We don't explicitly need growth though. Average productivity is still what it is (very high) even without growth. The thing growth gives you is the ability to

We don't explicitly need growth though. Average productivity is still what it is (very high) even without growth. The thing growth gives you is the ability to increase the average person's standard of living without increasing their portion of the pie. In other words, growth is how you can make people's lives better without redistribution. I think it's no coincidence that we've seen this period of slower growth in developed economies (aside from the 90s) at the same time we've seen stagnation in the standard of living. And also we see an increased interest in redistribution as an answer.