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68-405: 1. Sustainable Development Leadership Award (SDLA) : Awarded every year since 2005 to an eminent global leader, the award felicitates their contributions in the field of sustainable development. 2. Ministerial and High-level sessions : Part of the plenary segment of WSDS, these sessions have panel discussions designed around select themes of environmental importance linked with the overall theme of

136-564: A marathon . Accordingly, the two contests have distinct events in such competitions as the Olympics , and each pursuit features distinct teams of athletes. Whether a professional runner is better suited to marathon running versus sprinting is a trade-off based on the runner's morphology and physiology (e.g., variation in muscle fiber type), as well as the runner's individual interest, preference, and other motivational factors. Sports recruiters are mindful of these tradeoffs as they decide what role

204-543: A sustainability transition or sustainability transformation . Some barriers arise from nature and its complexity while others are extrinsic to the concept of sustainability. For example, they can result from the dominant institutional frameworks in countries. Global issues of sustainability are difficult to tackle as they need global solutions. Existing global organizations such as the UN and WTO are seen as inefficient in enforcing current global regulations. One reason for this

272-403: A conservation and replanting of timber that there can be a continuous, ongoing and sustainable use". The shift in use of "sustainability" from preservation of forests (for future wood production) to broader preservation of environmental resources (to sustain the world for future generations) traces to a 1972 book by Ernst Basler, based on a series of lectures at M.I.T. The idea itself goes back

340-440: A few large items or multiple small items. Tradeoffs also commonly refer to different configurations of a single item, such as the tuning of strings on a guitar to enable different notes to be played, as well as an allocation of time and attention towards different tasks. The concept of a tradeoff suggests a tactical or strategic choice made with full comprehension of the advantages and disadvantages of each setup. An economic example

408-518: A high degree of social sustainability would lead to livable communities with a good quality of life (being fair, diverse, connected and democratic). Indigenous communities might have a focus on particular aspects of sustainability, for example spiritual aspects, community-based governance and an emphasis on place and locality. Some experts have proposed further dimensions. These could cover institutional, cultural, political, and technical dimensions. Trade-off A trade-off (or tradeoff )

476-409: A long time in the kitchen, leading to the food decomposing and a nasty odor. A small trash can will likely need to be taken out to the dumpster more often, thus greatly reducing or eliminating the odor. Of course, a user of a large trash can could simply carry the can outside frequently, but the larger can would be more cumbersome to take out often, and the user would have to think more about when to take

544-489: A new development path was required, one that sustained human progress not just in a few pieces for a few years, but for the entire planet into the distant future. Thus 'sustainable development' becomes a goal not just for the 'developing' nations, but for industrial ones as well. The Rio Declaration from 1992 is seen as "the foundational instrument in the move towards sustainability". It includes specific references to ecosystem integrity. The plan associated with carrying out

612-427: A prospective athlete would best suit on a team. In biology , several types of tradeoffs have been recognized. Most simply, a tradeoff occurs when a beneficial change in one trait is linked to a detrimental change in another trait. In environmental resource management , trade-offs occur among different targets. For example, these occur among biodiversity conservation, carbon sequestration and distributive equity in

680-401: A reasonable time scale, and so forth. A trade-off in economics is often illustrated graphically by a Pareto frontier (named after the economist Vilfredo Pareto ), which shows the greatest (or least) amount of one thing that can be attained for each of various given amounts of the other. As an example, in production theory, the trade-off between the output of one good and the output of another

748-426: A single specific definition of sustainability may never be possible. But the concept is still useful. There have been attempts to define it, for example: Some definitions focus on the environmental dimension. The Oxford Dictionary of English defines sustainability as: "the property of being environmentally sustainable; the degree to which a process or enterprise is able to be maintained or continued while avoiding

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816-402: A very long time: Communities have always worried about the capacity of their environment to sustain them in the long term. Many ancient cultures, traditional societies , and indigenous peoples have restricted the use of natural resources. The terms sustainability and sustainable development are closely related. In fact, they are often used to mean the same thing. Both terms are linked with

884-482: Is a situational decision that involves diminishing or losing on quality, quantity, or property of a set or design in return for gains in other aspects. In simple terms, a tradeoff is where one thing increases, and another must decrease. Tradeoffs stem from limitations of many origins, including simple physics – for instance, only a certain volume of objects can fit into a given space, so a full container must remove some items in order to accept any more, and vessels can carry

952-484: Is a social goal for people to co-exist on Earth over a long period of time. Definitions of this term are disputed and have varied with literature, context, and time. Sustainability usually has three dimensions (or pillars): environmental, economic, and social. Many definitions emphasize the environmental dimension. This can include addressing key environmental problems , including climate change and biodiversity loss . The idea of sustainability can guide decisions at

1020-450: Is bad for the environment. Others focus more on the trade-offs between environmental conservation and achieving welfare goals for basic needs (food, water, health, and shelter). Economic development can indeed reduce hunger or energy poverty . This is especially the case in the least developed countries . That is why Sustainable Development Goal 8 calls for economic growth to drive social progress and well-being. Its first target

1088-520: Is for: "at least 7 per cent GDP growth per annum in the least developed countries". However, the challenge is to expand economic activities while reducing their environmental impact. In other words, humanity will have to find ways how societal progress (potentially by economic development) can be reached without excess strain on the environment. The Brundtland report says poverty causes environmental problems. Poverty also results from them. So addressing environmental problems requires understanding

1156-455: Is illustrated graphically by the production possibilities frontier . The Pareto frontier is also used in multi-objective optimization . In finance , the capital asset pricing model includes an efficient frontier that shows the highest level of expected return that any portfolio could have given any particular level of risk, as measured by the variance of portfolio return. An opportunity cost example of trade-offs for an individual would be

1224-412: Is known through scientific study to applications in pursuit of what people want for the future." The 1983 UN Commission on Environment and Development ( Brundtland Commission ) had a big influence on the use of the term sustainability today. The commission's 1987 Brundtland Report provided a definition of sustainable development . The report, Our Common Future , defines it as development that "meets

1292-510: Is localized prostate cancer , where patients need to weigh the possibility of a prolonged life expectancy against possible stressful or unpleasant treatment side-effects ( patient trade-off ). Governmental tradeoffs are among the most controversial political and social difficulties of any time. All of politics can be viewed as a series of tradeoffs based upon which core values are most core to most people or politicians. Political campaigns also involve tradeoffs, as when attack ads may energize

1360-411: Is not a new phenomenon. But it has been only a local or regional concern for most of human history. Awareness of global environmental issues increased in the 20th century. The harmful effects and global spread of pesticides like DDT came under scrutiny in the 1960s. In the 1970s it emerged that chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs) were depleting the ozone layer . This led to the de facto ban of CFCs with

1428-425: Is the decision to invest in stocks, which are risky but carry great potential return, versus bonds, which are generally safer but with lower potential returns. The theoretical description of trade-offs involves the pareto front . The concept of a trade-off is often used to describe situations in everyday life. In economics a trade-off is expressed in terms of the opportunity cost of a particular choice, which

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1496-418: Is the lack of suitable sanctioning mechanisms . Governments are not the only sources of action for sustainability. For example, business groups have tried to integrate ecological concerns with economic activity, seeking sustainable business . Religious leaders have stressed the need for caring for nature and environmental stability. Individuals can also live more sustainably . Some people have criticized

1564-415: Is the loss of the most preferred alternative given up. A tradeoff, then, involves a sacrifice that must be made to obtain a certain product, service, or experience, rather than others that could be made or obtained using the same required resources. For example, for a person going to a basketball game, their opportunity cost is the loss of the alternative of watching a particular television program at home. If

1632-499: Is used in amplifiers to trade gain for other desirable properties, such as improved bandwidth , stability of the gain and/or bias point, noise immunity, and reduction of nonlinear distortion . Similarly, tradeoffs are used to maximize power efficiency in medical devices whilst guaranteeing the required measurement quality. In computer science , tradeoffs are viewed as a tool of the trade. A program can often run faster if it uses more memory (a space–time tradeoff ). Consider

1700-699: The Montreal Protocol in 1987. In the early 20th century, Arrhenius discussed the effect of greenhouse gases on the climate (see also: history of climate change science ). Climate change due to human activity became an academic and political topic several decades later. This led to the establishment of the IPCC in 1988 and the UNFCCC in 1992. In 1972, the UN Conference on the Human Environment took place. It

1768-655: The Smart Car can only carry two people, and being lightweight, they are more fuel-efficient. At the same time, the smaller size and weight of small cars mean that they have smaller crumple zones, which means occupants are less protected in case of an accident. In addition, if a small car has an accident with a larger, heavier car, the occupants of the smaller car will fare more poorly. Thus, car size (large versus small) involves multiple tradeoffs regarding passenger capacity, accident safety, and fuel economy. In athletics, sprint running demands different physical attributes from running

1836-663: The Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). Since 2001, TERI has annually organized the WSDS, earlier known as the Delhi Sustainable Development Summit, an international platform to facilitate the exchange of knowledge on all aspects of sustainable development. The event brought together various heads of state and government, thought leaders, policy-makers and members of industry and academia to deliberate on myriad issues. The Summit series has emerged as

1904-531: The natural resources and ecosystem services needed for economies and society. The concept of sustainable development has come to focus on economic development , social development and environmental protection for future generations. Scholars usually distinguish three different areas of sustainability. These are the environmental, the social, and the economic. Several terms are in use for this concept. Authors may speak of three pillars, dimensions, components, aspects, perspectives, factors, or goals. All mean

1972-512: The "integrity of the earth's life-support systems" was essential for sustainability. The authors said that "the SDGs fail to recognize that planetary, people and prosperity concerns are all part of one earth system, and that the protection of planetary integrity should not be a means to an end, but an end in itself". The aspect of environmental protection is not an explicit priority for the SDGs. This causes problems as it could encourage countries to give

2040-441: The "three dimensions of sustainability" concept. One distinction is that sustainability is a general concept, while sustainable development can be a policy or organizing principle. Scholars say sustainability is a broader concept because sustainable development focuses mainly on human well-being. Sustainable development has two linked goals. It aims to meet human development goals. It also aims to enable natural systems to provide

2108-400: The 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) with their 169 targets as balancing "the three dimensions of sustainable development, the economic, social and environmental". Scholars have discussed how to rank the three dimensions of sustainability. Many publications state that the environmental dimension is the most important. ( Planetary integrity or ecological integrity are other terms for

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2176-458: The 1960s and 1970s. This led to discussions on sustainability and sustainable development. This process began in the 1970s with concern for environmental issues. These included natural ecosystems or natural resources and the human environment. It later extended to all systems that support life on Earth, including human society. Reducing these negative impacts on the environment would improve environmental sustainability. Environmental pollution

2244-569: The Brundtland Report, the environment and development are inseparable and go together in the search for sustainability. It described sustainable development as a global concept linking environmental and social issues. It added sustainable development is important for both developing countries and industrialized countries : The 'environment' is where we all live; and 'development' is what we all do in attempting to improve our lot within that abode. The two are inseparable. [...] We came to see that

2312-499: The King. In Go , you might trade thickness for influence . Ethics often involves competing for interests that must be traded off against each other, such as the interests of different people, or different principles (e.g. is it ethical to use information resulting from inhumane or illegal experiments to treat disease today?) In medicine , patients and physicians are often faced with difficult decisions involving tradeoffs. One example

2380-492: The Rio Declaration also discusses sustainability in this way. The plan, Agenda 21 , talks about economic, social, and environmental dimensions: Countries could develop systems for monitoring and evaluation of progress towards achieving sustainable development by adopting indicators that measure changes across economic, social and environmental dimensions. Agenda 2030 from 2015 also viewed sustainability in this way. It sees

2448-439: The SDGs. It should also show how to address the trade-offs between ecological footprint and economic development. The social dimension of sustainability is not well defined. One definition states that a society is sustainable in social terms if people do not face structural obstacles in key areas. These key areas are health, influence, competence, impartiality and meaning-making . Some scholars place social issues at

2516-451: The Summit. Special addresses include Ministerial Addresses, Science Leadership Addresses, and Leadership Addresses. Speakers include policymakers, business leaders, and academics. 3. Thematic Tracks : The thematic tracks allow for discussions on finer nuances of the Summit's focus areas. These tracks engage domain experts and practitioners to provide feasible solutions to the challenges faced by

2584-758: The UN launched eight Millennium Development Goals . The aim was for the global community to achieve them by 2015. Goal 7 was to "ensure environmental sustainability". But this goal did not mention the concepts of social or economic sustainability. Specific problems often dominate public discussion of the environmental dimension of sustainability: In the 21st century these problems have included climate change , biodiversity and pollution. Other global problems are loss of ecosystem services , land degradation , environmental impacts of animal agriculture and air and water pollution , including marine plastic pollution and ocean acidification . Many people worry about human impacts on

2652-406: The basketball game occurs during her or his working hours, then the opportunity cost would be several hours of lost work, as they would need to take time off work. Many factors affect the tradeoff environment within a particular country, including the availability of raw materials, a skilled labor force, machinery for producing a product, technology and capital, market rate to produce that product on

2720-475: The can out. In cold climates, mittens in which all the fingers are in the same compartment work well to keep the hands warm, but this arrangement also confines finger movement and prevents the full range of hand function. Gloves, with their separate fingers, do not have this drawback, but they do not keep the fingers as warm as mittens do. As such, with mittens and gloves, the trade-off is warmth versus dexterity. Similarly, warm coats are often bulky and impede

2788-475: The concepts of tradeoffs and constraints are often closely related. In demography , tradeoff examples may include maturity, fecundity , parental care, parity , senescence , and mate choice . For example, the higher the fecundity (number of offspring), the lower the parental care that each offspring will receive. Parental care as a function of fecundity would show a negative sloped linear graph. A related phenomenon, known as demographic compensation, arises when

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2856-635: The decision by a full-time worker to take time off work with a salary of $ 50,000 to attend medical school with an annual tuition of $ 30,000 and earning $ 150,000 as a doctor after 7 years of study. If we assume for the sake of simplicity that the medical school only allows full-time study, then the individual considering stopping work would face a trade-off between not going to medical school and earning $ 50,000 at work, or going to medical school and losing $ 50,000 in salary and having to pay $ 30,000 in tuition but earning $ 150,000 or more per year after 7 years of study. Trash cans that are used inside and then taken out to

2924-666: The different components of species life cycles (survival, growth, fecundity, etc.) show negative correlations across the distribution ranges . For example, survival may be higher towards the northern edge of the distribution, while fecundity or growth increases towards the south, leading to a compensation that allows the species to persist along an environmental gradient. Contrasting trends in life cycle components may arise through tradeoffs in resource allocation , but also through independent but opposite responses to environmental conditions. Tradeoffs are important in engineering. For example, in electrical engineering , negative feedback

2992-408: The distribution of funds of the program for Reducing Emissions from Deforestation and forest Degradation (REDD+), as maximizing one of these targets implies reducing the outcomes in the other two targets. The term is also used widely in an evolutionary context, in which case the processes of natural selection and sexual selection are in reference as the ultimate decisive factors. In biology ,

3060-478: The economic dimension of sustainability are controversial. Scholars have discussed this under the concept of weak and strong sustainability . For example, there will always be tension between the ideas of "welfare and prosperity for all" and environmental conservation , so trade-offs are necessary. It would be desirable to find ways that separate economic growth from harming the environment . This means using fewer resources per unit of output even while growing

3128-453: The economy but there is no fixed definition of sustainability indicators . The metrics are evolving and include indicators , benchmarks and audits. They include sustainability standards and certification systems like Fairtrade and Organic . They also involve indices and accounting systems such as corporate sustainability reporting and Triple Bottom Line accounting . It is necessary to address many barriers to sustainability to achieve

3196-399: The economy. This decoupling reduces the environmental impact of economic growth, such as pollution . Doing this is difficult. Some experts say there is no evidence that such a decoupling is happening at the required scale. It is challenging to measure sustainability as the concept is complex, contextual, and dynamic. Indicators have been developed to cover the environment, society, or

3264-584: The environment . These include impacts on the atmosphere, land, and water resources . Human activities now have an impact on Earth's geology and ecosystems . This led Paul Crutzen to call the current geological epoch the Anthropocene . The economic dimension of sustainability is controversial. This is because the term development within sustainable development can be interpreted in different ways. Some may take it to mean only economic development and growth . This can promote an economic system that

3332-528: The environment includes society, and society includes economic conditions. Thus it stresses a hierarchy. Another model shows the three dimensions in a similar way: In this SDG wedding cake model , the economy is a smaller subset of the societal system. And the societal system in turn is a smaller subset of the biosphere system. In 2022 an assessment examined the political impacts of the Sustainable Development Goals. The assessment found that

3400-495: The environment less weight in their developmental plans. The authors state that "sustainability on a planetary scale is only achievable under an overarching Planetary Integrity Goal that recognizes the biophysical limits of the planet". Other frameworks bypass the compartmentalization of sustainability into separate dimensions completely. The environmental dimension is central to the overall concept of sustainability. People became more and more aware of environmental pollution in

3468-426: The environmental dimension.) Protecting ecological integrity is the core of sustainability according to many experts. If this is the case then its environmental dimension sets limits to economic and social development. The diagram with three nested ellipses is one way of showing the three dimensions of sustainability together with a hierarchy: It gives the environmental dimension a special status. In this diagram,

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3536-527: The factors behind world poverty and inequality. The report demands a new development path for sustained human progress. It highlights that this is a goal for both developing and industrialized nations. UNEP and UNDP launched the Poverty-Environment Initiative in 2005 which has three goals. These are reducing extreme poverty, greenhouse gas emissions, and net natural asset loss. This guide to structural reform will enable countries to achieve

3604-535: The following examples: The Software Engineering Institute has a specific method for analyzing tradeoffs, called the Architecture Tradeoff Analysis Method (ATAM) . Strategy board games often involve tradeoffs: for example, in chess you might trade a pawn for an improved position. In a worst-case scenario, a chess player might even tradeoff the loss of a valuable piece (even the Queen) to protect

3672-412: The global, national, organizational, and individual levels. A related concept is that of sustainable development , and the terms are often used to mean the same thing. UNESCO distinguishes the two like this: " Sustainability is often thought of as a long-term goal (i.e. a more sustainable world), while sustainable development refers to the many processes and pathways to achieve it." Details around

3740-492: The idea of sustainability. One point of criticism is that the concept is vague and only a buzzword . Another is that sustainability might be an impossible goal. Some experts have pointed out that "no country is delivering what its citizens need without transgressing the biophysical planetary boundaries". Sustainability is regarded as a " normative concept ". This means it is based on what people value or find desirable: "The quest for sustainability involves connecting what

3808-561: The intersection of economics, the environment, and the social. There are many broad strategies for more sustainable social systems. They include improved education and the political empowerment of women . This is especially the case in developing countries. They include greater regard for social justice . This involves equity between rich and poor both within and between countries. And it includes intergenerational equity . Providing more social safety nets to vulnerable populations would contribute to social sustainability. A society with

3876-457: The local and global communities in maintaining the balance between securing environmental sustainability and development. 4. Act4Earth : The Act4Earth initiative was launched in the valedictory session of WSDS 2022. 5. Stakeholder Dialogues : As part of the Act4Earth initiative, a series of Stakeholder Dialogues will be organised in the months of April and October 2024. The sessions will be on

3944-477: The long term. The concept of sustainability, or Nachhaltigkeit in German, goes back to Hans Carl von Carlowitz (1645–1714), and applied to forestry . The term for this now would be sustainable forest management . He used this term to mean the long-term responsible use of a natural resource. In his 1713 work Silvicultura oeconomica, he wrote that "the highest art/science/industriousness [...] will consist in such

4012-474: The long-term depletion of natural resources". The term sustainability is derived from the Latin word sustinere . "To sustain" can mean to maintain, support, uphold, or endure. So sustainability is the ability to continue over a long period of time. In the past, sustainability referred to environmental sustainability. It meant using natural resources so that people in the future could continue to rely on them in

4080-442: The needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs". The report helped bring sustainability into the mainstream of policy discussions. It also popularized the concept of sustainable development . Some other key concepts to illustrate the meaning of sustainability include: In everyday usage, sustainability often focuses on the environmental dimension. Scholars say that

4148-542: The premier international event on sustainability that focuses on the global future, but with an eye on the actions in the developing world which could bend our common future. In 2005, The Energy and Resources Institute established the Sustainable Development Leadership Award to felicitate the efforts of global leaders in the field of sustainable development. The award winners are as follows: Environmental sustainability Sustainability

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4216-411: The same thing in this context. The three dimensions paradigm has few theoretical foundations. The popular three intersecting circles, or Venn diagram , representing sustainability first appeared in a 1987 article by the economist Edward Barbier . Scholars rarely question the distinction itself. The idea of sustainability with three dimensions is a dominant interpretation in the literature. In

4284-437: The street and emptied into a dumpster can be small or large. A large trash can does not need to be taken out to the dumpster so often, but it may become very heavy and difficult to move when full. The choice of big versus small trash can is a trade-off between the frequency of needing to take out the trash and ease of use. In the case of food waste , a second trade-off presents itself. Large trash cans are more likely to sit for

4352-446: The topics of- SDG-Climate Synergies; Green Public Procurement and Climate Finance. 6. CEO Forum : A platform for industry captains to brainstorm ideas for conducting businesses in a sustainable manner. 7. Youth Connect : A platform to sensitize young students at the school and graduate level about issues of sustainable development and climate change by securing their participation in the Summit's discussions. The Act4Earth Initiative

4420-425: The very center of discussions. They suggest that all the domains of sustainability are social. These include ecological , economic, political, and cultural sustainability. These domains all depend on the relationship between the social and the natural. The ecological domain is defined as human embeddedness in the environment. From this perspective, social sustainability encompasses all human activities. It goes beyond

4488-723: The wearer's freedom of movement. Thin coats give the wearer more freedom of movement, but they are not as warm as a thicker coat would be. When copying music from compact discs to a computer, lossy compression formats, such as MP3 , are used routinely to save hard disk space, but some information is lost resulting in lower sound quality . Lossless compression schemes, such as FLAC or ALAC take much more disk space, but do not affect sound quality. Large cars can carry many people, and since they have larger crumple zones, they may be safer in an accident. However, they also tend to be heavy (and often not very aerodynamic ) and thus usually have relatively poor fuel economy . Small cars like

4556-513: Was launched at WSDS 2022’s valedictory session. As part of the initiative, TERI will engage in research activities that intend to identify and analyze practices with the potential for maximum impact across various sectors and systems while being fairly implementable by government and relevant state actors. By reaching out to policymakers, experts, and key stakeholders, the initiative will solicit their input and feedback to come up with policy recommendations aimed at furthering climate action and achieving

4624-446: Was the first UN conference on environmental issues. It stated it was important to protect and improve the human environment. It emphasized the need to protect wildlife and natural habitats: The natural resources of the earth, including the air, water, land, flora and fauna and [...] natural ecosystems must be safeguarded for the benefit of present and future generations through careful planning or management, as appropriate. In 2000,

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