Todelliskustannusjärjestelmät

todelliskustannusjärjestelmät, known in English as true cost accounting systems, represent an accounting framework that aims to capture all externalities associated with economic activities, not just direct financial costs. These systems seek to quantify and incorporate environmental, social, and health impacts into the pricing of goods and services. Instead of focusing solely on the market price, true cost accounting attempts to reflect the full societal burden, including pollution, resource depletion, labor exploitation, and public health issues.

The core idea is to make these hidden costs visible to consumers, businesses, and policymakers. By assigning monetary values to these externalities, products and services that are currently cheap due to externalizing costs would become more expensive, reflecting their true impact. Conversely, sustainable and ethically produced goods would appear more competitive. Implementing true cost accounting involves developing robust methodologies for measuring and valuing diverse externalities, which can be complex and subject to debate. Despite these challenges, the concept holds potential for driving more sustainable consumption and production patterns by aligning economic incentives with social and environmental well-being.