Sustainable Development has been the buzzword for a while now. People are constantly asking what it looks like and how to implement it. There have been many differing opinions on what sustainable development actually is, however some key principles remain:
- The concept of sustainable development is about making sure that you live in a world where people are able to stay self-sufficient and thrive indefinitely.
- Sustainable development does not need to take the form of major changes, but rather building upon what we already have.
- A major component of any successful Sustainable Development project is social-justice based thinking.
The Principles of a Sustainable Development Project:
A sustainable development project is one that will allow you to reach the following principles:
-Managing resources efficiently.
-Responsible consumption.
-Treating others with respect and dignity.
These four principles are what make up an overall healthy and productive society. The management of resources, responsible consumption, and treating others with respect and dignity can be applied to almost anything we do; whether it is being environmentally conscious, being respectful of your parents, or being a good soccer player. The real issue here is that these principles go hand in hand. If we constantly abuse a resource and consume in a way that hurts the environment, we are not being respectful of the Earth. If we are being very selfish in our consumption, then we are not being respectful of our fellow human beings. Lastly, if we do not treat people with respect and dignity, then they will not be treated with respect and dignity by their neighbors.
These four principles allow us to have a healthy society. This can be seen clearly in the following quote by E. F. Schumacher: “The great first commandment is to love the Earth and that means loving it enough to take care of it for the sake of future generations”.
The way we approach development affects everyone. The decisions that we make also impacts the society, and has very real consequences for people’s lives. Poor planning of communities, for example, reduces the quality of life for the people who live in them.
Sustainable development provides an approach to making better decisions on the issues that affect all of our lives. By incorporating health plans into the planning of new communities, for instance, we can ensure that residents have easy access to healthcare and other facilities.
Sustainable development should provide a solution in terms of meeting basic human
needs, integrating environmental development and protection, achieving equality,
ensuring social self-determination and cultural diversity, and maintaining ecological
integrity. Although the concept of sustainable development has undergone certain
changes during the past, its fundamental principles and goals have contributed to a
more conscious behaviour adapted to the limitations of the environment. This is the
reason of adopting the concept in different areas of human activities. Numerous international organizations have been involved in implementation of the concept, while
it has found positive implementation locally, but it did not produce significant results
on a global scale. This fact proves environmental problems which, 30 years after the
introduction of the concept, are still ongoing. Contemporary understanding of the
concept of sustainable development is considered through the United Nations Millennium Development Goals focused on a complex global situation, such as population
growth, hunger and poverty, wars and political instability, and further degradation
of the environment. There is a huge gap between developed and underdeveloped country and many of the countries are not even close to sustainable development. Fundamental constraints of the implementation of the concept of sustainable development are the degree of socio-economic development that many countries have not yet achieved, associated with a lack of financial resources and technology, but also the diversity of political and economic goals on a global scale.
Source: https://www.unesco.org/en/education/sustainable-development
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