Definitions

Sustainability is a complex notion that has many definitions.

'Sustainability' started coming into popular usage in the 1960s as people in industrialised countries began to appreciate that the effects they were having on their surroundings had global implications. It is a term which is used in a wide variety of ways.

One approach is to think of sustainability as having three dimensions ‘economy’, ‘society’ and ‘environment’, which combine in different ways at a range of scales from the local to the global. Those who favour ecological perspectives see sustainability as being an all-embracing context which frames all our other activities (Figure 1).

Others place equal emphasis on each of the three dimensions which they believe are complementary (Figure 2). However, it is also contended that sustainability has more than three dimensions and that factors such as power, politics and spiritual awareness are essential components of a more mature understanding.

Sustainability is often associated with development. Sustainable development was memorably described in the Brundtland Report (1987) as 'development that meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs.'

By considering the needs of future generations, the Brundtland definition sets sustainability firmly in a forward-looking time frame. It draws on two fundamental concepts - the notion of needs and the notion of limitations. Striking a balance between these two concepts raises questions about justice and equity and reveals some of the hidden tensions and contradictions that lie beneath the sustainability agenda.

Planetary Limits »