The imperative of urgent global just transition presents a grievous challenge. Current forms of economic growth are fundamental drivers of planetary ecological destruction. Yet economic growth remains indispensable, if only to underpin the profound socio-technical transition needed for an alternative, sustainable economy. The chapter explores the cultural political economy of research and innovation (CPERI) as a promising perspective for thinking through and going beyond this growth paradox. Having introduced CPERI, the chapter illustrates its advantages with a key, but much-neglected, concrete example of the growth paradox, namely the contribution of a rising China to tackling climate emergency, as site of both significant innovation and massive, resource-intensive economic growth. Comparison is also drawn with two similar perspectives, namely degrowth and responsible stagnation. A strategic approach, like CPERI, is needed to open up the prevailing definition of the ‘growth’ to which society is currently committed, and with major transformations still ahead.