The term “sustainable development” is very widely used. Nonetheless, there remains considerable confusion about what is meant by sustainable development (henceforth, SD). In this paper, I locate concepts of SD within the broader project of redefining the concept of “development” undertaken by some since many development economists became disenchanted with the focus on “economic growth” in development debates. I argue that the term SD is used both at the level of the new paradigm of development that has emerged from this project, as well as at the level of certain components of that paradigm. On a more narrow conception, SD...
The term “SD” is used in such a wide variety of senses that doubts are being expressed about whether it has any sense at all. In his survey of the various uses of the term, Lélé suggests that unless discussion of SD is made more precise, “there is a very real danger of the term becoming a meaningless cliché”.³ In a similar vein, Robert Solow expresses the fear that “most of this talk of sustainable development is so vague as to be meaningless, or just warm and fuzzy, or perhaps a cover to validate pet projects”.⁴ One of the reasons...
Implicit in notions of human, and sustainable, development is the idea that it is possible to increase well-being, (inter- or intra-generationally) equitably, while protecting people’s rights etc. Certainly, this is a key feature of the paradigm of development espoused by the UNDP under the heading of “sustainable human development”, which is a variation of (1) above. However, it is not at all clear that the different aspects of this paradigm are mutually reinforcing. There is certainly the possibility of conflict between the various values involved.
Consider first the central premise in the notion of human development: for there to be...
There is an important level at which concepts and measures of SD are related. The concept of SD used helps fix on an appropriate measure.36 This is an important point because, as is clear from the above discussion, there are many concepts of SD. Consequently, there are several different sorts of indicators of SD which are in common use and there is considerable confusion about what an indicator of SD is, which reflects a deeper confusion about the various levels at which “SD” is used. The above discussion does at least help one to gain some clarity about notions of...
At the heart of much of the recent debate about SD are issues about the relationship between environmental degradation, poverty and well-being. For example, it is often argued that environmental degradation causes poverty, and that poverty can in turn cause degradation. Dasgupta has made this case on numerous occasions in his recent writings (some of them co-authored) 44as have others.45 On the other hand, it is sometimes argued that at the initial stages of development, as standards of living rise, degradation increases and then falls away after some “turning point”. This idea has typically been expressed in terms of the...
Little work has been done on comparing international rankings of well-being, poverty and environmental degradation. However, Meghnad Desai (1995) has recently compared rankings according to the HDI with various “green” rankings.The HDI is supposed to be a simple measure of the choices open to people, and in that sense, it is a measure of the quality of life, which is inspired by Sen’s capability approach. It is a composite index which is a weighted average of three component indices, relating to knowledge, longevity and income. The income measure is adjusted so that increases in income over a certain level are...
The term SD can be used in many ways and at different levels. I have argued that some of the most common uses of the term are inconsistent with the core of the notion of development. The most plausible way of dealing with this problem makes the tension between increasing well-being over an indefinite time horizon and the conservation of the environment explicit. Elucidation of the levels at which SD can be understood also helps us to separate out different sorts of SD indicators, as well as with examining potential conflicts between different values relevant to SD. Examination of international...
