1. what are three general concepts of sustainability that have been presented during the course?

by Rodolfo Feest 9 min read

The three pillars of sustainability are a powerful tool for defining the complete sustainability problem. This consists of at least the economic, social, and environmental pillars. If any one pillar is weak then the system as a whole is unsustainable. Two popular ways to visualize the three pillars are shown. 1

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What are the two basic approaches to sustainability?

Patterson et al. (2017) identified four main interpretations of the concept of sustainability: (i) ecological, (ii) economic, (iii) thermodynamic and ecological-economic, (iv) public policy and planning theory.

What is an example of a sustainability concept in environmental management?

Examples of indicators based on the strong sustainability concept: - ISEW/GPI (Index of Sustainable Economic Welfare/ Genuine Progress Indicator). This concept was devel-oped by, amongst others, the steady-state economist Daly, Friends of the Earth. The concept seeks to explic-itly include strong sustainability considerations.

What is sustainability?

Apr 03, 2012 · However, sustainability has three aspects—ecological, social, and economic—and it is not possible to achieve a particular level of ecological, social, or economic sustainability independently without achieving at least a basic level of all three forms simultaneously.

What are the four main interpretations of sustainability?

5 1. Introduction (facts) Some "depressing" facts: More than 800 million people are extremely underfed; 600 children p/h die of hunger? 40% of the world population has never used a telephone (line) Melting of the North pole (and Greenland), will give a water level rise of 50-150 cm in the North Sea NL 2004: to continue 3% growth, 30-50 % decrease of

What are the 3 concepts of sustainability?

Sustainability has three main pillars: economic, environmental, and social. These three pillars are informally referred to as people, planet, and profits.

What are the 3 key parts of sustainable development?

ECOSOC operates at the centre of the UN system's work on all three pillars of sustainable development—economic, social and environmental.

What are the 3 main dimensions of sustainability?

Sustainable development is often subdivided into three dimensions – ecological responsibility, social equity and economic performance.

How are the 3 pillars of sustainability connected?

The sustainability is not linked only with the environment, but also, with the social and economic environment, forming so, the three pillars that aim to guarantee the planet's integrity and to improve the quality of life.

What are the 4 types of sustainability?

The four pillars of sustainability
  • Human sustainability. Human sustainability aims to maintain and improve the human capital in society. ...
  • Social sustainability. ...
  • Economic sustainability. ...
  • Environmental sustainability.

What are the 3 dimensions of sustainability and water?

Water is fundamental to the three dimensions of sustainable development, including social needs, economic development and environmental limits, and a cross-cutting driver.

What are the three key dimensions of sustainability as discussed in Chapter 5?

The TBL dimensions are also commonly called the three Ps: people, planet and profits. We will refer to these as the 3Ps.

What do you understand by sustainable development discuss the three dimensions that sustainability seeks to integrate?

Thus there are three dimensions that sustainability seeks to integrate: economic, environmental, and social (including sociopolitical).

What is sustainable state?

However, the form, or state, that is sustainable can be changed with intelligence or systematic intervention during the course of evolution. Sustainability refers to processes, objects, or matter. Sustainability is incompatible with monotonous increase or decrease of amounts of matter.

What is the most difficult challenge for humanity?

Sustainable development is clearly one of the most difficult challenges that humanity has ever faced. Attaining sustainability requires addressing many fundamental issues at local, regional, and global levels, and achieving the goals and objectives of sustainability presents a great challenge for all segments of society. A core principle of sustainable development is to improve human well-being and to sustain these improvements over time, but the consequences of climate change and the growing demand for energy and resources are making this objective more challenging.

What is sustainability engineering?

Sustainable engineering seeks solutions that are broader than those of green engineering, by considering the system as one part of the global ecosystem including all of humanity.

What is the concept of our common future?

‘Our common future’ established the benchmark for the future discussions on sustainability and left a large space for various interpretations.

Why is energy sustainability important?

Energy sustainability is of importance because of the broad and growing nature of energy use, the numerous environmental impacts associated with energy systems, and the significance of energy in living standards and economic development . Renewable energy has a central role to play in achieving energy sustainability.

How is development sustainable?

In economic terms, development is sustainable if it does not decrease the capacity of a system to provide nondeclining per capita utility [ 13 ]. In ecological terms, development is sustainable if the stock of natural capital does not decline over time, or if resources are managed so as to maintain a sustainable yield of ecosystem services. The economic definition defines sustainability in terms of the economy’s ability to maintain material production or consumption indefinitely. Since this is not possible without ongoing use of environmental resources, economic interpretations imply that there must be at least some degree of environmental sustainability.

What is the right to access natural resources?

This right includes the following: biophysical environment, economic dimension, social dimension, and institutional dimension ( Figure 2 ).

What is the human spirit?

The human spirit has consistently sought to transcend material, biological, physiological, psychological, and technological limitations. This constant drive to touch a “beyond,” to take progressively more into the field of vision and to integrate an increasingly broader reality has great practical significance. With its intuitive reach for wholeness and completion, it fuels the development and evolution of individuals and societies alike.

What did the early 20th century scientists, mathematicians, and philosophers of science bring to the fore

Workof early 20th century scientists, mathematicians, and philosophers of science brought to the fore the fundamental fallibility of human knowledge, questioning the notion of an ultimate truth. This suggests that, in true ecological fashion, myriad expressions and species of truth should be allowed to coexist without any particular one seeking to aggressively dominate others.

What are the five forms of capital?

Employ a comprehensive concept of wealth related to the simultaneous enhancement of five key forms of capital: Natural, Human, Social, Manufactured and Financial Align the world’s economy with nature’s regeneration capacity and incorporate critical “externalities” in all cost and benefit accounts Embody a measure of well-being and human development in economic calculationsDesign regulation and taxation policies to accentuate desirable and eliminate adverse outcomes, optimizing the wholeRely on market mechanisms—transparent and calibrated to reflect “true”costs—for allocation of capital assets

What is economics framework?

Economiesconsist of markets where transactions occur, and guiding frameworks by which transactions are evaluated and decisions about economic commitments are made. Often treated as though they reflect an independent, objective reality, such frameworks ultimately represent human constructs rooted in values, biases, and dominant interests and concerns. These latter factors determine the adoption of the underlying economic perspective: whether focused on short-term, linear and narrow objectives, or on long-term, comprehensive, eco-sensitive cycles of return.

What is the most significant challenge of our time?

Transforming world society and the world’s economy to a sustainable basis is the most significant challenge of our time. This challenge is unprecedented in scope. Its context is the planet as a whole. It requires a fundamental shift in consciousness as well as action. It calls for a fresh vision, a new dream and new approaches for shaping evolving new realities.

What is sustainability movement?

Originally, its focus was on finding ways to let poor nations catch up to richer ones in terms of standard of living. That goal meant giving disadvantaged countries better access to natural resources, including water, energy and food—all of which come, one way or another, from the environment. “The economy,” says Anthony Cortese, founder and president of the sustainability education organization Second Nature, “is a wholly owned subsidiary of the biosphere. The biosphere provides everything that makes life possible, assimilates our waste or converts it back into something we can use.”

Why is recycling important?

“For some reason, recycling was the enduring message that came out of the environmental movement in the early 1970s.” And of course, recycling is important: reusing metals, paper, wood and plastics rather than tossing them reduces the need to extract raw materials from the ground, forests and fossil-fuel deposits. More efficient use of pretty much anything is a step in the direction of sustainability. But it is just a piece of the puzzle. “I deal with the people who run the recycling program here,” Weber notes, “but also with purchasing, dining services, the people who clean the buildings. The most important areas by far in terms of sustainability are energy and transportation.” If you think you are living sustainably because you recycle, she says, you need to think again.

Is it true that we have to do more with less?

Not at all true. It does mean that we have to do more with less, but as Hawken argues, “Once we start to organize ourselves and innovate within that mind-set, the breakthroughs are extraordinary. They will allow us to achieve greatly superior rates of resource productivity, which in turn allow us to be prosperous, fed, clad, secure.” Moreover, he and others maintain that the innovation at the heart of sustainable living will be a powerful economic engine. “Addressing climate change,” he says, “is the biggest job creation program there is.”

Is there an 800-pound gorilla in the room of sustainability?

If there is an 800-pound gorilla in the room of sustainability, this myth is it. That’s because, as Gabriel observes, “there’s a grain of truth to it.” But only a grain. “It’s only true in the short term in certain circumstances,” Cortese says, “but certainly not in the long term.” The truth lies in the fact that if you already have an unsustainable system in place—a factory or a transportation system, for example, or a furnace in your house, an incandescent lightbulb in your lamp or a Hummer in your driveway—you have to spend some money up front to switch to a more sustainable technology.

What is the IPAT scale?

A numerical-based scale used to compare alternative designs, processes or products with one another. i.e.: The IPAT Equation;

What does dn/dt mean?

dN/dt = rate of change in population size.

What is the world changing at a rapid rate?

1. World is changing at a rapid rate -more people, doing more things, using more natural resources, with effects evolving at multiple spatial and temporal scales

What is blue water?

is water that has been sourced from surface or groundwater resources and is either evaporated, incorporated into a product or taken from one body of water and returned to another, or returned at a different time. Irrigated agriculture, industry and domestic water use can each have a blue water footprint.

How many physicians have had a medical malpractice lawsuit?

More than one in three physicians, 34 percent, have had a medical liability lawsuit filed against them at some point in their careers, says one of three trend reports published by the AMA’s Division of Economic and Health Policy Research. The longer physicians are in practice, the likelier it is that they will have experienced a lawsuit.

What is the AMA's goal in addressing the broken medical liability system?

Every dollar spent on the broken medical liability system is a dollar that cannot be used to improve patient care.”. The AMA is pursuing legislation to strengthen the nation’s liability system at the state and federal levels, in collaboration with state medical associations and national specialty societies. The AMA favors traditional reforms such ...

What percentage of premiums rose in 2017?

That is because in the last three years of the study period, there have been more premium increases than decreases. In 2017, 13.4 percent of premiums were higher than in 2016. The trend since 2010 is that 12–17 percent of premiums rose from the prior year. Moreover, the share of premiums that has decreased from one year to the next has been falling, especially since 2015.

How many internists have been sued?

Thirty-two percent of internists have ever been sued, while one-third of family practice physicians have been sued. About half (52 percent) of emergency physicians have been sued, compared with 38 percent of radiologists and 36 percent of anesthesiologists. (See table two in the report for a breakdown by specialty.

What does the AMA call for?

The AMA also calls for the implementation and evaluation of innovative reforms to see whether they can improve the nation’s medical liability climate. The AMA has called for federal funding for pilot projects to test concepts such as health courts, liability safe harbors for the practice of evidence-based medicine, ...

How much of medical liability claims were dropped in 2015?

Sixty-eight percent of closed claims were dropped, dismissed or withdrawn in 2015. Nonetheless, those claims still imposed an average of more than $30,000 in defense costs, which is 38 percent of total expenses incurred on all claims. Of the 7 percent of medical liability claims decided by a trial verdict, the vast majority—88 percent—were won by the defendants.

When did California start caps on noneconomic damages?

That compares with premiums of about $50,000 for their fellow ob-gyns in California, a state that pioneered caps on noneconomic damages with the Medical Injury Compensation Reform Act of 1975. Top cases show physicians had a forceful ally in the courts. Tort reforms facing legal challenges in three states.

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