Sustainable Development / Agenda 21

Eckhard Gerke

The term “sustainability” originally derives from the field of forestry. It stood for a specific principle of management which aimed at not felling more trees than were able to regrow. This principle was soon after extended and applied to all functions of forest affairs. Sustainability related to ecological as well as to recreational aspects.

The term “Sustainable Development” is more elaborated and was established in the Nineties of the last century. Reflecting the growing global importance of its impact, the English term “Sustainable Development” has gained recognition internationally. The idea behind the concept has not been perceived unanimously and goes back to the report “Our Common Future” (1987) of the World Commission on Environment and Development (“Brundtland-Commission”) and can be interpreted as the result of the debate of growth following the first Report of the Club of Rome (“The Limits of Growth, 1972). The original concept of “Sustainable Development” has been extended since the UN conference on Environment and Development in Rio de Janeiro (UNCED) in 1992 towards developmental and environmental policy but still excluding ecological aspects.

Following the Agenda 21 agreement in 1992 the UNO set up the Commission on “Sustainable Development” (CSD) to implement the ideals of Agenda 21 on international, national, regional and local level which calls for global interdisciplinary action. “Sustainable Development” describes a complex scenario in which the interrelations between economic, ecological, social and political-institutional dimensions have to be seen as an entity.

The characteristic feature of the basic concept of SD is the universality of the claims of life i. e. the global improvement of basic living conditions while maintaining equal opportunities for living: The aim is a development to satisfy global demands of the present generation and at the same time secure needs and living conditions for future generations. Within this concept e. g. the institutional and political factor for implementing global justice is valued equally to a Sustainable, fair distribution of resources.

The problem of distribution therefore is to be seen as a fundamental principle of SD with the associated claim of intertemporal justice (consideration of the interests of future generations and responsibility for the future), as well as with the postulation of an intragenerative justice in favour of socially deprived groupings and the fight against global poverty.

According to the Wuppertal Institute the graph shows the “Prism of Sustainable Development”. It represents the four relevent social “worlds”, i. e. the institutional, the ecological, the economic and the social dimensions as well as their focal points. The different paths indicate the processes by which the “worlds” are being interrelated.

A comprehensive understanding and reception of SD thus leads to a strategy which takes into account the reciprocal dependencies and interconnections of economic, social and ecological development in the sense of a lasting ecologically aware “Sustainable Development”

Essential for “Sustainable Development” is also the protection of the natural basis of life and the realisation of the significance of nature, i. e. the natural resources in the ecological system. The requirement of initiating such a process is an ecologically sound development.

The concept of “Sustainable Development” does not only imply a shift in standards and terms but also a change of meaning. Instead of “growth” the term of “development” is used with the significance of growth with regard to quality being emphasized. As in the long run quantitative growth (in terms of a growth in national product) does not seem to be feasible because of the limits of nature's resources, a development in terms of raising quality of living conditions, potentials in productions and structures is considered necessary.

Development does not only relate to an general increase in income but also to an improvement in the diversity of development factors. There are close relations to the measurement of quality of life and prosperity. Current attempts of the calculation of an overall indicator are the “Human Development Index” and the World Bank's concept of prosperity.

All in all SD comprises a process of social changes leading to fresh views, new values and action. In order to contribute to a solution of the North-South conflict, problem solving has to start with the overpopulation in industrialised countries under 20% of the world population and a consumption of about 75% of the world's mineral resources and fossil fuels, thus being mainly responsible for global environmental damage.

Increasing emphasis within the sustainability debate is laid on concepts like “One World” and “Spaceship Earth” to point out the limitations involved. Fundamental changes of production and consumption structures as well as a self limitation of consumption in industrialised countries are considered essential to prevent ecological disaster.

Particularly organisations in the field of development aid and environment protection complain about the concept of SD being more or less limited to political declarations whereas environmental actions and programmes are mainly geared towards economic targets and interests.

In order to capture the widest possible scope of the sustainability debate and to structure activities in this field the DataBank was originally based on 40 keywords (from Agriculture to Youth) to cover all activities of relevant experts and institutions. Later, it turned out to be neccessary to add three more keywords to improve the online search facilities of the DataBank, including a full-text search option.