Sustainable development Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Sustainable development - Essay Example he concept of sustainable development is created to represent the goal of making sure that future generations will have an intact environment that will ensure their subsistence. However, even though the real meaning of the concept of sustainable development is unambiguous and certain, the literal definition and explanation of sustainable development have roused intense debates. Problems associated with the definition of sustainable development reveal that the concept is complicated, which merges intergenerational justice, equality, and efficiency derived from environmental, social, and economic factors. This essay presents a critical evaluation of the concept of sustainable development. It is worth mentioning that various disciplines have different definitions of sustainable development. Ecologists define the concept as a process that protects biodiversity; sociologists view it as a process that strengthens and sustains communities; and economists define it as a process that ensures that the quality of subsistence of future generations is better than or the same as that of the current generation (Ciegis, Ramanauskiene, & Martinkus, 2009). The concept of sustainability was introduced by the International Union for Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources (IUCN) in 1980. Several years later, the Brundtland Report released its official definition of sustainable development: â€Å"development that meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs† (Lee, McNeill, & Holland, 2000, p. 42). In exploring the most serious environmental issues today and the ideal solutions to these problems, the Brundtland Report created the foundation within which the clashing principles of economic development and environmental protection could be reconciled. Much of the global community, by the end of 1992, had espoused the UNFCCC to â€Å"stabiliz[e]†¦ greenhouse gas concentrations in the atmosphere at a level that would