BE1257 Lecture 3: Sustainable Development

Sustainable Development

Dr. Alex Hope

BE1257 Environmental Design


“Our biggest challenge this new century is to take an idea

that seems abstract - sustainable development - and turn it into a reality for all the

world’s people”

Kofi Annan, former UN Secretary General 2001

What is the nature of the problem?

• 7 Billions people want decent life styles

• Today’s lifestyles and resource and energy intensive

• Providing enough energy and resources for 7 Billion

• Unsustainable ‘western’ lifestyles

What is ‘Sustainable Development’?

Defining Sustainable Development

“Meeting the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs”

Our Common Future, United Nations World Commission on Environment and Development (WCED), 1987

Classical model of sustainability

http://sustainabilityinitiatives.wmwikis.net/file/view/The_three_spheres_of_sustainability.png

The Five economic pillars Sustainability

Manufactured Capital

Fiscal Capital

Cultural Capital

Human/Social Capital

Natural Capital

J. Porritt, Capitalism As If the World Matters, Routledge S. Hawken, A. Lovins, H. Lovins, Natural Capitalism, Routledge

Ecological Footprint

A measure of how much area of biologically produc=ve land and water an individual, popula=on or ac=vity requires to produce all the resources it consumes and to absorb the waste it generates, using prevailing technology and resource management prac=ces.

The Ecological Footprint is usually measured in global hectares. Because trade is global, an individual or country's Footprint includes land or sea from all over the world. Ecological Footprint is oDen referred to in short form as Footprint. "Ecological Footprint" and "Footprint" are proper nouns and thus should always be capitalized.

http://www.footprintnetwork.org/en/index.php/GFN/page/glossary/


Current population

Available land area 1.8 Global Hectares per person=

Ecological Footprint: Overshoot

Overshoot is said to occur when humanity’s annual demand upon the natural world has exceeded what the Earth can renew in a year. This has occurred every year since the 1970’s

http://assets.wwf.org.uk/downloads/lpr_2012_rio_summary_booklet_final_9may2012.pdf


If we all consumed the same amount of resources, how many planets would we need?


USA

Europe

World

http://www.footprintnetwork.org/en/index.php/GFN/page/world_footprint/http://www.footprintnetwork.org/en/index.php/GFN/page/basics_introduction/


But of course we only have one planet……

THINK GLOBAL ACT LOCAL

Human Development

Human Development Index

• The Human Development Index (HDI) is a summary measure of human development. It measures the average achievements in a country in three basic dimensions of human development: a long and healthy life (health), access to knowledge (educa=on) and a decent standard of living (income). Data availability determines HDI country coverage. To enable cross-‐country comparisons, the HDI is, to the extent possible, calculated based on data from leading interna=onal data agencies and other credible data sources available at the =me of wri=ng.

• The term Human Development Index (HDI) is taken to be a synonym of the older term standards of living or Quality of life and dis=nguish between "very high human development", "high human development", "medium human development", and "low human development" countries.

http://hdr.undp.org/en/statistics/hdi/


http://hdr.undp.org/en/statistics/hdi/


Gender Inequality Index

Gender Inequality Index (GII)

• The Gender Inequality Index is a composite measure reflec=ng inequality in achievements between women and men in three dimensions: reproduc=ve health, empowerment and the labour market. It varies between zero (when women and men fare equally) and one (when men or women fare poorly compared to the other in all dimensions).

• The health dimension is measured by two indicators: maternal mortality ra=o and the adolescent fer=lity rate.

• The empowerment dimension is also measured by two indicators: the share of parliamentary seats held by each sex and by secondary and higher educa=on aXainment levels.

• The labour dimension is measured by women’s par=cipa=on in the work force. The Gender Inequality Index is designed to reveal the extent to which na=onal achievements in these aspects of human development are eroded by gender inequality, and to provide empirical founda=ons for policy analysis and advocacy efforts.

Gender Inequality Index (GII)

http://hdr.undp.org/en/media/HDR_2011_EN_TechNotes.pdf

Are we making progress…

• 1.3 billion people live in absolute poverty and have no access to safe drinking water

• 35,000 people die of starva=on everyday

• Twice as many Ethiopians face starva=on due to famine now than in 1984

• 225 of the world’s richest individuals have an annual income equivalent to the poorest 47% of the world’s en=re popula=on




Sustainable Development may be described as minimising the Ecological Footprint whilst also maximising the Human Development Index (HDI).

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Human Development Index and Ecological Footprint

Small ecological footprint

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Sustainable Development Quadrant


Only one country (Cuba) populates the Sustainable Development Quadrant

Global Footprints Network http://www.oecd.org/dataoecd/52/1/43844294.htm#H56

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By what means can the sustainable development quadrant be populated?

Contrac=on and Convergence

http://gci.org.uk/

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Contraction and convergence


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By what means can the sustainable development quadrant be populated?

Are$we$making$progress…$



Summary''

•  Definitions of Sustainable development

•  Models of sustainable development

•  Ecological and Carbon footprinting

•  Human Development Index

Text

What if it’s all a hoax?

Further'Reading'IISD (2010) ‘Sustainable Development Timeline’, International Institute for Sustainable Development [Online]. Available at: www.iisd.org Goodland, R. (1995) ‘The Concept of Environmental Sustainability’, Annual Review of Ecology and Systematics 26 pp. 1-24 Anand, S. and Sen, A. (2000) ‘Human Development and Economic Sustainability’, World Development 28 (12) pp. 2029-2049 McKenzie, S. (2004) ‘Social Sustainability: Towards some definitions’, Hawke Research Institute Working Paper Series 27. Magill: Hawke University UNDP (2011) ‘Human Development Report 2011: Sustainability and Equity: A Better Future for All’. Available at: http://hdr.undp.org/en/reports/global/hdr2011/download/

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BE1257 Lecture 3: Sustainable Development

Education