Sustainability

Sustainability means that a process or state can be maintained at a certain level for as long as is wanted.

One common definition of sustainability was from  the Brundtland Commission, led by the former Norwegian Prime Minister Gro Harlem Brundtland. The Commission defined sustainable development as development that "meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs."United Nations. 1987. "Report of the World Commission on Environment and Development." General Assembly Resolution 42/187, 11 December 1987.  Retrieved: 2007-04-12 So sustainability seeks to consider the present with the future in mind.

Sustainability often relates to the connection between economic, social and environmental aspects of human society, as well as the non-human (e.g. animal or plant) environment.Bridge, C. "Universal design impacts housing sustainability: Cost-benefit evidence." The University of Sydney, Faculty of Health Sciences. Retrieved on: July 26, 2007. Some overarching principles of sustainability include minimalism, efficiency, resilience and self-sufficiency. Sustainability is key to the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals, the SDGs.

Related pages

 Environmentalism
 Renewable energy
 Second law of thermodynamics
 Simple living
 Sustainable energy

Notes and references
Footnotes

References



Bibliography

 AtKisson, A. 1999. Believing Cassandra, An Optimist looks at a Pessimist’s World, Chelsea Green Publishing., White River Junction, VT
 Bartlett, A. 1998. "Reflections on Sustainability, Population Growth, and the Environment—Revisited"  revised version (January 1998) of paper first published in Population & Environment, Vol. 16, No. 1, September 1994, pp. 5–35.
 Benyus, J. 1997. Biomimicry: Innovations Inspired by Nature, William Morrow, New York
 Brown, M.T. and Ulgiati, S 1999. Emergy Evaluation of Natural Capital and Biosphere Services, AMBIO, Vol.28, No.6, Sept. 1999.
 Brundtland, G.H. (ed.), (1987),  Our common future: The World Commission on Environment and Development, Oxford, Oxford University Press.

 Dalal-Clayton, B. (1993) Modified Eia And Indicators Of Sustainability: First Steps Towards Sustainability Analysis , Environmental Planning Issues No.1, International Institute For Environment And Development, Environmental Planning Group.


 Dean, J. W. (2006). Conservatives Without Conscience. New York: Viking Penguin.
 Ekins, P. (Ed.). (1986). The Living Economy. London: Routledge and Kegan Paul.

 Hawken, Paul, Lovins, Amory and Lovins, L. H. 1999. Natural Capitalism: Creating the Next Industrial Revolution, Earthscan, London (Downloadable from www.natcap.org)
 International Institute for Sustainable Development (1996) Global Tomorrow Coalition Sustainable Development Tool Kit: A Sample Policy Framework, Chapter 4 .
 Jarzombek, Mark. "Sustainability—Architecture: between Fuzzy Systems and Wicked Problems," Blueprints 21/1 (Winter 2003), pp. 6–9; and LOG 8 (Summer 206) 7-13.
 Kriegman, O. 2006. Dawn of the Cosmopolitan: The Hope of a Global Citizens Movement. Boston: Tellus Institute.
 Lane, R. E. (1991). The Market Experience. New York: Cambridge University Press.
 Marks, N., Simms, A., Thompson, S., and Abdallah, S. (2006).The (Un)happy Planet Index. London: New Economics Foundation. Downloadable from www.neweconomics.org
 McDonough, W. & Braungart, M. (2002). Cradle to Cradle. North Point Press
 Nelson, E. H. (1986). New Values and Attitudes Throughout Europe. Epsom, England: Taylor-Nelson.
 Rajan, C. 2006. Global Politics and Institutions. Boston: Tellus Institute.
 Raskin, P., Banuri, T., Gallopin, G., Gutman, P., Hammond, A., Kates, R., and Swart, R. 2002. Great Transition: The Promise and Lure of the Times Ahead. Boston: Tellus Institute.
 Raven, J. (1995). The New Wealth of Nations: A New Enquiry into the Nature and Origins of the Wealth of Nations and the Societal Learning Arrangements Needed for a Sustainable Society. Unionville, New York: Royal Fireworks Press; Sudbury, Suffolk: Bloomfield Books.
 Richardson, B.J. and Wood, S. (eds) (2006). Environmental Law for Sustainability: A Reader, Hart Publishing, Oxford.
 Robèrt, Karl-Henrik. (2002). The Natural Step Story: Seeding a Quiet Revolution. Gabriola Island, BC: New Society Publishers.
 Shah, H., & Marks, N. (2004). A Well-being Manifesto for a Flourishing Society. London: New Economics Foundation.
 Sinclair, Fiona, D. (2007). "What is Sustainability" 
 Steffen, Alex (2006). Worldchanging: A User's Guide to the 21st Century. Abrams, New York.
 Trainer, F. E. (Ed.). (1990). A rejection of the Bruntland Report. International Foundation for the Development of Alternatives Dossier, 77, May-June, 71-85.
 Unruh, G. (2000). Understanding Carbon Lock-in, Energy Policy, Volume 28, Issue 12, October, 817–830.
 Unruh, G. (2002). Escaping Carbon Lock-in, Energy Policy, Volume 30, Issue 4, March, 317-325.
 Yankelovitch, D., Zetterberg, H., Strumpel, B., Shanks, M., et al. (1983). Work and Human Values. New York: Aspen Institute for Humanistic Studies.


 Other websites 
 Sustainability | Definition of Sustainability at Dictionary.com
 Encyclopedia of Earth: Sustainability
 (ISC) The Institute for Sustainable Communication—Dedicated to raising awareness and capacity for the sustainable use of print and other communication media.
 Grant Thornton International Business Report Energy & Environment focus 
 SustainLane US City Rankings A flyover tour and comparative sustainability ranking of the 50 largest US cities.
 SustainLane Government Urban sustainability "best practices" database (public) and peer network (private; government practitioners).
 Appropedia, an active wiki on sustainability, appropriate technology and international development.
 SustainUS The U.S. Youth Network for Sustainable Development
 Green Progress —Green building and sustainable development news.
 WWW—Virtual Library—sustainable development—links.
 iNSnet—Portal site for sustainable development.
 Sustainable Living Foundation
 Sustainability news coverage—from American Public Media.
 "The Next Green Revolution" (Wired Magazine)
 Sustainability: Science, Practice, & Policy—ejournal.nbii.org : a peer-reviewed, open access journal that provides a platform for the dissemination of new practices and for dialogue emerging out of the field of sustainability.


Category:Green politics