Sustainable Development

Watch

• Defining Sustainability: Absolutely | Anjila Hjalsted | TEDxGoodenoughCollege ↗TEDx Talks
• How We Can Make the World a Better Place by 2030 | Michael Green | TED Talks ↗TED
• Red Alert - How to meet the Sustainable Development Goals together | SDG Moment | United Nations ↗United Nations
• The 10 Elements of Agroecology: Enabling transitions to sustainable agriculture and food systems ↗Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations
• Could 'degrowth' save the world? | BBC News ↗BBC News
• Can the world rely on renewable energy? | Future Earth | BBC News ↗BBC News

Read

• Our Common Future (The Brundtland Report) ↗Essential reading for the definitive articulation of sustainable development, a concept that continues to shape global policy.World Commission on Environment and Development
• The Limits to Growth ↗This seminal work, though controversial, provides a sobering early warning on the finite nature of Earth's resources and the perils of unchecked growth.Donella H. Meadows, Dennis L. Meadows, Jørgen Randers, William W. Behrens III
• The Tragedy of the CommonsA concise, influential essay illuminating the inherent challenges of managing shared resources and the need for collective action.Garrett Hardin
• Silent Spring ↗A powerful exposé on the environmental damage wrought by pesticides, this book ignited the modern environmental movement and underscored the interconnectedness of ecosystems.Rachel Carson
• Doughnut Economics: Seven Ways to Think Like a 21st-Century Economist ↗Offers a compelling, visual framework for a regenerative and distributive economy, moving beyond traditional growth paradigms.Kate Raworth

Voices to follow

• Jeffrey Sachs ↗A leading proponent of the Sustainable Development Goals, his work offers comprehensive strategies for global poverty alleviation and environmental stewardship.University Professor, Columbia University; Director, Center for Sustainable Development
• Johan Rockström ↗His pioneering research on planetary boundaries provides a critical framework for understanding the safe operating space for humanity on Earth.Director, Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research; Professor, Earth System Science, University of Potsdam
• Kate Raworth ↗Creator of "Doughnut Economics," she offers an innovative economic model that balances human needs with planetary health, challenging conventional growth paradigms.Economist; Senior Associate, Environmental Change Institute, University of Oxford
• Christiana Figueres ↗A pivotal architect of the Paris Agreement, she remains a formidable advocate for collaborative climate action and a just transition to a sustainable future.Former Executive Secretary, UNFCCC; Co-founder, Global Optimism

Glossary

• BiodiversityThe variety of all living things on Earth – from tiny bacteria to giant trees and animals – and the different ecosystems they live in. It's crucial for a healthy planet. For example, a rainforest with thousands of different plant and animal species has high biodiversity, making it more resilient to changes.
• Carbon FootprintThe total amount of greenhouse gases, especially carbon dioxide, released into the atmosphere by your actions or an organization's activities. It's a measure of your impact on climate change. For example, choosing to cycle to school instead of driving a car reduces your personal carbon footprint.
• Climate ChangeA long-term shift in global or regional weather patterns, mainly caused by human activities that release too many greenhouse gases into the atmosphere. This leads to things like rising temperatures and more extreme weather. For example, scientists observe that average global temperatures are increasing, leading to more frequent heatwaves and stronger storms in many parts of the world.
• ConservationThe careful management and protection of natural resources and the environment to prevent their loss or waste. It's about using resources wisely and preserving nature. For example, protecting a forest by preventing illegal logging and creating national parks to save endangered animals are acts of conservation.
• Greenhouse GasesGases in Earth's atmosphere that trap heat, like a blanket, keeping the planet warm enough to live. However, too many of these gases, mainly from human activity, cause the Earth to get too hot. For example, carbon dioxide from burning fossil fuels and methane from landfills are common greenhouse gases that contribute to climate change.
• Non-renewable ResourcesNatural resources that exist in limited amounts and cannot be easily replaced once used up, or take millions of years to form. For example, coal, oil, and natural gas are non-renewable resources because once they are burned for energy, they are gone forever.
• PollutionThe introduction of harmful substances or products into the environment, making it dirty or unsafe. This can affect air, water, or land. For example, factory smoke released into the air or plastic waste dumped into rivers are forms of pollution that harm living things.
• RecyclingThe process of collecting and processing materials that would otherwise be thrown away as trash and turning them into new products. This saves resources and reduces waste. For example, putting empty plastic bottles and old newspapers into a special bin so they can be made into new items instead of ending up in a landfill.
• Renewable EnergyEnergy that comes from natural sources that replenish themselves faster than we can use them up. These sources won't run out. For example, solar power from the sun and wind power from the wind are types of renewable energy that can generate electricity without depleting resources.
• SustainabilityThe ability to keep something going over a long time without causing harm or running out of resources. It means living in a way that doesn't use up everything for the future. For example, a forest is managed for sustainability if trees are only cut down at the same rate new ones grow, so there's always a forest.
• Sustainable DevelopmentDeveloping our world in a way that meets our current needs without making it harder for future generations to meet their own needs. It's about balancing people, planet, and profit. For example, building a new school using solar panels and rainwater harvesting means today's students get a great school, and future students still have clean energy and water.

Threads 4

Where this connects to other fields, and why it's worth knowing.

• Psychometrics Psychology

  Swapping GDP for a 'human development' score sounds smarter, but it hits psychology's oldest headache: how do you cram something huge and fuzzy, like a good life or intelligence, into one number? Once that single number exists, leaders chase it, even though it flattens everything rich and messy it was meant to capture.

• Economic Development Economics

  Poor countries can skip the dirty middle step, jumping straight to mobile phones without ever stringing landlines, or straight to solar without building a coal grid. It's called 'leapfrogging.' Being late to the party can actually mean showing up cleaner, using the newest, greenest tools while richer countries are stuck with their old, dirty ones.

• Ethics and Moral Philosophy Philosophy

  Normal 'be good' rules are built around people you can see and hurt right now. But protecting people 200 years from now means caring about humans who don't exist yet and can't complain. Our everyday sense of right and wrong has no built-in tool for that, which is why the future is so easy to ignore.

• Leadership and Decision-Making Business

  Set a goal like 'plant a million trees' and watch what happens: people start chasing the number, not the forest. This is Goodhart's law, the moment a measurement becomes a target, folks game it. So the report says 'a million trees planted' while half of them are already dead, and the score looks great even as reality doesn't budge.