Global Environmental Policy
- Back to the Basics -
What do we do with
Sustainable Development
What is Sustainable Development?
There are over 100 definitions of sustainability and
sustainable development, but the best known, of
course, is that of the World Commission on
Environment and Development:
This suggests that development is sustainable where it
"meets the needs of the present without compromising
the ability of future generations to meet their own
needs."
What is Sustainable Development?
Sustainable development implies economic
growth and social equity, together with the
protection of environmental quality, each
reinforcing the other.
The essence of this form of development is a
stable relationship between human activities and
the natural world, which does not diminish the
prospects for future generations to enjoy a
quality of life at least as good as our own.
What is Sustainable Development?
The term refers to achieving economic and social
development in ways that do not exhaust a
country's natural resources.
“Sustainable Development is ... a process of
change in which the exploitation of resources, the
direction of investments, the orientation of
technological development, and institutional
change are made consistent with the future as
well as present needs".
What is Sustainable Development?
Development that meets the needs of the present
without compromising the ability of future
generations to meet their own needs.
Sustainable development respects the limited
capacity of an ecosystem to absorb the impact of
human activities.
What is Sustainable Development?
SD is development which meets the needs of the
present without compromising the ability of
future generations to meet their own needs.
Some people also believe that the concept of
sustainable development should include
preserving the environment for other species as
well as for humans.
What is Sustainable Development?
Lets have a look at an online feature:
Sustained Voices
http://www.gdrc.org/sustdev/voices.html
What is Sustainable Development?
The key message of
sustainability, ultimately,
is about balance in the
way we live …
What is Sustainable Development?
Needs of
present
generation
Balance
Needs of
future
generations
According to the United Nations, sustainable development is
"development that meets the needs of the present without compromising
the ability of future generations to meet their own needs."
What is Sustainable Development?
SocioCultural
issues
Balance
Environmental
issues
Economic
issues
What is Sustainable Development?
Improvement
of lifestyles
and well-being
Balance
Preserving
natural resources
and ecosystems
Sustainable development is maintaining a delicate balance between the
human need to improve lifestyles and feeling of well-being on one hand,
and preserving natural resources and ecosystems, on which we and
future generations depend.
Sustainable Development Issues
* Agriculture
* Indicators
* Technology
* Atmosphere
* Industry
* Toxic Chemicals
* Biodiversity
* Information for Decision Making and Participation
* Trade and Environment
* Biotechnology
* Integrated Decision Making
* Transport
* Capacity-building
* International Law
* Waste (Hazardous)
* Climate Change
* International Cooperation for Enabling Environment
* Waste (Radioactive)
* Consumption and Production Patterns
* Institutional Arrangements
* Waste (Solid)
* Demographics
* Land management
* Water
* Desertification and Drought
* Major Groups
* Disaster Reduction and Management
* Mountains
* Education and Awareness
* National Sustainable Development Strategies
* Energy
* Oceans and Seas
* Finance
* Poverty
* Forests
* Sanitation
* Fresh Water
* Science
* Health
* SIDS
* Human Settlements
* Sustainable tourism
Key Milestones of SD
1962 - Rachel Carson and "Silent Spring"
1972 - Rene Dubos and Barbara Ward write "Only One Earth"
1972 - United Nations Conference on Human Environment held in Stockholm
1972 - Club of Rome publishes "Limits to Growth"
1980 - World Conservation Strategy released by IUCN
1987 - UN-sponsored Brundtland Commission released "Our Common Future"
1992 - Rio Summit and Agenda 21
2002 - Johannesburg Summit and Action 21 - Johannesburg Plan of
Implementation
Sustainable Development Issues
Sustainable
Development
Timeline
http://www.iisd.org/rio+5/timeline/sdtimeline.htm
The 7 Triads of Sustainability
Triad #1: PARTICIPATION
Dialogue
Cooperation
Participation also includes
such issues as solidarity,
involvement, value-adding
etc.
Communication
The 7 Triads of Sustainability
Triad #2: DECISION-MAKING
Consensus Building
Public Review
and Hearings
Decision-making also
includes such issues as
ownership, visioning,
flexibility, empowerment,
informed consent,
community choice etc.
Awareness
Building
The 7 Triads of Sustainability
Triad #3: PARTNERSHIP
Interdependence
Clustering
Partnership also includes
such issues as credibility,
trust, equality etc.
Networking
The 7 Triads of Sustainability
Triad #4: GOVERNANCE
Transparency
Efficiency
Governance also includes
such issues as
empowerment, impartiality,
adaptation, responsiveness,
representativeness,
information disclosure etc.
Accountability
The 7 Triads of Sustainability
Triad #5: KNOWLEDGE & INFO
Appropriateness
Timeliness
Knowledge and
Information also includes
such issues as learning,
formatting and packaging
information, targeting,
delivery mechanisms,
information sharing,
technologies (ICTs) etc.
Accessibility
The 7 Triads of Sustainability
Triad #6: CONTINUAL IMPROVEMENT
Monitoring and Evaluation
Feedback
Needs
Assessment
Continual Improvement
also includes such issues
as capacity building,
indicators etc.
The 7 Triads of Sustainability
Triad #7: LIFESTYLES
Behaviour
Values
Lifestyles also includes
such issues as quality of
life, respect, dignity, selfesteem etc.
Ethics
Millennium Development Goals
The eight Millennium Development Goals
(MDGs) – which range from halving
extreme poverty to halting the spread of
HIV/AIDS and providing universal primary
education, all by the target date of 2015 –
form a blueprint agreed to by all the world’s
countries and all the world’s leading
development institutions.
http://www.un.org/millenniumgoals/
MDGs to SDGs
Millennium
Development
Goals
(MDGs)
Sustainable
Development
Goals
(SDGs)
(2005-2015)
(2015-2025)
Status: coming to an end in
2015. Partial success – many
problems remain
Status: Starting next year – a
draft set of new goals have
been decided.
http://goo.gl/pu5Yo5
List of Proposed SDGs
to be attained by 2030
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
10.
11.
12.
13.
14.
15.
16.
17.
End poverty in all its forms everywhere
End hunger, achieve food security and adequate nutrition for all, and promote sustainable
agriculture
Attain healthy life for all at all ages
Provide equitable and inclusive quality education and life-long learning opportunities for
all
Attain gender equality, empower women and girls everywhere
Secure water and sanitation for all for a sustainable world
Ensure access to affordable, sustainable, and reliable modern energy services for all
Promote strong, inclusive and sustainable economic growth and decent work for all
Promote sustainable industrialization
Reduce inequality within and among countries
Build inclusive, safe and sustainable cities and human settlements
Promote sustainable consumption and production patterns
Promote actions at all levels to address climate change
Attain conservation and sustainable use of marine resources, oceans and seas
Protect and restore terrestrial ecosystems and halt all biodiversity loss
Achieve peaceful and inclusive societies, rule of law, effective and capable institutions
Strengthen and enhance the means of implementation and global partnership for
sustainable development
Sustainability … its everywhere
So …
sustainable development
is at the core
of all the three modules
of the matrix