Wednesday, April 29, 2009

Sustainability

Sustainability, in general terms, is the ability to maintain balance of a certain process or state in any system. It is now most frequently used in connection with biological and human systems. In an ecological context, sustainability can be defined as the ability of an ecosystem to maintain ecological processes, functions, biodiversity and productivity into the future.[1]

Sustainability has become a complex term that can be applied to almost every system on Earth, particularly the many different levels of biological organization, such as; wetlands, prairies and forests[2] and is expressed in human organization concepts, such as; eco-municipalities, sustainable cities, and human activities and disciplines, such as; sustainable agriculture, sustainable architecture and renewable energy.[3]

For humans to live sustainably, the Earth's resources must be used at a rate at which they can be replenished. However, there is now clear scientific evidence that humanity is living unsustainably, and that an unprecedented collective effort is needed to return human use of natural resources to within sustainable limits.[4][5]

Since the 1980s, the idea of human sustainability has become increasingly associated with the integration of economic, social and environmental spheres. In 1989, the World Commission on Environment and Development (Brundtland Commission) articulated what has now become a widely accepted definition of sustainability: "[to meet] the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs.”[6]

3 comments:

  1. Remember I said you should re-write info in your won words and either way, you must include a reference and state your sources.
    Well done for making a start.

    [Go Chelsea!]

    ReplyDelete
  2. I agree,writing it in your own words will help you to understand the topic a little better for yourself.

    came across your blog while I was searching for Arsenal fans. Feel free to have your say on my gunners blog. I made it so that I could hear from arsenal fans the world over

    V A

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  3. Cool blog lolz. (Samir Nasri) you know what I mean lolz. EHHEEHHEEHHE

    ReplyDelete