{"id":2378,"date":"2021-10-04T12:14:41","date_gmt":"2021-10-04T12:14:41","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/wp.infilon.net\/systemsthinking\/?page_id=2378"},"modified":"2022-01-17T12:24:28","modified_gmt":"2022-01-17T12:24:28","slug":"what-is-sustainable-development-sd","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/wp.infilon.net\/systemsthinking\/what-is-sustainable-development-sd\/","title":{"rendered":"What Is Sustainable Development (SD)?"},"content":{"rendered":"

[vc_row css=”.vc_custom_1633342354903{margin-bottom: 30px !important;background-color: #f8f8f8 !important;}” el_class=”jeans_example”][vc_column][vc_custom_heading text=”What is Sustainable Development (SD)?” font_container=”tag:h2|text_align:left|color:%23800000″ google_fonts=”font_family:Muli%3A300%2C300italic%2Cregular%2Citalic|font_style:400%20regular%3A400%3Anormal” css=”.vc_custom_1640674321029{margin-bottom: 30px !important;}”][vc_column_text]For Step 6<\/strong><\/p>\n

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To understand what \u201csustainable development\u201d means, one may start by reflecting on the meaning of the conjoined words. So, \u201csustainable development\u201d refers to a process that finally leads to the intended aim \u201csustainability\u201d. To get an idea about and understand what \u201cSustainable Development\u201d means, we have to have clarity about the term \u201cSustainability\u201d. Therefore, our explanation starts with the question, what is the meaning of Sustainability?<\/p>\n

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In Europe, the concept of a process being sustainable came up in the beginning of the 18th<\/sup>\u00a0century in the context of forest and mining. It was realized that there will always be enough wood as long as you do not cut more wood than can grow in the time that it takes to cut the wood. This 18th<\/sup>\u00a0century concept provides us with a basic idea, if not a clear understanding of \u201csustainable development\u201d.<\/p>\n

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In 1987, the World Commission on Environment and Development (Brundtland Commission) Report, Our Common Future, described sustainable development as \u201cdevelopment that meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs.\u201d<\/p>\n

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An explanation of the difference between sustainable development and sustainability as suggested by UNESCO is:<\/p>\n

Sustainability is often thought of as a long-term goal (i.e., a more sustainable world), while sustainable development refers to the many processes and pathways to achieve it (e.g., sustainable agriculture and forestry, sustainable production and consumption, good government, research and technology transfer, education, and training, etc.).<\/em><\/p>\n

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A much clearer concept of sustainability is presented with the interplay of the human development index (HDI) with the ecological footprint (EF) which defines sustainability in a mathematical, and therefore measurable, way.[\/vc_column_text][vc_row_inner][vc_column_inner width=”1\/2″][vc_column_text]According to this model, a social group or society may be sustainable when their HDI score is above 0.8 per capita, which indicates a high standard of living, while their ecological footprint is less than 1.6 global hectare (gha) per capita.<\/p>\n

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Based on that we can state:<\/p>\n

S = HDI > 0.8 + EF < 1.6 gha<\/p>\n

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S = sustainability<\/p>\n

HDI = human development index<\/p>\n

EF = ecological footprint<\/p>\n

gha= global hectare[\/vc_column_text][\/vc_column_inner][vc_column_inner width=”1\/2″][vc_single_image image=”2755″ img_size=”full”][\/vc_column_inner][\/vc_row_inner][vc_column_text]What is \u201csustainable development\u201d?<\/strong><\/p>\n

Based on the above description of sustainability, what sustainable development means is easy to deduce: sustainable development describes the process by which individuals and\/ or social groups achieve sustainability.<\/p>\n

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Or, to use the same metaphor, sustainable development is the path leading into the green corner of the model \u2013 no matter where an individual, social group or a country starts.<\/p>\n