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On Resource-conserving Society’s Way of Economic Growth---A Solution to the “Paradox of Thrift”YANG Wenjin(Zhejiang Gongshang University, Hangzhou 310012, China)Abstract:The resources of “resource-conserving”society primarily refer to “natural resources”. The conservation in consumption area only means the reduction of resource-conserving production, not the cutting of spending. The adjustment force of the market mechanism on the consumption of resource-conserving production is limited. Under the existing cultural system and production mode, the conversation of resources contribute little to economic growth, let alone removing radically the retains of scare resources on economic growth. The fundamental approach to breaking the restriction is to change the capitalist system and its corresponding production consumption patterns, and to establish a new culture system and production and consumptions patterns based on the production and consumption of the spiritual and cultural production and the combination of types of consumption in a harmonious way. Thus, the sustainable development goal of resource conversation and economical growth can be spontaneously achieved and human society will enter the ideal “realm of freedom” from the existing “realm of necessity”.Key word: conversation; resource conversation; economic growth; consumptionThe meaning of resource-conservingWhen we talk about resource-conserving, the first of first is about what is resource. Although most of the research has no exact definition on this aspects , they has the implication that resource means natural resources and the things which consume them. Also some think resource as all the things we can use, or we can call it the conserving of all elements, not only including the natural resource-conserving, but also including the conserving of physical labor, capital or other factors. In this paper, author myself define resource as “natural resources and its derivative”. This is because of two reasons: first, after a long-term economic development, capital and physical labor is relatively richer than the natural resource which is in growing shortage. One important aspect of resource-conserving and environment-protecting is to replace the non-renewable resources which is in increasing shortage(or increase the efficiency of the using of these resources )with capital and physical labor which is relatively richer(including techniques and men-made products), the huge pressure of competition and the intrinsic motivation of gaining more profits will force the company to promote the conserving of the non-natural resources constantly. In this way, although we should not deny the importance of the non-natural resources, this kind of resource should be the most important part in a resource-conserving society; second, the conserving of labor or other non-natural resources will block the economic growth. This is because in order to realize economic growth on the base of resource conserving, we should replace the natural resources with man-made resources such as capital and physical labor on one hand to guarantee a larger profit when we reduce the consuming of resources or at least not increase, and on the other hand, we should develop the industry based on non-natural resource, and let it be a more important role in total economy. To realize this, wemust continue to increase the use of non-natural resource-based factors on the basis of optimizing resource allocation. Therefore, the resource saving in theresource-saving society only refers to the natural resource and its derivative. As to other kinds of resources, we should “waste”them rather than save them. Only in this way, can we get the constant growth in economy based on the saving of natural resources and realize sustainable development.When comes to the issue of resource saving, things are different from the different angles. For example, when we consider this issue from its procedure, conserving has two meanings in the aspect of static state and the aspect of dynamic state. In the static state, it means when the technical level is not changing, we reduce the expends of natural resource mostly to get some things, or using a way which cost less rather than the way which is more expensive, such as a changing of clothes to keep out the cold rather than the using of air conditioner. And in the dynamic state, saving means a constant growth of efficiency of using resources by the develop of technology and the change of the way of labor as to product more when spend the same amount of resource. Obviously, the conserving in the aspect of dynamic is more sustainable when compared with it in the aspect of static state.Form the reproduction process, the conservation of resources can be divided into following forms: production, circulation, allocation and exchange. While building the “resource conserving” society in our country, people focus on producing and consumption realm and ignore circulation and allocation. Although allocation doesn’t involve the consumption of natural resources formally, but it is the core of reproduction of the society, and it will decide “how to produce” and “whom to produce”. Unreasonable allocation will lead to unreasonable production structure, which can bring about polarization to create serious resources wasting and poor deployment. Under the influence of progress of technology, the conservation of resources in the circulation field seems more important. Since the growth rate of labor productivity in the production field is much faster than that in the circulation field, the proportion of the production field accounting for economic development declines, while that of the circulation field increases. Thus the conservation of resources in the circulation field is more promising than the production field.The importance and limitation of resource conservingAs the increasingly tense supplying of resources and the continuing worsen ecological environment caused by excessive consumption of resources, the conservation of resources is of great significance to the sustainable development. Under certain technological level, an enterprise can improve economic performance and increase competitiveness from reinforcing management on conservation of resources. Undoubtedly, the progress of technology can improve utilization efficiency of resources, which is an important way for an enterprise to monopolize and gain huge profit. For regions or countries, the meaning of conserving resources is more obvious. Since conserving resources can not only promote production by cut down resource consumption, increase benefit level and enhance competitiveness of the region, but also protect the environment by reducing dump of waste. The environmental deterioration caused by the excessive consumption of resources is the most has threatened the human society. The resources problem seems more moderate regarding the threat. Therefore the true purpose of human society is protecting the environment by conserving resources.But one thing should be pointed out is that although resource conserving is a great measure for the promotion of social welfare and the improvement of environment, it has its ownlimitation. From short terms, resource conserving will block the economic growth both in life and consumption. This is becauset echnological progress can’t be significant in resource utilization in a short time, so it block economic growth. This situation is particularly evident during the economic downturn stage performance. In order to stimulate economic growth, government introduced a series policyfor large consumption of resources in recent years, such as updates or subsidiesin the consumption of cars,agricultural and household appliances.And in the long terms, savings in material production and consumption of resources on the existing basis is very limited. This is because as long as the now existing social system of pursuing material interests between people doesn’t change or we can say that people’s goal of the pursuit of more material wealth to enjoy doesn’t change, then the meaning of resource conserving based on the existing mode of production is limited.Because during a long time, any exponential growth with parameters greater than zero will results in an infinity growth.Nowadays, all countries look the per capita consumption of material goods as the measure of the level of development and prosperity, and all countries eagers to exceed other in this. Under this development model of pursuing greater material products, resource conservation is only to reduce a certain amount of resource consumption, but the total expend of the resource is increasing rather than reducing. So the resource conserving under the existing system can only d elay the arrival time of the “ritical point”, but can never solve the problem of sustainable development fundamentally.Under the existing system, it is impossible to solve the problem of the scarcity of resource by distributing resource rational. Furthermore, it is impossible to solve the resource scarcity by saving resource. Because market mechanisms only play a limited role in resource allocation. It only confines within the field of production and circulation. But in the field of distribution and consumption, the roles of market mechanisms are obvious constraints. For example, in the field of distribution, no matter primary distribution or redistribution, it is stuck by the social system, policy, monopolies and other series of non-complete market factors; in the field of consumption, especially when it comes to resource products consumption, the functions of market mechanism are ineffective. Because that resource, especially the variety of basic survival material consumption, is present in small amounts in the total expenditure and is in a downward trend as well. That is why people are not very sensitive to the price changes of resource, which contribute to the serious waste of resources, Such as large-scale use of disposable consumables, excessive consumption of food, a serious waste of excessive pa ckaging, Western developed countries’ excessive use of air conditioning and so on. In fact, compared with the market dominated by the market competition mechanism, resource abuse in the consumption field is much more serious than the production field. Obesity leaded by excessive intake of nutrients, for instance, not only becomes a common phenomenon in developed countries, but also is gradually increasing in developing countries. The resulting weight loss industry accounts for more than the proportion of the economy that the food industry occupies. Any social production is subordinated to the consumption purpose and consuming behavior and its expenditure is determined by the distribution relationship and its results, so that only when we change the existing social relations of production and consumption concept revolutionary, can the problems of resource scarcity and environment be solved eventually.The consumption paradox of thrift in the resource-conserving societyThe final goal of any social production is to meet the consumption needs of that society. Without the conservation in consumption, the conserving in Production process will lose its motivation and purpose. Compared with the efficiency of resource using on the existing basis in our country, that in the western country is much higher. But their per capita resource consumption amount is several times or even tens of times than our country or the world average. So in the long terms, the conservation in consumption is the real way to save resource, and it is the ultimate way out of the resource conservation.However, if the “resource conserving”in consumption changes into “consumer savings”in general sense, then it will block the economic growth. Even more, it will block the realization of the goal of sustainable development and “resource conserving society”, and finally make the resource conservation and environmental protection an empty. This is because, according to paradox of thrift, if people spend less or be austerity in consumption, then the combination of rational behaviors of lots of people will results in the extreme irrational ofthe society, that is the great obstacle of economic growth. And finally it turns out to make every individual poorer, which block Environmental protection and resource conservation greatly. Therefore, the “resource-conserving society” or the “consumer savings” in sustainable development only needs people to reduce the consumption of natural resources products, not to “use less money” or “buy less things” in general sense.The production of any social is to meet the people's consumption needs. Consumption is no only the purpose of production, it is also the way to p romote the production’s expansion and progress. To pursue the constant growth of consumption is the most basic motivation of human social progress and economic growth. That is to say, sustained economic growth and continuous improvement of people's welfare should be based oncontinued growth in consumer spending. Economic growth can’t be sure to be sustainable in a society lack of consumer spending support. Thus, it creates a contradiction in sustainable development or consumption in the construct of “resource conserving” society: to save resource, we should reduce consumption; and to promote economic situation, we should increase consumption. But these two are both purposes of “resource conserving” society. So the way to resolve this contradiction becomes a problem to be solved when we are in the construct of “resource conserving” society.。