Oscar Wilde observed Britain and America are “two nations divided by a common language.” Each expects too much of the other. Similarly, ecology and economics are two disciplines divided by a common concern and mutual misunderstanding. We address similar systems, but each “eco” has its own scientific culture. This symposium invites a synthesis across the divide, by comparing and contrasting the different styles of investigation. Without formal training in economics, ecologists are open to misunderstanding, while economists are wont to call ecological matters mere “externalities." Conventional ecological wisdom is that resources run out. Economists insist things only get more costly, and the system adapts. Long-term adjustment appears in ecology as the “Red Queen,” and “the ghost of competition past,” but these concepts are exceptional. By contrast, the queen and the ghost would be unremarkable in economics, because narratives there usually update the system continuously. Much here is counterintuitive for both disciplines, as when diminishing resource quality stimulates increased efficiency, which makes usable low-quality resource that exists in greater quantity. When resource quality declines, surprisingly, both ecological and economic systems grow and consume more. Addressing such commonalities benefits both sciences. Economic models give new predictions when applied to ecology of organism resource expenditure. Even free market economists have helpful, albeit somewhat uncomfortable, things to tell ecology. Meanwhile, ecologists know about extinction and lack of sustainability, helpful caveats in economics over the long term. This symposium brings together scholars from both sides, committed to the middle, so we can triangulate on shared issues (e.g., climate, resources, ecological services) using a common economic ecological literacy.