An Essay on the Meaning of Sustainable Development

ASSIGNMENT 1.

AN ESSAY ON THE MEANING OF SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT.

Introduction:

In this essay I will discuss what sustainable development means? I will also discuss weak and strong approaches to sustainability and how this is related to sustainable development. Finally I will discuss how Isaac Construction in Christchurch has adopted sustainable development practices. In order to somewhat understand what sustainable development means, you must first separate the two words and view them both individually.

Development and sustainability discussion:

Firstly, development can be seen as progress and growth which builds over time at both societal and individual levels. There are also three senses in which the word development is used. They are; a vision/measure, an historical process and lastly a deliberate effort for development (Thomas A., 2000, p. 29). An example of this is when using economic development in the context of the three senses: a vision of economic wealth for a country, capitalism creating growth over time and lastly a development company that deliberately helps to create growth. Most importantly though, development means reaching full human potential (Thomas. A., 2000, p. 32-33). Sustainability can be more difficult to explain because the word has no consensual definition, much like concept words “liberty’’ and “justice” (Sustainability, Wikipedia). It is best to first consider the many meanings of the word sustain to help simplify things. A few examples of sustain meanings are; to support, to bear, to keep up or keep going (Sustain definition, Dictionary.com). With that in mind and when used in context with environmental and economic for example we get an idea of what sustainability means. Environmental sustainability and economic sustainability for example both depend on the ecological carrying capacity, because sustainability was originally “associated with maintenance of environmental quality” (as cited in Bell, S.,

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