Sustainable Development

History

Sustainable development is not a new idea. Many cultures over the course of human history have recognized the need for harmony between the environment, society, and economy. What is new is an articulation of these ideas in the context of a global industrial and information society. Sustainable development focuses on improving the quality of life for all of Earth's citizens without increasing the use of natural resources beyond the capacity of the environment to supply them indefinitely. It requires an understanding that inaction has consequences and that people must find innovative ways to change institutional structures and influence individual behavior. It is about taking action, changing policy and practice at all levels, from the individual to the international.

Discussions about the limits and implications of economic growth have recurred in economic history. In 1972, the Club of Rome published “Limits to Growth,” a highly controversial report, which assumed a certain relationship between population growth, industrialization, pollution, and the depletion of natural resources. The debate spurred by the report mainly focused on the prospects of shortages in material stocks of nonrenewable natural resources and on whether economic growth would inevitably lead to environmental degradation and social collapse. At that time, economic growth and environmental quality were largely perceived as opposing each other. “Limits to Growth” became controversial because it predicted terrible consequences if economic growth were not slowed down. The report gave birth to a political movement advocating zero or even negative growth. At the same time, it was criticized by northern countries because it did not take into account technological innovations and by southern countries because it advocated abandonment of economic development. The report reinforced the concept that the environment and the economy are irreconcilable.

In the 1980s, the importance of reconciling economic growth with the environment was recognized, providing an intellectual underpinning to efforts to elevate the importance of environmental issues in policy making. The origin of sustainable development dates back to 1982, when the World Commission on Environment and Development was initiated by the General Assembly of the United Nations and its report, “Our Common Future,” was published in 1987. The Prime Minister of Norway Gro Harlem Brundtland was the chair of the commission. At that time, both northern and southern countries feared that environmental protection would threaten their prospects for development.

As with previous efforts, the report was followed by major international meetings. The United Nations Conference on Environment and Development (UNCED) in Rio de Janeiro in 1992 (the so-called Earth Summit) issued a declaration of principles, a detailed Agenda 21 of desired actions, international agreements on climate change and biodiversity, and a statement of principles on forests. Ten years later, in 2002, at the World Summit on Sustainable Development in Johannesburg, South Africa, the commitment to sustainable development was reaffirmed.

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