Sustainable Development
Lecture 1
What is Sustainable Development (SD)?
- With diverse human societies, ecosystems, and complex challenges arising from
heterogeneous socioeconomic consequences, new definitions of sustainable development
are continually formulated, accommodating a variety of understandings and expectations
for desirable progress.
- “Meeting the needs of the present generations, without compromising meeting the needs
of the future generations.”
- Despite divergence, all perceptions concerning the concept of sustainable development
invoke the feeling of better living, shared responsibilities, and new directions of
sociotechnical progress
- Development system aiming at a balanced integration of economic growth,
environmental protection and social justice.
Three Dimensions/ pillars of SD “Triple Bottom Line”.
- Economics – Efficient use of resources
From economic perspective, the objective is to maximize the amount of goods
and services and maximize the resource use efficiency.
Economic dimension of the sustainable development strategy is oriented to
accelerate economic growth and get maximum benefit while keeping the stock of
capital constant or increasing.
It desires to produce a maximum flow of income by maximizing the efficient use
of resources, consisting of limited natural resources as well as man-made resource
and human resource.
This approach demands a sustainable economic environment to deal with a
multidimensional process involving a set of quantitative and qualitative
transformations in organizational and social structures as well as changes in
attitude of people toward environment and resource use.
Economic dimensions are the aspects of the organization that need to be
addressed to remain competitive in the market in the long run.
, The dimensions include various components such as profit and value,
investments, relationship with investors, innovation, technology, collaboration,
knowledge management, and process and product development.
- Society – Balance of the ecological system
Aims to improve the quality of life and well-being of the society, along with the
increase of economic efficiency to accelerate material prosperity and economic
progress.
The basic objective is to maintain social stability, giving regard to social
relationships, social interactions, behavioral pattern, and values of humanity.
This social component suggests that it is imperative to understand and cure the
social ills emerging as manifestation of the macroeconomic growth to maintain
and raise the welfare of the present society and its future.
The social approach requires equitable distribution of goods and service to
promote all round human development encompassing livelihood, health and
education, promotion of adequate education, training of all members of the
society, creating and adapting political and institutional mechanism and structure
to provide flexibility and self-regulation of the socioeconomic system, protection
and promotion of health facilities, reduce and eliminate poverty through access of
poor to sustainable livelihood and promoting human development.
Economic objectives cannot be maximized without satisfying the constraints in
other two dimensions, environmental and social.
- Natural environment – Quality of life and society well-being (Equity)
Objective of the environmental component is oriented toward a harmonious
development between the economic growth and the quality of the environment in
support of the possibility of adapting compliance mechanisms of maintaining
biodiversity as well as the natural cycle times of the biosphere.
Environment component is oriented toward a harmonious development.
, This dimension aims to raise the capacity of the economy to grow while ensuring
the ability to hold the basic functions of the environment related to the power
function of resources, waste receptor function, and the direct utility.
The core idea is to protect and conserve natural resources and environmental
heritage maintaining the resilience and stability of the physical and biological
system.
Economic growth should not affect ecological balance, ecosystem integrity,
carrying capacity and biodiversity, and the life support systems. Ecosystem well-
being through reduction of resource consumption, waste generation, emission to
air, and biodiversity constitute the environmental dimensions.
The major emphasis of sustainable development is on integration of economic,
social, and environmental dimensions in the decision-making process and in the
business strategies.
- In corporate Terms- SD is the process of developing business while considering the
“Triple Bottom Line” (TBL) related issues, i.e.: Economic, social, and environmental
issues.
- Sustainability issues are also referred to as the 3Ps:
1. Profit
2. People
3. Planet
- The 3 pillars are dynamically inter-connected and affect one another through mutual
causality and positive feedback.
- Sustainable development is associated with 3 categories of objectives closely linked with
economic, environmental, and social performance to be achieved in an integrated and
systematic way.
Sustainable Development Goals “SDGs”.
- A global action plan to achieve SD.
- Blueprint for a better and more sustainable future.
- Set by the UN in 2015, according to Agenda 2030.
- 17 goals (169 Targets) to save our planet.
, 1. No poverty – Poverty has declined from 36% in the 90s to 10% in 2016. But the pace
of change is decelerating and the COVID-19 crisis risks reversing decades of
progress in the fight against poverty. Poverty could increase again due to the
pandemic by as much as half a billion people. (End poverty in all its forms
everywhere)
2. Zero hunger - After decades of steady decline, the number of people who suffer from
hunger – as measured by the prevalence of undernourishment – began to slowly
increase again in 2015. The world is not on track to achieve Zero Hunger by 2030.
(End hunger, achieve food security, improve nutrition, and promote sustainable
agriculture)
3. Good health and well-being - Ensuring healthy lives and promoting well-being at all
ages is essential to sustainable development. Currently, the world is facing a global
health crisis unlike any other — COVID-19 is spreading human suffering,
destabilizing the global economy and upending the lives of billions of people around
the globe. (Ensure healthy lives and promote well-being for all at all stages)
4. Quality Education - Education enables upward socioeconomic mobility and is a key
to escaping poverty. Over the past decade, major progress was made towards
increasing access to education and school enrollment rates at all levels, particularly
for girls. (Ensure equitable quality education and promote lifelong learning
opportunities for all)
5. Gender Equality - There has been progress over the last decades: More girls are going
to school, fewer girls are forced into early marriage, more women are serving in
parliament and positions of leadership, and laws are being reformed to advance
gender equality. The coronavirus outbreak exacerbates existing inequalities for
women and girls across every sphere – from health and the economy, to security and
social protection. (Ensure gender equality and promote women empowerment)
6. Clean water and sanitation - While substantial progress has been made in increasing
access to clean drinking water and sanitation, billions of people—mostly in rural
areas—still lack these basic services. Worldwide, one in three people do not have
access to safe drinking water, two out of five people do not have a basic hand-
Lecture 1
What is Sustainable Development (SD)?
- With diverse human societies, ecosystems, and complex challenges arising from
heterogeneous socioeconomic consequences, new definitions of sustainable development
are continually formulated, accommodating a variety of understandings and expectations
for desirable progress.
- “Meeting the needs of the present generations, without compromising meeting the needs
of the future generations.”
- Despite divergence, all perceptions concerning the concept of sustainable development
invoke the feeling of better living, shared responsibilities, and new directions of
sociotechnical progress
- Development system aiming at a balanced integration of economic growth,
environmental protection and social justice.
Three Dimensions/ pillars of SD “Triple Bottom Line”.
- Economics – Efficient use of resources
From economic perspective, the objective is to maximize the amount of goods
and services and maximize the resource use efficiency.
Economic dimension of the sustainable development strategy is oriented to
accelerate economic growth and get maximum benefit while keeping the stock of
capital constant or increasing.
It desires to produce a maximum flow of income by maximizing the efficient use
of resources, consisting of limited natural resources as well as man-made resource
and human resource.
This approach demands a sustainable economic environment to deal with a
multidimensional process involving a set of quantitative and qualitative
transformations in organizational and social structures as well as changes in
attitude of people toward environment and resource use.
Economic dimensions are the aspects of the organization that need to be
addressed to remain competitive in the market in the long run.
, The dimensions include various components such as profit and value,
investments, relationship with investors, innovation, technology, collaboration,
knowledge management, and process and product development.
- Society – Balance of the ecological system
Aims to improve the quality of life and well-being of the society, along with the
increase of economic efficiency to accelerate material prosperity and economic
progress.
The basic objective is to maintain social stability, giving regard to social
relationships, social interactions, behavioral pattern, and values of humanity.
This social component suggests that it is imperative to understand and cure the
social ills emerging as manifestation of the macroeconomic growth to maintain
and raise the welfare of the present society and its future.
The social approach requires equitable distribution of goods and service to
promote all round human development encompassing livelihood, health and
education, promotion of adequate education, training of all members of the
society, creating and adapting political and institutional mechanism and structure
to provide flexibility and self-regulation of the socioeconomic system, protection
and promotion of health facilities, reduce and eliminate poverty through access of
poor to sustainable livelihood and promoting human development.
Economic objectives cannot be maximized without satisfying the constraints in
other two dimensions, environmental and social.
- Natural environment – Quality of life and society well-being (Equity)
Objective of the environmental component is oriented toward a harmonious
development between the economic growth and the quality of the environment in
support of the possibility of adapting compliance mechanisms of maintaining
biodiversity as well as the natural cycle times of the biosphere.
Environment component is oriented toward a harmonious development.
, This dimension aims to raise the capacity of the economy to grow while ensuring
the ability to hold the basic functions of the environment related to the power
function of resources, waste receptor function, and the direct utility.
The core idea is to protect and conserve natural resources and environmental
heritage maintaining the resilience and stability of the physical and biological
system.
Economic growth should not affect ecological balance, ecosystem integrity,
carrying capacity and biodiversity, and the life support systems. Ecosystem well-
being through reduction of resource consumption, waste generation, emission to
air, and biodiversity constitute the environmental dimensions.
The major emphasis of sustainable development is on integration of economic,
social, and environmental dimensions in the decision-making process and in the
business strategies.
- In corporate Terms- SD is the process of developing business while considering the
“Triple Bottom Line” (TBL) related issues, i.e.: Economic, social, and environmental
issues.
- Sustainability issues are also referred to as the 3Ps:
1. Profit
2. People
3. Planet
- The 3 pillars are dynamically inter-connected and affect one another through mutual
causality and positive feedback.
- Sustainable development is associated with 3 categories of objectives closely linked with
economic, environmental, and social performance to be achieved in an integrated and
systematic way.
Sustainable Development Goals “SDGs”.
- A global action plan to achieve SD.
- Blueprint for a better and more sustainable future.
- Set by the UN in 2015, according to Agenda 2030.
- 17 goals (169 Targets) to save our planet.
, 1. No poverty – Poverty has declined from 36% in the 90s to 10% in 2016. But the pace
of change is decelerating and the COVID-19 crisis risks reversing decades of
progress in the fight against poverty. Poverty could increase again due to the
pandemic by as much as half a billion people. (End poverty in all its forms
everywhere)
2. Zero hunger - After decades of steady decline, the number of people who suffer from
hunger – as measured by the prevalence of undernourishment – began to slowly
increase again in 2015. The world is not on track to achieve Zero Hunger by 2030.
(End hunger, achieve food security, improve nutrition, and promote sustainable
agriculture)
3. Good health and well-being - Ensuring healthy lives and promoting well-being at all
ages is essential to sustainable development. Currently, the world is facing a global
health crisis unlike any other — COVID-19 is spreading human suffering,
destabilizing the global economy and upending the lives of billions of people around
the globe. (Ensure healthy lives and promote well-being for all at all stages)
4. Quality Education - Education enables upward socioeconomic mobility and is a key
to escaping poverty. Over the past decade, major progress was made towards
increasing access to education and school enrollment rates at all levels, particularly
for girls. (Ensure equitable quality education and promote lifelong learning
opportunities for all)
5. Gender Equality - There has been progress over the last decades: More girls are going
to school, fewer girls are forced into early marriage, more women are serving in
parliament and positions of leadership, and laws are being reformed to advance
gender equality. The coronavirus outbreak exacerbates existing inequalities for
women and girls across every sphere – from health and the economy, to security and
social protection. (Ensure gender equality and promote women empowerment)
6. Clean water and sanitation - While substantial progress has been made in increasing
access to clean drinking water and sanitation, billions of people—mostly in rural
areas—still lack these basic services. Worldwide, one in three people do not have
access to safe drinking water, two out of five people do not have a basic hand-
