SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT

INTRODUCTION
Sustainable development is the organizing principle for meeting human
development goals while simultaneously sustaining the ability of natural systems
to provide the natural resources and ecosystem services upon which
the economy and society depend. The desired result is a state of society where
living conditions and resources are used to continue to meet human needs without
undermining the integrity and stability of the natural system. Sustainable
development can be defined as development that meets the needs of the present
without compromising the ability of future generations.

Sustainable development has been defined in many ways, but the most frequently
quoted definition is from Our Common Future, also known as the Brundtland
Report: "Sustainable development is development that meets the needs of the
Present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs’’.
 HISTORY OF SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT

The concept of sustainable development formed the basis of the United Nations Conference on
Environment and Development held in Rio de Janeiro in 1992. The summit marked the first
international attempt to draw up action plans and strategies for moving towards a more sustainable
pattern of development. It was attended by over 100 Heads of State and representatives from 178
national governments. The Summit was also attended by representatives from a range of other
organizations representing civil society. Sustainable development was the solution to the problems
of environmental degradation discussed by the Brundtland Commission in the 1987 report Our
Common Future.

The concept of sustainable development received its first major international recognition in 1972 at
the UN Conference on the Human Environment held in Stockholm. The term was popularized 15
years later in Our Common Future, the report of the World Commission on Environment and
Development, which included what is deemed the 'classic' definition of sustainable development:
“development which meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future
generations to meet their own needs".

More recently, the World Summit on Sustainable Development was held in Johannesburg in 2002,
attended by 191 national governments, UN agencies, multilateral financial institutions and other
major groups to assess progress since Rio. The Johannesburg Summit delivered three key outcomes:
a political declaration, the Johannesburg Plan of Implementation, and a range of partnership
initiatives. Key commitments included those on sustainable consumption and production, water and
sanitation, and energy.

2
 GOALS OF SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT

The Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) are a collection of 17 global goals set by
the United Nation General Assembly in 2015 for the year 2030. The SDGs are part of
Resolution 70/1 of the United Nations General Assembly, the 2030 Agenda. The
Sustainable Development Goals are:

1.No Poverty

2. Zero Hunger

3. Good Health and Well-being

4. Quality Education

5. Gender Equality

6. Clean Water and Sanitation

7. Affordable and Clean Energy

8. Decent Work and Economic Growth.

9. Industry, Innovation, and Infrastructure.

10. Reducing Inequality.

11. Sustainable Cities and Communities

3
12. Responsible Consumption and Production

13. Climate Action

14. Life Below Water

15. Life On Land

16.Peace, Justice, and Strong Institutions

17.Partnerships for the Goals

4
 SUB GROUPS

Sustainable development, or sustainability, has been described in terms

of three spheres, dimensions, domains or pillars, i.e. the environment,
the economy and society. It has also been worded as "economic,
environmental and social" or "ecology, economy and equity". This has
been expanded by some authors to include a fourth pillar of culture,
institutions or governance, or alternatively reconfigured as four domains
of the social - ecology, economics, politics and culture, thus bringing
economics back inside the social, and treating ecology as the
intersection of the social and the natural.

5
  Environmental Sustainability: Environmental sustainability means that we are living
within the means of our natural resources. To live in true environmental sustainability we
need to ensure that we are consuming our natural resources, such as materials, energy fuels,
land, water etc, at a sustainable rate. Some resources are more abundant than others and
therefore we need to consider material scarcity, the damage to environment from extraction
of these materials and if the resource can be kept within circular economy principles.
Environmental sustainability should not be confused with full sustainability, which also need
to balance economic and social factors.

 Economic Sustainability: Economic sustainability requires that a business or country uses

its resources efficiently and responsibly so that it can operate in a sustainable manner to
consistently produce an operational profit. Without an operational profit a business cannot
sustain its activities. Without acting responsibly and using its resources efficiently a company
will not be able to sustain its activities in the long term.

 Social Sustainability: Social sustainability is the ability of society, or any social system,
to persistently achieve a good social wellbeing. Achieving social sustainability ensures that
the social wellbeing of a country, an organization, or a community can be maintained in the
long term.

Taking these three pillars of sustainability further if we only achieve two out of three pillars
then we end up with:

 Social + Economic Sustainability = Equitable

 Social + Environmental Sustainability = Bearable
 Economic + Environmental Sustainability = Viable

•Only through balancing economic + social + environmental can we achieve true

sustainability and a truly circular economy.

6
 HOW CAN WE MAKE IT HAPPEN?

To make sustainable development the norm, we have to change the vision of the cultures of
each country. To change the vision of the culture two things have to occur.

1. The culture must value a global benefit more than a local one.

2. A responsibility towards providing and sustaining resources for the future

must be of more value than profit in the present must be developed.

Both of these are very hard to do because it requires an element of self-sacrifice be adopted
by the present society. The value of the future is something that is not held in high esteem
when it comes to creating a profit, or to living with convenience. The general self-focus of
each generation is understandable, but as history has shown in other areas – it can be
expanded to include a sense of responsibility towards futures unknown that will allow for
different choices to me made in the present.

7
 ADVANTAGES OF
SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT

1.Environmental Preservation: Sustainable development focuses on conserving

natural resources and reducing environmental degradation. This helps protect
ecosystems, biodiversity, and the overall health of the planet.

2.Long-Term Economic Stability: It promotes economic growth that is balanced

with environmental and social concerns, reducing the risk of economic crises
caused by resource depletion or environmental disasters.

3.Improved Quality of Life: Sustainable development aims to enhance the well-

being of current and future generations. It can lead to improved access to clean
water, sanitation, education, and healthcare.

4.Innovation and Technological Advancements: The pursuit of sustainability

often drives innovation and the development of cleaner technologies, which can
lead to economic opportunities and job creation.

5.Resilience to Climate Change: Sustainable practices, such as renewable energy

and climate adaptation strategies, can make communities more resilient to the
impacts of climate change.

8
9
 DISADVANTAGES OF
SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT

1.Initial Costs: Transitioning to sustainable practices often requires

significant upfront investments, which can be a barrier for businesses and
governments, especially in developing countries.

2.Economic Slowdown: In some cases, stringent sustainability regulations

may slow down economic growth, especially in industries heavily reliant on
non-renewable resources.

3.Resistance to Change: There can be resistance to adopting sustainable

practices due to vested interests in traditional industries or a lack of
awareness and education about the benefits of sustainability.

4.Complexity and Trade-Offs: Balancing economic, social, and

environmental goals can be challenging, and trade-offs may need to be
made, leading to difficult decisions.

10
5.Global Cooperation Challenges: Achieving sustainability often requires
international cooperation, which can be difficult to achieve due to differing
interests and priorities among nations.

IMPORTANCE OF SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT

Sustainable development is a hard topic to nail down

because it consists of a wide range of things. Due to the
technicality and complexity of this topic, it’s best to check
out its importance holistically to be able to grasp it easily.
Population is the main factor driving up sustainable
development campaigns. So, the importance of sustainable
development can be viewed from this perspective:

1. Provides essential human needs

The explosion of population means people will have to

scramble for the limited life essentials like food, shelter,
and water. Adequate provision of these basic needs almost
entirely hinges on infrastructure capable of sustaining them
for a long time. If governments insist on utilizing fossil

11
fuel based sources of energy instead of renewable and
sustainable options, the cost and environmental effects of
supplying these basic needs would become a tall order.
2. Agricultural requirement

Growing population means agriculture must catch up.

Finding ways to feed more than 3 billion people can be
staggering. If same unsustainable cultivation, planting,
irrigation, spraying, and harvesting techniques are utilized
in the future, they might prove to be financially burdening
considering fossil fuel resources are projected to run out.
Sustainable development focuses on sustainable
agricultural methods such as effective seeding techniques
and crop rotation to promote high yields while maintaining
the integrity of the soil, which produces food for a large
population.

3. Manage climate change

Climate change can be mitigated by sustainable

development practices. Sustainable development practices
seek to reduce the use of fossil-based sources of fuel like
oil, natural gas, and coal. Fossil fuel sources of energy are
12
unsustainable since they will deplete in the future and are
responsible for the emission of greenhouse gasses.

4. Financial stability

Sustainable development practices have the ability to

create more financially sustainable economies across the
globe. Developing countries that can’t access fossil fuels
can leverage renewable forms of energy to power their
economies. From the development of renewable energy
technologies, these countries can create sustainable jobs as
opposed to finite jobs based on fossil fuel technologies.

5. Sustain Biodiversity

Unsustainable development and overconsumption

practices greatly impact biodiversity. Life ecosystem is
designed in such a way that species depend on one another
for survival. For instance, plants produce oxygen that
humans need for respiration. Humans exhale carbon
dioxide that plants need for growth and production.

13
Unsustainable development practices like emission of
greenhouse gasses in the atmosphere kill many plant
species resulting in reduction of atmospheric oxygen. This
is not good for humans. Sustainable development practices
encourage the use of renewable energy resources, and
organic farming practices that do not emit any greenhouse
gas to the atmosphere.

14
 EXAMPLES OF SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT

WIND ENERGY

Wind energy is energy harnessed from the motion of wind

using wind turbine or windmills. Wind energy is renewable,
which means it’s never ending and can be used to substitute
energy at the grid. This makes it a good sustainable
development practice.

SOLAR ENERGY

This is energy harnessed from the sun using solar panels. It’s
advantageous since it’s absolutely free and its supply is
infinite. These factors make it beneficial to consumers and
good for Mother Nature because it doesn’t contribute to
emission of greenhouse gasses.

15
GREEN SPACES

Green spaces are locations where plants and animals are left
to flourish. Parks also fall into the category of green spaces.
Green spaces provide people remarkable opportunity to take
pleasure in outdoor recreation, more so in big cities, where
resting space is hard to come by. Green spaces also help
regulate climate and quality of air, insulates rivers and
streams from polluted runoff and lowers energy usage by
dealing with the warming impacts of paved surfaces.

CROP ROTATION

Crop rotation is the practice of planting different crops in the

same farm to enhance soil fertility and assist control diseases
and insects. Crop rotation is beneficial in many ways; most
importantly, it’s chemical free. This means using this farming
practice maintains integrity of your soil, making it a
sustainable development practice. In the long run, there will
be no debate about sustainable development. Sustainable
development has proven to be cleaner, potentially more
efficient, and is the only way to grow our economies without
impacting human health and environment. Due to world
governments putting more emphasis on sustainable
16
development, more people today are moving towards
renewable sources of energy like solar, wind, hydro-power
and geothermal. As more people join this bandwagon, a lot
more of the resources will be required, and this will mean
faster depletion of resources. With time sustainable
development will not be an option for individuals wanting to
live a healthy ilife and lifestyle-choices.

UNDERSTANDING REGULATIONS AND

INCENTIVES

There is a very real necessity for a change to the regulations

and incentives that govern development in order to make
sustainable development the better option to choose. It isn’t
really possible to mandate sustainable development because it
could hinder projects that are necessary for the common good
by making them unaffordable to create. However, by using
various tax credits and incentive programs assigned to
different levels of sustainability in a development program,
more of a project can meet the requirements of sustainability.

17
 SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT AND IT’S
RELATION BETWEEN GDP

During the last decades, mankind has achieved considerable

developments that have led to dramatically improved standards
of living. Apart from the developed countries of the West, the
developing and emerging economies have shown remarkable
progress reflected in high levels of GDP growth rates. However,
in that pace of ongoing growth, the natural resources were used
thoughtlessly, while the legal framework and implementation of
environmental issues were quite lax.

Taking into account that we intend to investigate the

relationship between growth and sustainability, we consider
GDP annual growth as the dependent variable. We analyze
data from 2000 to 2009 for 16 countries of the Euro zone,
particularly referring to Belgium, Germany, Ireland, Greece,
Spain, France, Italy, Luxemburg, Estonia, Malta, the
Netherlands, Austria, Portugal, Slovenia, Slovakia and
Finland. Table I records the GDP growth rate for the selected
countries from 2000 to 2009.

18
19
The following is the GDP represented on a TIME-SERIES
graph. It shows the impact on society, infrastructure and
environment, justice, equality and cooperation addition to
climate and planet.

20
What are the practices of sustainable agriculture?
Common practices of sustainable agriculture are crop rotation,
drip irrigation, Integrated Pest Management (IPM), planting
cover crops, raising of heritage species, and small scale
agriculture.

Why sustainable farming is important?

Sustainable farming is important because when performed
correctly it uses less pesticides, industrial fertilizers,
monocultures and feedlots. This in turn causes less water
pollution, erosion, antibiotic use and loss of food diversity. It
also is healthier for farm workers and consumers as they are
exposed to less chemicals.

How is sustainable agriculture defined?

Sustainable agriculture is defined as engaging in farming
practices that promote long-term food and livestock
production while minimizing negative effects on the
environment.

21
 SUSTAINABLE AGRICULTURE

Sustainable agriculture can be defined as producing food and

livestock over the long term with minimal negative effects on the
environment. It is undertaken by a society with the goal of
producing the greatest quantity of food over the longest time in
order to feed a growing human population while keeping the
environment intact. Sustainable agriculture follows other
sustainability practices where the long-term health of ecosystems
and society are taken into consideration. The ideal in sustainable
agriculture is to conserve water, lessen pesticide and fertilizer
use, promote biodiversity in crops and livestock, and prevent soil
erosion.

22
 SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT AND IT’S
RELATION WITH ECONOMICS

RESOURCE EFFICIENCY:: Sustainable development

promotes the efficient use of resources, which aligns with
economic principles of resource optimization. Using resources
efficiently reduces waste and lowers production costs.

LONG-TERM ECONOMIC STABILITY: Sustainable

development seeks to balance economic growth with
environmental and social considerations. This approach
contributes to long-term economic stability by reducing the risks
associated with resource depletion and environmental crises.

GREEN GROWTH:: Sustainable development encourages

"green growth," which involves economic expansion while
minimizing negative environmental impacts. Green growth can
lead to new industries and job opportunities, such as renewable
energy and eco-friendly technologies.

COST BENEFIT ANALYSIS: Economics often employs cost-

benefit analysis to assess the impacts of policies and projects.
Sustainable development considers not only short-term economic
23
gains but also long-term environmental and social benefits,
making it a more comprehensive approach.

EXTERNALITIES: Sustainable development addresses

externalities, which are costs or benefits that affect parties not
directly involved in an economic transaction. For example, it
accounts for the environmental and social externalities associated
with production and consumption.

NATURE CAPITAL: Sustainable development recognizes

natural capital, including resources like clean air, water, and
biodiversity, as valuable assets. Economic valuation of natural
capital helps inform decision-making for sustainable practices.

INVESTMENT IN CLEAN TECHNOLOGIES: Sustainable

development encourages investments in clean and sustainable
technologies, fostering innovation and economic growth in these
sectors.

REGULATIONS AND INCENTIVES Governments often

implement regulations and incentives to promote sustainable
practices. These policies can influence economic behavior,
leading to more environmentally friendly choices.
GREEN JOBS: Sustainable development creates opportunities
for green jobs, such as those in renewable energy, sustainable

24
agriculture, and conservation. These jobs contribute to economic
growth and employment.

In summary, sustainable development and economics are

intertwined through principles of resource efficiency, long-term
economic stability, green growth, and the consideration of
externalities. Sustainable development seeks to integrate
economic, environmental, and social dimensions to create a more
holistic and balanced approach to development that benefits
present and future generations.

25
Following is a line graph representing the labour productivity in
india and some selected economies from 1970-2010.

26
Redistribution of income and wealth is the transfer of income and
wealth (including physical property) from some individuals to
others through a social mechanism such as taxation, welfare,
public services, land reform, monetary policies, confiscation,
divorce or tort law.

The following is a horizontal bar graph showing redistribution to

reduce inequality in INDIA and peer contries:

27