Centre for Understanding Sustainable Prosperity (CUSP)

Advisory Board Member

Member of Demystifying Decoupling Advisory Group

Member

The Leaders Institute

Fellow

University of Strathclyde

Senior Visiting Research Fellow

Author of ‘The Money’ chapter

Download PDF

Omina Foundation

Advisory Board Member

Living Well Within Limits (Lili) Project

Advisory Board Member

Club de Madrid

Rapporteur Shared Societies and Sustainability Working Group

Humankind Index

Rapporteur Shared Societies and Sustainability Working Group
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University of the West of Scotland

Honorary Professor

Fairer Fife Commission

Commissioner

WWF Low Carbon Infrastructure Task Force

Task Force Member

What happens when we ask ‘but why?’ and turn our attention to the underlying patterns of power, inequality and environmental impact?
Katherine takes audiences into a conversation about the root causes of today’s great challenges. With a blend of humour and insights of a range of prospects and evidence she makes the complex accessible, sparks new ways of thinking and spurs audiences to explore their role in making the world a better place
CONTACT KATHERINE

ENDORSEMENTS

Katherine takes audiences into a conversation about the root causes of today’s great challenges.

“Katherine was absolutely amazing, her delivery and content were engaging and profound. We so appreciated her willingness to help us out in a tight spot, which she did with grace and aplomb – and substance!“
Coro Strandberg Social Purpose Institute


“Katherine is an amazing speaker – I could listen to her all day“

Jessica Mével Ellen Macarthur Foundation


“GIZ was fortunate to welcome Katherine as a keynote speaker to the GIZ Symposium on Just Transition in Berlin…With her remarkable stage presence, memorable words and arguments and a strong belief in a better future, she was not only able to bring across what it takes to create a more just future to the over 300 people in the audience, but every audience member also felt as if she was talking to them directly.

Her approachable nature also meant that she was continuously surrounded by symposium participants who wanted to gain more insights on what Just Transition means based on her high level of expertise in this field. Katherine’s various inputs, not only on stage but also during her active participation in break-out events, have contributed towards shaping the GIZ’s understanding of Just Transition and what it takes.”

Dr. Elke Matthaei Climate Change, Rural Development, Infrastructure, GIZ


“Katherine’s talk at our conference was totally inspiring. She is a brilliant speaker and effortlessly communicated a pretty compelling case for system change in a way that was relevant to our sector (housing). I think everyone who left that session was buzzing about what they could do to support a wellbeing economy.

If you are looking for a conference speaker who will give you delegates something to think about afterwards then I would definitely recommend Katherine.”

Callum Chomczuk CEO of Chartered Institute of Housing, Scotland.


“Katherine is an inspiring communicator with a remarkable ability to enthuse a non-specialist audience about economics and its role in building a thriving society. Her expert theoretical knowledge was firmly rooted in practical examples which enabled our conference attendees to feel informed and hopeful.

We could easily go on…We are so grateful for the way [Katherine was] able to communicate so clearly and inspire our attendees.”

Roo Stewart Church and Society.


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