According to Nate Hagens, the global economy can be understood as an intricate network of interconnected and interdependent financial systems, markets, and resources that span across nations and continents. It embodies the cumulative sum of production, consumption, distribution, and trade activities conducted on a worldwide scale. Hagens emphasizes that this vast economic web is sustained by an undercurrent of energy flows and material throughput, reliant on finite natural resources and ecological services. He underscores the susceptibility of the global economy to systemic vulnerabilities and external shocks, which can ripple through the entire network due to its highly integrated nature. In his view, understanding the global economy requires a holistic appreciation of the biophysical realities underpinning economic activities, acknowledging the critical roles of energy, ecological capital, and the limits of growth within a finite planet.

See also: economic growth, climate change, fossil fuel, political economy, economic system