In 2020, the prominent Danish feminist Emma Holten read an article stating that women were a net ‘deficit’ to society. Women took more than they gave, ‘draining’ the public purse by giving birth and taking parental leave. They contributed less than their fair share in taxes, because they often worked part-time to look after other people at home, or held low-paid jobs in the public sector. Denmark would be richer if women’s lives looked more like men’s, the economic experts concluded. A similar story is told around the globe.

How did we get here? In Deficit, Emma Holten traces how economic thinkers – from the Enlightenment onwards – created a value framework that overlooked and neglected ‘women’s work’ and acts of care. She reveals how the economic models that drive political decisions today are just as flawed, giving us unparalleled monetary wealth, but causing deep social harms that are hurting us all. If we cannot properly value the things that matter, how can we build a better future?