Sustainable Design

Construction wastes constitute the largest fraction of landfills; that's why sustainable approaches, such as using recycled materials like straw bales to build houses, are promoted.

The term sustainable design is used in this entry to refer to design that is motivated by humanity's capacity to endure. The most commonly cited definition of sustainability comes from the Brundtland Commission (the World Commission on Environment and Development), which stated in its 1987 report, “Humanity has the ability to make development sustainable—to ensure that it meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs.” Although the statement is vague, it discusses the needs of both future and present generations. In the context of design, described above as inclusively anything involved ...