Misconceived or badly designed business systems, population growth, and wasteful patterns of consumption are the primary causes of the loss of natural capital, and all three must be addressed to achieve a sustainable economy. Future economic progress can best take place in democratic, market-based systems of production and distribution in which all forms of capital are fully valued, including human, manufactured, financial, and natural capital. One of the keys to the most beneficial employment of people, money, and the environment is radical increases in resource productivity. Human welfare is best served by improving the quality and flow of desired services delivered, rather than by merely increasing the total dollar flow. Economic and environmental sustainability depends on redressing global inequities of income and material well-being. Meaning of book's title In a 2009 interview, Paul Hawken described his motivation behind the title Natural Capitalism. He stated that it was intended to be a pun on "natural capital", a term originally coined by E.F. Schumacher in 1973. Hawken endorsed the underlying concept of natural capital, and its implications for society, so added an "-ism" at the end of that word as a double entendre. Despite this intention from Hawken, many readers interpreted this wordplay in the opposite way. There was dissent from readers who misunderstood the title, believing that Capitalism was the operative word, and that the authors were therefore justifying or defending the concept of capitalism. Hawken later expressed regret at this confusion, and stated that while he endorses the spirit of commerce and entrepreneurship, he does not endorse the "pathological" qualities inherent in pure capitalism. Other editions Zi4 ran2 zi1 ben3 lun4, Chinese (simplified characters) edition of Natural Capitalism (2000, Shanghai Popular Science Press) Capitalismo naturale (2001, Edizione Ambiente, Milano), Japanese edition of Natural Capitalism (2001, Nikkei, Tokyo) Chinese (complex characters) edition of Natural Capitalism (2002, CommonWealth, Taipei) Öko-Kapitalismus: Die industrielle Revolution des 21. Jahrhunderts (2002, Riemann, München) Loodus-kapitalism: uue tööstusrevolutionsiooni algus (2003 [Estonian]) Capitalismo Natural (Editora Cultrix, São Paulo), Natural Capitalism: Comment réconcilier économie et environnement (2008, Scali, Paris) Korean edition of Natural Capitalism (~2011, Gongjon, Seoul) See also Climate Capitalism Eco-capitalism Media coverage of climate change Merchants of Doubt References External links Book Excerpts and Downloadable Chapters Natural Capitalism — Mother Jones article on book. 1999 non-fiction books 1999 in the environment Eco-capitalism Economic ideologies Green politics Environmental non-fiction books Books by Amory Lovins Little, Brown and Company books