CHAPTER 6: TOWARDS A

SUSTAINABLE WORLD
SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT
Sustainable Development refers to the organizing principle for meeting human
development goals while at the same time 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 continue to meet
human needs without undermining the integrity and stability of the natural system
The modern concept of sustainable development is derived mostly from the 1987
Brundtland Report, it is also rooted in earlier ideas about sustainable forest management and
twentieth century environmental concerns. As the concept developed, it has shifted to focus
more on economic development, social development and environmental protection for future
generations. It has been suggested that “the term ‘sustainability’ should be viewed as
humanity’s target goal of human-ecosystem equilibrium (homeostasis), while ‘sustainable
development’ refers to the holistic approach and temporal processes that lead us to the end
point of sustainability.”.
SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT
The concept of sustainable development has been – and still is – subject to
criticism. It has been argued that there is no such thing as a sustainable use of a
non-renewable resource, since any positive rate of exploitation will eventually
lead to the exhaustion of earth’s finite stock. This perspective renders the
industrial revolution as a whole unsustainable. It has been argued that the
meaning of the concept has opportunistically been stretched from
“conservation management” to economic development”, and that the
Brundtland Report promoted nothing but a business as usual strategy for world
development, with an ambiguous and insubstantial concept attached as a public
relations slogan.
 Sustainability Stability
Sustainability is the Stability is a way to
utilization of resources characterize a system
without compromising behavior and is quite
the other, of the future well bounded to certain
generation. method in dynamic
system analysis.

SUSTAINABILITY AND STABILITY,

DISTINGUISHED
SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT GOALS
In September 2015, the United Nations General Assembly formally adopted the
“universal, integrated and transformative” 2030 Agenda for Sustainable
Development, a set of Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). The goals are to be
implemented and achieved in every country from year 2016 to 2030.
Below are some Sustainable Development Goals:
1) Sustainable Environment
Environmental sustainability concerns the natural environment and how it endures
and remains diverse and productive. Environmental sustainability requires society
to design activities to meet human needs while preserving the life support systems
of the planet. This, for example, entails using water sustainably, utilizing renewable
energy, and sustainable material supplies (e.g. harvesting wood from forests at a
rate that maintains the biomass and biodiversity).
SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT GOALS
2) Sustainable Agriculture
Sustainable agriculture consists of environment friendly methods of farming that allow the
production of crops or livestock without damage to human or natural systems. It involves preventing
adverse effects to soil, water, biodiversity, surrounding or downstream resources – as well as to
those working or living on the farm or in neighboring areas. Elements of sustainable agriculture
include permaculture, agroforestry, mixed farming, multiple cropping, and crop. rotation.
3) Sustainable Development or Environment Economies
The total environment includes not just the biosphere of earth, air, and water, but also human
interactions with these things, with nature, and what humans have created as their surroundings.
As the world continues to economically advance, the ability of the natural environment to absorb
high level of pollutants that are created as a part of this economic growth are putting on a strain.
Therefore, solutions need to be found so that the economies of the world can continue to grow, but
not at the expense of the public good.
SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT GOALS
4) Sustainable Energy
Sustainable energy is clean and can be used over a long period of time. Renewable energy sources
like hydroelectric, solar and wind energy produce far less pollution unlike fossil fuels and biofuels
that provide bulk of the world’s energy. Solar energy is commonly used on public parking meters,
street lights and the roof of buildings.

5) Sustainable Technology
One of the core concepts in sustainable development is that technology can be used to assists
people meet their developmental needs. Technology to meet these sustainable development need
is often referred to as appropriate technology. Today, appropriate technology is often developed
using open source principles, which have led to open-source and thus many of the plans of the
technology can be freely found on the Internet. OSAT has been proposed as a new model of
enabling innovation for sustainable development.
SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT GOALS
6) Sustainable Transport
Transportation is a large contributor to greenhouse gas emissions. It is said that one-third of all gasses
produced are due to transportation. Motorized transport also releases exhaust fumes that contain particulate
matter which is hazardous to human health and a contributor to climate change.
According to a series of reports by the Low Emission Development Strategies Global Partnership
(LEDSGP), sustainable transport can help create jobs, improve commuter safety through investment in
bicycle lanes and pedestrian pathways, make access to employment and social opportunities more affordable
and efficient.
7) Corporate Sustainability
The most broadly accepted criterion for corporate sustainability constitutes a firm’s efficient use of natural
capital. This eco-efficiency is usually calculated as the economic value added by a firm in relation to its
aggregated ecological impact. “Eco-efficiency is achieved by the delivery of competitively priced goods and
services that satisfy human needs and bring quality of life, while progressively reducing ecological impacts
and resource intensity throughout the life-cycle to a level at least in line with the earth’s carrying capacity.”
SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT GOALS
8) Sustainable Income
At the present time, sustainable development, along with the solidarity called for in Catholic
social teaching, can reduce poverty. While over many thousands of years the ‘stronger’
(economically or physically) overcame the weaker, nowadays for various reasons – Catholic
social teaching, social solidarity, sustainable development – the stronger helps the weaker.
Sustainable development reduces poverty through financial (among other things, a balanced
budget), environmental (living conditions), and social (including equality of income) means.
9) Sustainable Architecture
In sustainable architecture, the recent movements of New Urbanism and New Classical
architecture promote a sustainable approach towards construction, that appreciates and
develops smart growth, architectural tradition and classical design. This in contrast to
modernist and International Style architecture, as well as opposing to solitary housing estates
and suburban sprawl, with long commuting distances and large ecological footprints.
SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT GOALS
10) Sustainable Politics
The International Institute for Sustainable Development has similarly developed a political policy framework, linked to a
sustainability index for establishing measurable entities and metrics. The framework consists of six core areas international
trade and investment, economic policy, climate change and energy, measurement and assessment, natural resource
management, and the role of communication technologies in sustainable development.
The United Nations Global Compact Cities Programme has defined sustainable political development in a way that broadens
the usual definition beyond states and governance. This definition is in accord with the view that political change is important
for responding to economic, ecological, and cultural challenges. They have listed seven subdomains of the domain of politics.
a) Organization and Governance
b) Law and Justice
c) Communication and Critique
d) Representation and Negotiation
e) Security and Accord
f) Dialogue and Reconciliation
g) Ethics and Accountability
SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT GOALS
11) Sustainable Culture
Working with different emphasis, some researchers have pointed out the fourth
dimension should be added to the dimensions of sustainable development, since
the triple-bottom line dimensions of economic, environmental and social do not
seem to be enough to reflect the complexity of contemporary society. The Agenda
21 for culture and the United Cities and Local Government s (UCLG) Executive
Bureau lead the preparation of the policy statement “Culture: Fourth Pillar of
Sustainable Development”, passed on 17 November 2010, in the framework of the
World Summit of Local and Regional Leaders – 3rd World Congress of UCLG
held in Mexico City. The Circles of Sustainability approach distinguishes the four
domains of economic, ecological, political, and cultural sustainability.
SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT GOALS
12) Sustainable Natural Capital
Leading ecological economist and steady-state theorist Herman Daly, points to the fact that natural
capital can not necessarily be substituted by economic capital. While it is possible that we can find ways
to replace some natural resources, it is much more unlikely that they will ever be able to replace eco-
system services, such as the protection provided by the ozone layer, or the climate stabilizing function of
the Amazonian forest. Forests does not only provide the raw material for paper but they can also
maintain biodiversity, regulate water flow, and absorb CO2.
13) Business-as-usual
Cohen and Winn [97] point to four types of market failure such as: first, while the benefits of natural or
social capital depletion can usually be rivatized, the costs are often externalized Second, natural capital
is often undervalued by society since we are not fully aware of the real cost of the depletion of natural
capital. Information symmetry is a third reason – often the link between cause and effect is obscured,
making it difficult for actors to make informed choices. Cohen and Winn postulate that firms often do
not optimize resource allocation because they are caught in a “business-as-usual” mentality.
SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT GOALS
14) Sustainable Education
Education must be revisited in light of a renewed vision of sustainable human and social
development that is both equitable and viable. This vision of sustainability must take into
consideration the social, environmental and economic dimensions of human development and the
various ways in which these relate to education. Higher education in sustainability across education
streams including engineering, finance, supply chain and operations is gaining weight-age.
15) Sustainable Progress
The United Nations Conference on Sustainable Development (UNCSD; also known as Rio 2012)
held a conference on the development of the Sustainable Development Goals that aim to promote
sustainable progress and eliminate inequalities around the world. Although some nations are more
developed than others, all nations are constantly developing because each nation struggles with
perpetuating disparities, inequalities and unequal access to fundamental rights and freedoms.
SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT MODELS
 3-overlapping –circles model
The overlapping-circles model of sustainability acknowledges the intersection of
economic, environmental, and social factors. They draw society as the second largest
circle because that is where their customers and other important stakeholders live.
 3-nested-dependencies model
The 3-nested-dependencies model reflects this co-dependent reality. It shows that human
society is a wholly-owned subsidiary of the environment – that without food, clean water,
fresh air, fertile soil, and other natural resources, we’re cooked. The people in the societies
are the ones who decide what economic model they will use. Good jobs are so important
to a vibrant modern-day society that sustainability champions who portray the economy as
subservient to society are sometimes accused of being naïve about how the “real world”
works.
GLOBAL CHALLENGES IN FOOD SECURITY
Malnutrition affects all countries in the world. Malnutrition, including, over-and-under-
nutrition and micro-nutrient deficiencies is the top contributor to global disease burden.
Globally, 800 million people are under-nourished, 2 billion are overweight or obese and 2
billion are micronutrient deficient.
The vast majority of the world’s hungry live in developing countries. Southern Asia
faces the greatest hunger burden, with about 281 million undernourished people. In Sub-
Saharan Africa, the current rate of undernourished is currently around 23 per cent.
Despite improved food access at all income levels, diet quality is declining.
Notwithstanding recent food production increases, nutritious foods remain unaffordable for
many. The consequences are severe; poor nutrition causes nearly half the deaths in children
under five, and one in four children stunted growth; 66 million primary school-age children
attend classes hungry across the developing world, with 23 million in Africa alone.
SUSTAINABLE AGRICULTURE IS THE FOUNDATION OF FOOD
SECURITY AND HAS THE POTENTIAL TO SECURE LIVELIHOODS
Agriculture is the single largest employer in the world, providing
livelihoods for 40 per cent of today’s global population and it is the largest
source of income and jobs for poor rural households. Investing in smallholder
farmers is an important way to increase food security and nutrition for the
poorest, as well as food production for local and global markets.
However, providing food and securing livelihoods must be done in a
manner which does not compromise the environment. Since the 1900s, some
75 per cent of crop diversity has been lost from farmers’ fields. Better use of
livelihoods for farming communities and more resilient and sustainable
farming systems.
GLOBAL FOOD SECURITY INDEX
The Global Food Security Index developed by the Economist (Magazine).
Intelligence Unit with sponsorship from DuPont is a universal benchmarking
tool on food security.
It examines the core issues of food affordability, availability, quality and
safety, as well as natural resources and resilience in 113 countries. It is based
on 26 unique indicators that measure these drivers of food security across both
developing and developed countries.
OVERALL
Singapore is the runaway winner (Global Rank: 19), followed by Malaysia (43).
Rice exporters are at lower tiers: Thailand (53), Vietnam (64), Cambodia (84),
and Myanmar (80). Rice importers’ ranks, excluding Singapore and Malaysia,
are Indonesia (73) and the Philippines (79). ASEAN countries with high GFSI
(Global Food Security Index) are ahead in affordability, availability, and quality
and safety criteria.
 Affordability
Singapore posted the highest per capita income at $73,168, distantly followed by
Malaysia with $9,503 in 2016. Indonesia has $3,570, the Philippines $2,951, and
Vietnam, $2,186. The two leaders had little (if no) poverty. Malaysia’s poverty
incidence was only 1.6% in 2014 versus 21.6% for the Philippines in 2015.
OVERALL
 Quality, Safety, and Availability
Rice importers Singapore and Malaysia beat rice exporters Vietnam and Thailand by a
mile. The index has several factors of which supply sufficiency is only one of six. The
Philippines is even ahead of Cambodia, a rice exporter. The level of development of a
country affects the quality and safety criteria. Singapore and Malaysia are far ahead.
Thailand, Vietnam, and the Philippines are in the middle cluster.
 Natural Resources and Resilience (NRR)
The 2017 GFSI includes “a new environmental criterion that recognizes the growing
emphasis on resource conservation, climate change adaption, and sustainable agriculture
practices. With factors, such as temperature change, land deforestation, and depletion of
water resources, the NRR category measures future impacts on the countries in the
GFSI.”
GLOBAL FOOD SECURITY MODEL
MINK is the process-based crop modeling for global food security as was
pointed by Richard Robertson in September 5, 2017.
Over the last decade, computer models of crop growth have increasingly
been used to understand how climate change may affect the world’s capacity to
produce food. The International Food Policy Research Institute (IFRI) has
undertaken a major sustained effort to analyze changes in the productivity of
major crops.
TRANSFORMING OUR WORLD: THE 2030 AGENDA FOR SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT
SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT GOALS

Goal 1. End poverty in all its forms everywhere

Goal 2. End hunger achieve food security and improved nutrition and promote
sustainable agriculture
Goal 3. Ensure healthy lives and promote well-being for all at all ages
Goal 4. Ensure inclusive and equitable quality education and promote lifelong
learning opportunities for all
Goal 5. Achieve gender equality and empower all women and girls
TRANSFORMING OUR WORLD: THE 2030 AGENDA FOR SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT
SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT GOALS

Goal 6. Ensure availability and sustainable management of water and sanitation

for all
Goal 7. Ensure access to affordable, reliable, sustainable and modern energy
for all
Goal 8. Promote sustained, inclusive and sustainable economic growth, full and
productive employment and decent work for all
Goal 9. Build resilient infrastructure, promote inclusive and sustainable
industrialization and foster innovation
Goal 10. Reduce inequality within and among countries
TRANSFORMING OUR WORLD: THE 2030 AGENDA FOR SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT
SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT GOALS

Goal 11. Make cities and human settlements inclusive, safe, resilient and
sustainable
Goal 12. Ensure sustainable consumption and production patterns
Goal 13. Take urgent action to combat climate change and its impacts*
Goal 14. Conserve and sustainably use the oceans, seas and marine resources
for sustainable development
TRANSFORMING OUR WORLD: THE 2030 AGENDA FOR SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT
SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT GOALS

Goal 15. Protect, restore and promote sustainable use of terrestrial ecosystems,
sustainably manage forests, combat desertification, and halt and reverse land
degradation and halt biodiversity loss
Goal 16. Promote peaceful and inclusive societies for sustainable development,
provide access to justice for all and build effective, accountable and inclusive
institutions at all levels
Goal 17. Strengthen the means of implementation and revitalize the Global
Partnership for Sustainable Development
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