Sustainability has become an often used buzzword in the last few years. Corporations, developments, cities, universities, colleges, organizations, all boast about how sustainable they are or how they are developing in a sustainable fashion or their products and practices are sustainable. When one looks deeper into how the term sustainability is used it is quickly apparent that there is no standard definition. Sustainability is more than being energy efficient, or putting solar panels on your home or business, or recycling, or putting the word “sustainability” into a city’s general plan, a company’s statement of core values, or business website masthead, or in college course descriptions a college catalogue and calling yourself the most sustainable person, city, business, organization, or university.

What is sustainability, a sustainable community, or sustainable development? There seems to be as many definitions for sustainability as there are programs and organizations claiming to be sustainable.

Ecological Sustainability – living within the resources and carrying capacity of an ecosystem without degrading or diminishing the ecosystem’s ability to support future generations of all living creatures.

Webster’s New International Dictionary “Sustain – to cause to continue (as in existence or a certain state, or in force or intensity); to keep up, especially without interruption diminution, flagging, etc.; to prolong.” Webster’s New International Dictionary. (Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster Inc., 1986)

Caring for the Earth “improving the quality of human life while living within the carrying capacity of supporting eco-systems.” IUCN/UNEP/WWF. Caring for the Earth: A Strategy for Sustainable Living. (Gland, Switzerland: 1991). (IUCN – The World Conservation Union, UNEP – United Nations Environment Programme, WWF – World Wide Fund for Nature).

Paul Hawken, in “The Ecology of Commerce”, says that “sustainability means leaving the world better than you found it, taking no more than you need, trying not to harm life or the environment, making amends if you do.  Sustainability is an economic state where the demands placed upon the environment by people and commerce can be met without reducing the capacity of the environment to provide for future generations.”

Lester Brown, Founder and President, Worldwatch Institute defined a sustainable society as “one which satisfies its needs without diminishing the prospects of future generations.”

International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) states that “’Sustainable growth’ is a contradiction in terms: nothing physical can grow indefinitely.  ‘Sustainable use’ is applicable only to renewable resources: it means using them at rates within their capacity for renewal.”

Dr.  Karl Henrik-Robert, MD, as the founder of the Swedish “Natural Step” Program, offers that a transition to sustainability involves moving from linear to cyclical processes and technologies.  “The only processes we can rely on indefinitely are cyclical; all linear processes must eventually come to an end.”

Herman E. Daly and John B. Cobb Jr., defined two types of sustainability, weak and strong.

• Weak sustainability: “Each generation should inherit an aggregate stock of manufactured and natural assets no less than the stock inherited by the previous generation.”
• Strong Sustainability: “Each generation should inherit a stock of natural assets no less than the stock of such assets inherited by the previous generation.“

Canadian Conservation Commission, in 1915 stated that “each generation is entitled to the interest of the natural capital, but the principal should be handed on unimpaired.”

The City of Seattle’s “Sustainable Seattle” program found that “Sustainability is our long-term cultural, economic, and environmental health and vitality.”

Jerry Franklin, University of Washington Forestry Professor, defines sustainability as: “the potential for our land and water ecosystems to produce the same quantity and quality of goods and services in perpetuity.”

“Potential is emphasized because it makes implicit the option to return to alternative conditions rather than a permanent loss of some capability…  I propose that sustainability is based on two principles: 1) preventing the degradation of the productive capacity of our lands and waters — no net loss of productivity; and 2) preventing the loss of genetic diversity, including species — no loss of genetic potential.

“I make three observations about these principles.  First, each has both an ecological and an ethical basis (i.e., although they are human constructs, they can be objectively defined in ecological terms).  Second, principle 2, no net loss of genetic potential, is probably the most fundamental, since we can sometimes restore productive capacity to degraded ecosystems but have only very limited capacity to restore lost genetic potential.  Third, no principle (in my view) is absolute or inviolate.”

The Pullman, Washington, program developed the following definitions by looking at sustainability as the integration of human endeavors into existing natural cycles:

Sustainability embodies “stewardship” and “design with nature,” well established goals of the design professions and “carrying capacity,” a highly developed modeling technique used by scientists and planners.

Sustainable developments are those which fulfill present and future needs (WECD, 1987) while [only] using and not harming renewable resources and unique human-environmental systems of a site: [air], water, land, energy, and human ecology and/or those of other [off-site] sustainable systems (Rosenbaum 1993 and Vieria 1993).

A sustainable community is one which provides all of its own needs for air, water, land (or food and fiber), and energy resources within the confines of its own site (Bartuska, Kazimee, and Owen, 1997).

Thomas Jefferson Sustainability Council “Sustainability may be described as our responsibility to proceed in a way that will sustain life that will allow our children, grandchildren and great-grandchildren to live comfortably in a friendly, clean, and healthy world that people:

• Take responsibility for life in all its forms as well as respect human work and aspirations;
• Respect individual rights and community responsibilities;
• Recognize social, environmental, economic, and political systems to be inter-dependent;
• Weigh costs and benefits of decisions fully, including long-term costs and benefits to future generations;
• Acknowledge that resources are finite and that there are limits to growth;
• Assume control of their destinies;
• Recognize that our ability to see the needs of the future is limited, and any attempt to define sustainability should remain as open and flexible as possible.  http://avenue.org/Gov/TJPDC/sustain.html

Santa Barbara South Coast Community Indicators Sustainability is meeting the needs of all humans, being able to do so on a finite planet for generations to come while ensuring some degree of openness and flexibility to adapt to changing circumstances. JSturmer@aol.com

Puanani Rogers, Ho`okipa Network, Lihu`e, Kaua’i, Hawaii “Aloha ‘aina, malama’ aina, ahupua’a style living…

Aloha ‘aina simply means to love and respect the land, make it yours and claim stewardship for it. Malama ‘aina means to care for and nurture the land so it can give back all we need to sustain life for ourselves and our future generations, and, an ahupua’a is an ancient concept of resource uses and management based on families living in a division of land that connects the mountains to the reefs and the sea.” http://www.hawaiian.net/~cbokauai/cbed.html

Sustainable Principles

The Hannover Principles

copyright © 1992 William McDonough Architects

1. Insist on rights of humanity and nature to co-exist in a healthy, supportive, diverse and sustainable condition.
2. Recognize interdependence. The elements of human design interact with and depend upon the natural world, with broad and diverse implications at every scale. Expand design considerations to recognizing even distant effects.
3. Respect relationships between spirit and matter. Consider all aspects of human settlement including community, dwelling, industry and trade in terms of existing and evolving connections between spiritual and material consciousness.
4. Accept responsibility for the consequences of design decisions upon human well-being, the viability of natural systems and their right to co-exist.
5. Create safe objects of long-term value. Do not burden future generations with requirements for maintenance or vigilant administration of potential danger due to the careless creation of products, processes or standards.
6. Eliminate the concept of waste. Evaluate and optimize the full life-cycle of products and processes, to approach the state of natural systems, in which there is no waste.
7. Rely on natural energy flows. Human designs should, like the living world, derive their creative forces from perpetual solar income. Incorporate this energy efficiently and safely for responsible use.
8. Understand the limitations of design. No human creation lasts forever and design does not solve all problems. Those who create and plan should practice humility in the face of nature. Treat nature as a model and mentor, not as an inconvenience to be evaded or controlled.
9. Seek constant improvement by the sharing of knowledge. Encourage direct and open communication between colleagues, patrons, manufacturers and users to link long term sustainable considerations with ethical responsibility, and re-establish the integral relationship between natural processes and human activity.

The Hannover Principles should be seen as a living document committed to the transformation and growth in the understanding of our interdependence with nature, so that they may adapt as our knowledge of the world evolves.

 

The Valdez Principles – a Green Code of Conduct for Companies

Named after the Exxon Valdez tanker oil-spill disaster in Alaska, the Valdez Principles consist of a voluntary code of conduct for the environment, based on the Sullivan Principles campaign for US companies operating in South Africa, and the US campaign against discrimination in Northern Ireland, known as the MacBride Principles.

A sign of their strength came when the Exxon Corporation agreed to appoint an environmentalist to its board of directors in the wake of the Exxon Valdez oil spill.  Environmentalists persuaded institutional investors holding 22 million shares in the company (about 1.7 per cent of the shares) to press for the appointment.

‘We will take responsibility for any harm we cause to the environment’

Because of the high public profile in the environment, politicians are lining up to endorse draft legislation in several states, and shareholder resolutions are being presented to corporations, requesting that they comply with the new principles.

‘Any company that ignores environmental precautions or fails to act responsibly as a steward of our biosphere will be the focus of shareholder action,’ said Joan Bavaria, the head of the Coalition for Environmentally Responsible Economies (CERES) which helped draft the principles.

By adopting these principles, we publicly affirm our belief that corporations and their shareholders have a direct responsibility for the environment.  We believe that corporations must conduct their business as responsible stewards of the environment and seek profits only in a manner that leaves the Earth healthy and safe.  We believe that corporations must not compromise the ability of future generations to sustain their needs.

‘We believe that corporations must not compromise the ability of future generations to sustain their needs’

We recognise this to be a long term commitment to update our practices continually in light of advances in technology and new understandings in health and environmental science.  We intend to make consistent, measurable progress in implementing these principles and to apply them wherever we operate throughout the world.

1    Protection of the biosphere

We will minimise and strive to eliminate the release of any pollutant that may cause environmental damage to the air, water, or earth or its inhabitants.  We will safeguard habitats in rivers, lakes, wetlands, coastal zones and oceans and will minimise acid rain or smog, contributions to the greenhouse effect and depletion of the ozone layer, .

2    Sustainable use of natural resources

We will make sustainable use of renewable natural resources, such as water, soil and forest.  We will conserve non-renewable natural resources through efficient use and careful planning.  We will protect wildlife habitat, open spaces and wilderness, while preserving biodiversity.

3.   Reduction and disposal of waste

We will minimise the creation of waste, especially hazardous waste, and wherever possible recycle materials.  We will dispose of all wastes through safe and responsible methods.

4.   Wise use of energy

We will make every effort to use environmentally safe and sustainable energy sources to meet our needs.  We will invest in improved energy efficiency and conservation in our operations.  We will maximise the energy efficiency of products we produce or sell.

5.   Risk reduction

We will minimise the environmental, health and safety risks to our employees and the communities in which we operate by employing safe technologies and operating procedures and by being constantly prepared for emergencies.

6.   Marketing of safe products and services

We will sell products or services that minimise adverse environmental impacts and that are safe as consumers commonly use them.  We will inform consumers of the environmental impacts of our products or services.

7.   Damage compensation

We will take responsibility for any harm we cause to the environment by making every effort to fully restore the environment and to compensate those persons who are adversely affected.

8.   Disclosure

We will disclose to our employees and to the public incidents relating to our operations that cause environmental harm or pose health or safety hazards.  We will disclose potential environmental, health or safety hazards posed by our operations, and we will not take any action against employees who report any condition that creates a danger to the environment or poses health and safety hazards.

9.   Environmental directors and managers

At least one member of the board of directors will be a person qualified to represent environmental interests.  We will commit management resources to implement these Principles, including the funding of an office of vice president for environmental affairs or an equivalent executive position, reporting directly to the chief executive officer, to monitor and report upon our implementation efforts.

10. Assessment and annual audit

We will conduct and make public an annual self-evaluation of our progress in implementing these Principles and in complying with all applicable laws and regulations throughout our worldwide operations.  We will work toward the timely creation of independent environmental audit procedures which we will complete annually and make available to the public.

‘The creation of independent environmental audit procedures which we will complete annually and make available to the public’

– Gordon Davidson, Director, Social Investment Forum, Coalition for Environmentally Responsible Economies (CERES), 711 Atlantic Avenue, Boston, MA 02111, USA (tel 617 451 3252).

 

Sustainable Development

In their 1987 report “Our Common Future”, the United Nations’ World Commission on Environment and Development (also known as the Bruntland Commission) defined sustainable development as: “development that meets the need of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs.”

The President’s Council on Sustainable Development stated:   “Our vision is of a life-sustaining earth.  We are committed to the achievement of a dignified, peaceful, and equitable existence.  We believe a sustainable United States will have an economy that equitably provides for satisfying livelihoods and a safe, healthy, high quality life for current and future generations.  Our nation will protect its environment, its natural resource base, and the functions and viability of natural systems on which all life depends.”

Rocky Mountain Institute: Sustainable development stands in sharp contrast to conventional economic development strategies. It:

• Redefines prosperity, weighing community values, quality of life, and the environment alongside economic considerations.
• Seeks true development, in the sense of getting better, instead of expansion, which is merely getting bigger.
• Advocates the long-term stewardship of community resources, ensuring that present actions don’t erode the basis for future prosperity.
• Pursues self-reliance and a more democratic approach to decision-making, representing community-wide interests over those of an elite few.
• Stresses diversity, resilience, and a conviction that many small efforts work better than a single one-size-fits-all solution.

Hamilton Wentworth Regional Council “Sustainable Development is positive change which does not undermine the environmental or social systems on which we depend. It requires a coordinated approach to planning and policy making that involves public participation. Its success depends on widespread understanding of the critical relationship between people and their environment and the will to make necessary changes.” http://www.hamilton-went.on.ca/vis2020/thevis.pdf

World Business Council on Sustainable Development “Sustainable development involves the simultaneous pursuit of economic prosperity, environmental quality and social equity. Companies aiming for sustainability need to perform not against a single, financial bottom line but against the triple bottom line.”

“Over time, human and social values change. Concepts that once seemed extraordinary (e.g. emancipating slaves, enfranchising women) are now taken for granted. New concepts (e.g. responsible consumerism, environmental justice, intra- and inter-generational equity) are now coming up the curve.” http://www.wbcsd.ch/

Interfaith Center on Corporate Responsibility (ICCR) “Sustainable development…[is] the process of building equitable, productive and participatory structures to increase the economic empowerment of communities and their surrounding regions. Interfaith Center on Corporate Responsibility, 475 Riverside Drive, New York, NY 10115, 212-870-2295

Sustainable Community Roundtable Report (South Puget Sound)  “In a sustainable community, resource consumption is balanced by resources assimilated by the ecosystem. The sustainability of a community is largely determined by the web of resources providing its food, fiber, water, and energy needs and by the ability of natural systems to process its wastes. A community is unsustainable if it consumes resources faster than they can be renewed, produces more wastes than natural systems can process or relies upon distant sources for its basic needs.” http://www.olywa.net/roundtable

Mountain Association for Community Economic Development (MACED) “Sustainable community development is the ability to make development choices which respect the relationship between the three “E’s”-economy, ecology, and equity:

Economy – Economic activity should serve the common good, be self-renewing, and build local assets and self-reliance.

Ecology – Humans are part of nature, nature has limits, and communities are responsible for protecting and building natural assets.

Equity – The opportunity for full participation in all activities, benefits, and decision-making of a society.”  http://www.maced.org