Sustainability, Economics, and
Equity
Chapter 20
Sustainability
• Sustainability
a. when the needs of the present generation
are met without compromising the ability of
the future generations to meet their own
needs
b. economics
- examines how humans allocate scarce resources in
the production, distribution, and consumption of
goods and services
• Supply, Demand, and the Market
a. Market Economies (engage in trade)
- doesn’t account for externalities
- law of demand
- law of supply
b. What if we included externalities?
1. reduction in what is produced
2. include taxes, costs for pollution
3. raises the price of good/service, and lowers
demand
• Wealth and Productivity
a. measured in terms of productivity and
consumption
b. GDP
- gross domestic product
- value of all products and services produced in
a year in a given country
- 4 types of spending
1. consumer spending
2. investments
3. government spending
4. exports minus imports
c. GPI
1. genuine progress indicator
2. measures of personal consumption, income
distribution, levels of higher education,
resource depletion, pollution, and health of
a population
Capital and Human Welfare
• Capital – totality of our economic assets
a. natural (air, wind)
b. human (knowledge and abilities)
c. manufactured (all goods and services produced)
• Market Failure
a. when the economic system does not
appropriately account for all costs (externalities)
• Environmental economics
a. examines cost and benefits of policies and
procedures that seek to regulate or limit air and
water pollution or other causes of
environmental degradation
b. Valuation
- putting value to intangible benefits
ex) scenic views, spotted owl
- 2004 Millennium Ecosystem
* categorized the variety of services that
ecosystems provide for the benefit of
humans
Laws and Regulations to Protect
our Natural and Human Capital
• Environmental Worldview
a. anthropocentric – human-centered
1. nature has an instrumental value to provide
for our needs
b. ecocentric – earth-centered
1. places equal value on ecosystem and humans
c. biocentric – life-centered
1. humans are just one of the many species
d. Precautionary principle
1. 1987 Montreal Protocol
- applied to global change (CFCs)
• World Agencies
a. United Nations (UN)
1. maintaining world peace
2. 4 important organizations
* UNEP
* World Bank
* WHO
* UNDP
Organizations
Roles
United Nations Environment Programme • Kenya
(UNEP)
• Gathering environmental info,
conducting research, assessing
environmental problems
• Negotiating treaties
- Convention on Biological Diversity
- CITES
- Montreal Protocol
World Bank
World Health Organization (WHO)
• Washington, DN
• Financial assistance to developing
countries to reduce poverty and
promote growth
* Improve human health by monitoring
and assessing health trends and providing
medical advice
United Nations Development Programme • New York City
(UNDP)
• Address and facilitate issues of
democratic governance, poverty
reduction, crisis prevention/recovery,
environment/energy issues,
prevention of spread of disease
• United States Agencies
Organizations
Roles
Earth Day, April 22, 1970
Birthday representing connectedness of
environment and human society
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)
• Washington, DC
• President Nixon
• Oversees all government efforts
related to the environment
Occupational Safety and Health
Administration (OSHA)
• President Nixon
• Enforces health and safety regulations
• Prevents injuries, illnesses and deaths
in workplace
Department of Energy
• President Jimmy Carter
• Advance the energy and economic
security of the U.S.
Measuring and Achieving
Sustainability
• The Human Development Index (HDI)
a. 3 basic measures
1. life expectancy
2. knowledge and education
3. standard of living
b. used by UNDP
c. ranks countries in order of development
- determines developed and developing
• Human Poverty Index (HPI)
a. investigates the proportion of a population
suffering from deprivation in a country with
a high HDI
b. 3 measures
1. longevity (living past 40)
2. knowledge (illiteracy rate)
3. standard of living
• Environmental Policy Cycle
• Deterrents and Incentives
a. command-and-control approach
1. sets regulations for emissions and
controls them with fines or other
punishments
b. incentive-based approach
1. financial or other incentives for lowering
emissions based on profits and benefits
* Combination of both is BEST approach with most changes
c. green tax
1. placed on environmentally harmful
activities
d. triple bottom line
1. need to consider all three factors when
making decisions in order to achieved
sustainability
Two Major Challenges of our Time
• Reducing poverty and taking care of our
environment
• Poverty and Equity
a. 1/6 of population lives in unsanitary
conditions in informal settlements
b. increases overuse of land, degradation of
water, incidence of disease
c. Millennium Development Goals (MDGs)
1. UN
2. committed to:
- eradicate extreme poverty and hunger
- achieve universal education
- promote gender equality/empower women
- reduce child mortality
- improve maternal health
- combat HIV/AIDS, malaria, etc
- ensure environmental sustainability
- develop global partnership for development
3. Green Belt Movement
- replanting large tracts of land with trees
* reduce erosion
* improve soil quality
* improve moisture retention
* offer renewable source of fuel for cooking
• Environmental Justice
a. social movement
b. equal enforcement of environmental laws
c. equal enforcement on elimination of
pollutants
d. equality among all ethnic groups