MSc: Sustainable Economic Development

2009

This report is a literature review about sustainability and sustainable development in general and in an urban context. It focuses on theoretical issues and debates in scientific literature and aims at analyzing the different dimension of sustainability, namely social, ecological and economic sustainability. There are different conflicts between those dimensions of sustainability. Furthermore, there are different theoretical approaches to this topic. This report shows that much of the literature about economic and ecological sustainability does not involve critical and theoretical reflections of the term itself, but focus more on practical field-studies, like measurements of emissions or studies that promote initiates of congestion charging. The critical discussions about the term sustainability and the theoretical aspects are often found in literature concerning social sustainability. However, there are some models and visions about the sustainable city, which give hope to bridging the gap between the three dimensions of sustainability.

International Journal of Environment and Pollution, 1998

The concept of sustainable development is steadily approaching recognition, if not full disciplinary autonomy, becoming the focus of new theoretical and normative reflection. However, the same cannot be said of a more specific field of application of that same ...

A high-level overview of the discipline of sustainable development is presented, aimed at providing the context and setting for research on and applications of sustainable development, in this lead article to a new journal. The status of sustainable development and its progress are described, as are challenges and needs that may impact its development. Definitions of sustainable development and its interdisciplinary and multidisciplinary dimensions are discussed and contrasted with single-discipline approaches. Examples of interpretations and needs for sustainable development are provided from such fields as energy, resource management, and engineering. Attitudes towards sustainable development are investigated, as is progress. Finally, an illustrative case study is described of a large sustainable development initiative, comprised of several integrated measures and activities. sustainable development, environmental sustainable development, social sustainable development, economic sustainable development, sustainability

Sustainability, 2020

In consideration of the three pillars of sustainability, alongside the environment, social and economic dimensions interplay valuable insight into how society is molded and what key components should be considered. In terms of social sustainability, there are processes and framework objectives that promote wellbeing integral to the balance of people, planet, and profit. Economic practices consider the system of production, resource allocation, and distribution of goods and services with respect to demand and supply between economic agents. As a result, an economic system is a variant of the social system in which it exists. At present, the forefront of social sustainability research partially encompasses the impact economic practices have on people and society-with notable emphasis centered on the urban environment. Specific interdisciplinary analyses within the scope of sustainability, social development, competitiveness, and motivational management as well as decision making within the urban landscape are considered. This book contains nine thoroughly refereed contributions that interconnect detailed research into the two pillars reviewed.

Journal of Environmental Planning and Management, 1996

2011

At the turn of the millennium, the world's political leadership adopted sustainable development as a leading model for societal development. However, the terms "sustainable development", "sustainability" and "sustainable" are sometimes over-and misused despite wide consensus about the concept's meaning among sustainability scholars and practitioners. While the concept allows various sustainability views to co-exist, random conceptualizations which do not respect the fundamental sustainability principles undermine the concept's objective to steer action. This lack of understanding of sustainability arguably inhibits its practical realization and a proper understanding of sustainability is urgently needed. In this paper we aim to contribute to a better understanding of sustainability by adopting a bird's eye perspective. We review the rich contemporary literature, with a specific focus on the terminology, genesis, fundamental principles, mainstream views of sustainability, and several governing aspects. Further, using the evolving body of sustainability literature, the paper provides arguments to combat common misconceptions of sustainability.

2015

Introduction In 1987, the Bruntland Commission published its report, Our Common Future, in an effort to link the issues of economic development and environmental stability. In doing so, this report provided the oft-cited definition of sustainable development as “development that meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs” (United Nations General Assembly, 1987, p. 43). Albeit somewhat vague, this concept of sustainable development aims to maintain economic advancement and progress while protecting the long-term value of the environment; it “provides a framework for the integration of environment policies and development strategies” (United Nations General Assembly, 1987). However, long before the late 20 century, scholars argued that there need not be a trade-off between environmental sustainability and economic development.

Geocomputation, Sustainability and …, 2011

Given the current economic challenges, the desirability of achieving sustainable development has come to the fore. This chapter outlines and discusses contemporary concepts of sustainable development paying most attention to different criteria which have been proposed for achieving sustainable economic development. Most current economic conceptions of sustainable economic development are shown to be imprecise and can be in conflict. Lack of attention to empirically measuring and examining the coefficient of concern of current generations for the well-being of future generations is identified as a major shortcoming of current debates about sustainable development. Conditions (weak and strong), which it is claimed must be satisfied to achieve sustainable economic development, are considered, before examining the merit of the three-pillar concept, which requires economic, social and ecological sustainability to be simultaneously satisfied. Although the three-pillar concept does have significant limitations, it is contended that it can be a useful guide to policy formation. Other topics covered include the role of different forms of capital in contributing to sustainable economic development. The measurement of stock of the different forms of capital (especially social capital) is found to be problematic. Nevertheless, all these forms of capital have important influences on the sustainability of economic development, or the lack of it. Several issues involving poverty and (economic sustainability) are raised. These include open-access to the use of natural resources and the social cohesiveness (embedding) of some social groups which makes it difficult for them to escape from poverty, for example, by migrating. Examples are given. Both open-access to natural resources and the nature of the social capital of some social groups may result in these groups being caught in a poverty trap. An additional subject explored in the effect of labour mobility on the conservation of natural resources.

International journal of social sciences, 2014

The objective of the research aims to develop a theoretical study with different positions on the terms sustainable development and sustainability. Although fairly debated and accepted by common sense, the concept of sustainability does not have precision and ends up acquiring various senses, sometimes contradictory. The distinct ideological perceptions of environmental issues translate into different discourses. Each social sector presents its position on the "environmental crisis", some catastrophic other weighted, some guiding solutions inside the current economic and social system and others suggesting drastic changes. In this context, and especially in the last three decades, the ideas of sustainable development (SD) and urban sustainability began to be discussed more intensively seeking possible solutions to urban and environmental problems.