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Sustainability and the built environment
1.4 How has it developed?
Public consciousness first began to awaken to the issues of sustainability and
climate change in the 1960s, when published images showed the Earth drifting alone
in space. These were a powerful reminder of our stark isolation and vulnerability,
and of the finite limit to available resources. They also exposed our generally poor
understanding of the Earth’s systems and our impact as humans upon them, sparking
much scientific research.
Earth’s systems and processes are incredibly complex and science has yet to unlock
many of their secrets. To the scientific community of the 21st century ‘the Earth
System behaves as a single, self-regulating system comprised of physical,
chemical, biological and human components’. In essence, the Earth is ‘alive’. If
we are to become sustainable and slow the progress of climate change we must
recognise the links between these components and learn to live in balance with them.
The terms ‘sustainability’ and ‘sustainable development’ were first used in relation to
the environment in the early 1980s, although they took on greater significance in the
1990s following the publication of the Brundtland report.
In 1987 Gro Harlem Brundtland chaired the UN World Commission on
Environment and Development, now known as the Brundtland Commission.
The resulting publication, Our Common Future, promotes union between
ecology and economy, and is seen as a pivotal document in the sustainability
agenda. The report defines sustainable development as ‘development that
meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future
generations to meet their own needs’. The Brundtland definition implies that
it ought to be possible to balance economic and social forces with the needs of
the environment; a theory which is still the subject of much debate.
In 1992, governments of the world gathered for the Rio Earth Summit, where they
united in signing a document placing sustainable development at the heart of good
governance. Ten years later, in Johannesburg, the same assembled governments
were forced to recognise that their original ground-breaking policy for endorsing
sustainable development had had little impact. They did recognise the importance of
halting climate change, however, bringing renewed vigour to the sustainability debate.
This discussion has continued to expand as the scientific community becomes
steadily more certain about its findings. As a consequence, the mid 2000s have seen
a dramatic rise in public perception of sustainability. We are beginning to understand
that adopting the principles of sustainable development will enable us to hand over
our world to our children, and their children, intact and thriving.
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