The concept of a “sustainable development” arose in the early 1980s, following a decade of activism in support of environmental protection. It was generally recognized that there were potential conflicts between economic development and environmental protection and that these sometimes competing interests needed to be reconciled.  The phrase “sustainable development’ was meant to reflect a commitment to economic development that did not destroy the natural resources on which it relied to make money, but left the resources to be available for future generations. The United Nations Brundtland Commission, in its report Our Common Future (1987), offered an often-quoted definition that sustainable development was development that “meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs.”  The Chairman of that Commission, Norway Prime Minister Gro Harlem Brundtland, added: “… the “environment” is where we live; and “development” is what we all do in attempting to improve our lot within that abode. The two are inseparable.”[1]

Another definition was offered by the United Kingdom Department of the Environment in its White Paper on This Common Inheritance (1990) where it is stated that “sustainable development means living on the earth’s income rather than eroding its capital” and that such development required “keeping the consumption of renewable natural resources within the limits of their replenishment.”[2]
 
Sustainable development is sometimes more an aspiration than a concrete set of principles to be followed.  It can serve, however, as the foundation for a viewpoint, even a political position, based on the understanding that our natural environment sets limits on economic development, in which view environmental protection trumps economic development. In contrast, the term can also be abused by those whose only interest is in making money but who use the term as a marketing device to deflect any criticism of a project that likely would destroy the very environment it pretends to sustain. The term’s usefulness depends on the interests being served by those using the term.

Some further ideas to explore on Sustainable Development:

Can you come up with a better definition of “Sustainable Development”?
 
Identify recent “economic” projects in your area and decide whether they are sustainable.  What natural resources are they using?  What will happen to those resources as a result of the project?  Is there a different way of accomplishing the same economic ends with les damage to the environment?  How do you calculate the environmental harm that will result from the development and the benefits, including jobs and taxes.  What benefit to the public will result from the development, if any?
 
Try and use the term to serve the interests of a real estate developer trying to get approval for a project that will diminish natural resources in the area, and use it to serve the interests of an environmental organization opposing the same development.

Resources:

Robert W. Kates, Thomas M. Parris, and Anthony A. Leiserowitz, “What Is
Sustainable Development?  Goals, Indicators, Values, and Practice,” Environment:
Science and Policy for Sustainable Development, Volume 47, Number 3, pages 8-21.  Available on the internet at sustsci.harvard.edu/ists/docs/whatisSD_env_kates_0504.pdf
 
United Nations Department of Economic and Social Affairs, Division for Sustainable Development website at:  www.un.org/esa/sustdev/csd/review.htm
 
United Kingdom Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (DEFRA) website at: www.sustainable-development.gov.uk
 
Northern Ireland Sustainable Development Commission (SDC), the government’s independent advisory body on sustainable development at www.sd-commission.org.uk/northern_ireland.php
 
Republic of Ireland, Comhar – Sustainable Development Council with 25 members drawn from the state sector, economic sectors, environmental NGOs, social/community NGOs, and the professional/academic sector at www.comharsdc.ie/index.aspx
 
Frank McDonald and James Nix, Chaos at the Crossroads (Kinsale, Ireland: Gandon Books, 2005).
 
[1] Quoted in Robert W. Kates, Thomas M. Parris, and Anthony A. Leiserowitz, “What Is
Sustainable Development?  Goals, Indicators, Values, and Practice,” Environment:
Science and Policy for Sustainable Development, Volume 47, Number 3, pages 8-21.
[2] Quoted in John Houghton, Global Warming: The Complete Briefing (Cambridge:
Cambridge University Press, 1997 2nd edition, at page 163.
 
Northern Ireland Sustainable Development Commission (SDC), the government’s independent advisory body on sustainable development at www.sd-commission.org.uk/northern_ireland.php
 
Republic of Ireland, Comhar – Sustainable Development Council with 25 members drawn from the state sector, economic sectors, environmental NGOs, social/community NGOs, and the professional/academic sector at www.comharsdc.ie/index.aspx
 
Frank McDonald and James Nix, Chaos at the Crossroads (Kinsale, Ireland: Gandon Books, 2005).
 
[1] Quoted in Robert W. Kates, Thomas M. Parris, and Anthony A. Leiserowitz, “What Is
Sustainable Development?  Goals, Indicators, Values, and Practice,” Environment:
Science and Policy for Sustainable Development, Volume 47, Number 3, pages 8-21.
[2] Quoted in John Houghton, Global Warming: The Complete Briefing (Cambridge:
Cambridge University Press, 1997 2nd edition, at page 163.