Hello and welcome to another episode of Planet B. Everything Must Change. I'm Harpreet

Corpall. This episode features an extended edition of our interview with

economist and academic J.D. Gosh. Gosh featured in our recent Planet B documentary on

Debt, which you can find on the Navara Media Podcast feed. Before we get started,

a reminder that you can order a free copy of perspectives on a global green

new deal, the illustrated book on which the series is based at www.globalhifenggnd.com.

My name is Jaiati Kosh. I teach economics. I taught for nearly 35 years in

Mehran University in India and I'm currently teaching at the University of

Massachusetts at Amherst in the US. So I'm based in both the US and India.

Jaiati, thank you so much for joining us today. I want to start with what probably

seems like a very simple question to you but could you begin by telling us what

debt actually is in your view? What is its function? Well, you know, debt is

actually quite a complex issue. At its simplest level, it is simply the ability

to take on some resources and repay them over time depending on your

capacity and that taking on of this debt can be for investment. It can be for

consumption. It can be to meet an immediate need, something extraordinary that

you don't normally have to pay for. So there are many reasons why debt is taken

on. It is at one level the very lifeblood of a capitalist market system.

Capitalism cannot function without credit, which actually operates to enable

companies to carry on with their investments. Working capital, for example, is

absolutely basic to any commercial market system. However, debt in its current form

extends to many more different areas and especially with regard to personal

...