The Limits to Growth
The Limits to Growth by Donella Meadows et al.by donella h. meadows, dennis l. meadows, et al
Shares rank 51 of 152 nonfiction books by recommenders
People say its nuanced analysis of growth limits has aged well and matches later data; the one caveat raised is that it extrapolates from aggregate statistics.
People say its nuanced analysis of growth limits has aged well and matches later data; the one caveat raised is that it extrapolates from aggregate statistics.
6 people gave an opinion
- recommend it
- 5
- criticize it
- 1
- approval share
- 83%
Recommended in 3 of 13 months
- November 2025: recommended
- December 2025: not recommended
- January 2026: not recommended
- February 2026: not recommended
- March 2026: recommended
- April 2026: not recommended
- May 2026: recommended
- June 2026: not recommended
- July 2026: not recommended
- August 2026: not recommended
- September 2026: not recommended
- October 2026: not recommended
- November 2026: not recommended (month in progress)
Why it doesn’t carry the badge
- 5 people recommend itNeeds 10 or more, not met.
- 5 recommenders for every criticNeeds 2 to 1 or better, met.
- Recommended in 3 of 13 monthsNeeds 4 or more, not met.
The same three rules apply to every product, and the badge can’t be bought. How the badge works
What people say about it
The reasons people give, with the number of comments that give each one. Open a reason to read what they said.
Why people recommend it
Each mark is one comment
Predictions have held up well
“Nothing has failed and their nuanced commentary on the complexity of the issue has only aged well.”
Comment from 3 Nov 2025 on Hacker News “FWIU the Limits to Growth report is more accurate than the Global 2000 report”
Comment from 6 May 2026 in “CNN founder Ted Turner, a pioneer of cable TV news, dies at 87” “world3 has be shown to be quite descriptive”
Comment from 3 May 2026 in “Notes on the Vulnerable World Hypothesis”
What people warn about
Each mark is one comment
Some readers strongly disliked it
“other folks really did not like that report”
Comment from 25 Mar 2026 in “Miscellanea: The War in Iran” Seen as confirming worst-case doom
“each time in so doing effectively confirming their worst-case hypotheses”
Comment from 16 Mar 2026 in “Obsession with growth is destroying nature, 150 countries warn”
Other nonfiction books people recommend
The four most recommended other nonfiction books, with the same counts for each, so you can compare like for like. The tick on each bar marks the 2 to 1 line the badge needs.
| Product | Recommend | Criticize | Approval | Months | Owned | Badge |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| The Cuckoo's Eggby Clifford Stoll | 40 | 0 | 100% | 8 | — | Approved |
| Amusing Ourselves to Deathby Neil Postman | 36 | 0 | 100% | 9 | 1 yr3 owners | Approved |
| The Anxious Generationby Jonathan Haidt | 24 | 12 | 67% | 10 | — | Approved |
| Bullshit Jobsby David Graeber | 20 | 12 | 63% | 8 | — | — |
| The Limits to Growthby donella h. meadows, dennis l. meadows, et alThis page | 5 | 1 | 83% | 3 | — | — |
What people said
All 6 comments that mention it, newest first. Each links to the original comment.
“FWIU the Limits to Growth report is more accurate than the Global 2000 report”
“world3 has be shown to be quite descriptive”
“Look only at aggregate statistics and extrapolate.”
“other folks really did not like that report”
“each time in so doing effectively confirming their worst-case hypotheses”
“Nothing has failed and their nuanced commentary on the complexity of the issue has only aged well.”
Counts come from 1,795,640 Hacker News comments, November 2025 to November 2026. How we count. Report a mistake.