One comprehensive definition of sustainability is found in Paul Hawkin’s book, The Ecology of Commerce: “Sustainability is an economic state where the demands placed upon the environment by people and commerce can be met without reducing the capacity of the … Continue reading
The Primer’s purpose is to act as an initial step in raising knowledge of sustainability, and to function as a simple, readily accessible resource on sustainability for engineers and geoscientists. This document, Part I: Introduction of the Sustainability Primer, outlines … Continue reading
With more than 300 definitions of sustainability, it’s little wonder there is some ambiguity over what exactly the term means. The best-known definition comes from Our Common Future (the so-called “Brundtland Reportâ€) prepared under the auspices of the World Council … Continue reading
For engineers worldwide, interest in sustainability is being driven by a number of factors, including: 1)Mounting evidence that certain forms of technological and economic development are either physically or socially unsustainable, and that the usual feedbacks that modify development patterns … Continue reading
At various stages of history, human societies have engaged in a variety of activities that were literally unsustainable. Modern western societies have avoided collapse to date because technoeconomic developments have limited the duration of particular unsustainable activities; for example, in … Continue reading