Spokojnost: Exploring diverse degrowth futures in 21st century Slovakia

'Spokojnost, a Slovak word for 'contentment' opens a range of interpretations. People tend
to use it when describing someone who is satisfied: satisfied with their own life. The
question, however is, in the context of avoiding dangerous climate change, what is
'enough'? 30 years after the transition to market capitalism in Slovakia, what shall be the
next stage of 'development'? In this research my goal is to examine what living 'well' means
in a post-socialist context in the Anthropocene. How are ideas around degrowth, diverse
economies, ideals around sharing, caring and alternatives to a high mass consumption
lifestyle received in Slovakia.
Even though 'growth' as a concept in terms of better-quality goods and services, improved
infrastructure, and increased human longevity combined with a high quality of life is a crucial
element of any development scenario, this needs to be reconciled with the continued
existence of environmental degradation and stagnating life satisfaction that does not follow
the upwards driven curve of economic growth (Portner et al., 2022; Easterling, 1974). This
research aims to make contribution to the knowledge on grassroots development, the
construction of sustainable futures and, in the post-communist context, of Slovakia in the
21st century, focused on notions and imaginations of what living well means in terms of
shaping futures.