Maurizio Pallante (Rome, 1947), a graduate in Literature, works mainly as an essayist and is the honorary president of the Movement for Happy Degrowth.

For many years he has worked in the fields of energy policy and environmental technology. He was an advisor in energy efficiency for the Italian Ministry of Environment. He is the founder of MDF and director of its publishing house. In 1988 he was one of the founders – with Mario Palazzetti and Tullio Regge – of the Committee for a Rational Use of Energy (CURE, Comitato per l’uso razionale dell’energia). He was a city councillor for Ecology and Energy in the municipality of Rivoli. Since 1988 he has devoted himself to research and scientific popularization on the relationship between ecology, technology and economy, with special reference to environmental technologies.

He is the author of several essays published by Bollati Boringhieri, Manifestolibri and Editori Riuniti. He also writes for some newspapers and magazines including Carta – La Stampa’s weekly supplement –, Tuttoscienze, Il Manifesto, Il Ponte, Rinascita.

He cooperates with the radio broadcast “Caterpillar” for the Happy Degrowth Day, of which he is the main inspirer. He is a member of the scientific committee for the energy saving campaign “M’illumino di meno” (“Lighting Less”) and of the online magazine about ecology “Terranauta”.