SFM 101

Sustainability

The ability of human and natural systems to persist over time without depleting resources or causing irreversible environmental or social harm.

Sustainable Development

Development that meets present needs while preserving the ability of future generations to meet their own needs, as defined by the Brundtland Report.

Sustainability Science

An interdisciplinary field focused on solving sustainability problems by studying interactions between human and environmental systems.

Anthropocene

A proposed geological epoch marked by large-scale and lasting human impacts on Earth’s climate, ecosystems, and geological processes.

False Dichotomy

The incorrect belief that economic success and social or environmental responsibility cannot coexist, challenged by Michael Porter.

Shared Value

A business strategy where companies create economic value by addressing social and environmental problems tied to their core operations.

Three Pillars of Sustainability

Environmental integrity, social equity, and economic prosperity as the foundation of sustainable systems.

Tragedy of the Commons

A situation where shared resources are depleted because individuals act in their own self-interest rather than collective good.

Intertemporal Trade-off

A sustainability trade-off involving short-term benefits versus long-term consequences.

Interspatial Trade-off

A trade-off where environmental or social burdens are shifted from one geographic area to another.

Intersocial Trade-off

A trade-off where one social group benefits while another group is negatively affected.

Interscale Trade-off

A trade-off where decisions at one scale (local) impact other scales (regional, national, global).

Brundtland Report

A 1987 UN report (Our Common Future) that popularized sustainable development and linked economic growth with environmental protection.

Environmental Movement

A social and political movement advocating for environmental protection and reduced human impact on ecosystems.

Silent Spring

A 1962 book by Rachel Carson that exposed the environmental and health dangers of pesticides like DDT and sparked the modern environmental movement.

Rachel Carson

A biologist and author whose book Silent Spring raised awareness of pesticide pollution and influenced environmental regulation.

Montreal Protocol

A global agreement to phase out ozone-depleting substances, widely regarded as one of the most successful environmental treaties.

Paris Agreement

A legally binding international climate treaty aiming to limit global warming and reduce greenhouse gas emissions.

UNEP

The United Nations Environment Programme, established in 1972 to coordinate global environmental policy and action.

Sustainable Development Goals

Seventeen UN goals adopted in 2015 to address global challenges such as poverty, inequality, and climate change by 2030.

System

A set of interconnected components that interact and function together as a whole.

Systems Thinking

An approach that focuses on relationships, feedback loops, and interactions within complex systems rather than isolated parts.

Complex Systems

Systems characterized by non-linearity, feedback loops, and unpredictable outcomes.

Complexity Theory

The idea that systems are constantly adapting and cannot be fully understood through linear cause-and-effect thinking.

Clockware

Viewing systems as predictable, mechanical, and reducible into separate parts, contrasted with complexity theory.

Emergent Properties

Outcomes that arise from interactions within a system and cannot be predicted by examining individual components alone.

Resilience

The ability of a system to absorb shocks, adapt to change, and continue functioning.

Bathtub Theorem

A model illustrating that system stability requires inputs to match outputs over time.

Ball-in-a-Basin Model

A model showing system stability, resilience, thresholds, and tipping points.

Environmental Economics

A branch of economics that values environmental impacts using market tools and cost-benefit analysis.

Ecological Economics

An economic framework that treats the economy as a subsystem of the ecosystem and emphasizes ecological limits.

Herman Daly

Founder of ecological economics who advocated for a steady-state economy and limits to growth.

Natural Capital

The stock of natural resources such as air, water, soil, and biodiversity that provide ecosystem services.

Ecosystem Services

Benefits humans receive from ecosystems, including clean water, climate regulation, food, and pollination.

Externality

An unintended cost or benefit of an economic activity that affects a third party.

Negative Externality

An externality that imposes costs on others, such as pollution harming public health.

Positive Externality

An externality that provides benefits to others, such as bee pollination increasing crop yields.

Market Failure

A situation where markets fail to allocate resources efficiently, often due to externalities or public goods.

Weak Sustainability

The view that natural capital can be replaced by human-made capital like technology or infrastructure.

Strong Sustainability

The belief that natural capital is irreplaceable and must be preserved due to ecological limits.

Critical Natural Capital

Ecosystems or resources essential for human survival that cannot be substituted.

Decoupling

Separating economic growth from environmental degradation or resource use.

Precautionary Principle

Acting to prevent serious environmental harm even when scientific certainty is incomplete.

Ecological Footprint

A measure of human demand on natural resources and ecosystems.

Carbon Footprint

The total greenhouse gas emissions caused directly or indirectly by human activities.

Biocapacity

The ability of ecosystems to regenerate renewable resources and absorb waste.

Overshoot

When human demand exceeds Earth’s biocapacity, leading to resource depletion.

World Overshoot Day

The date each year when humanity uses more resources than Earth can regenerate that year.

Carrying Capacity

The maximum population an environment can sustain indefinitely.

Planetary Boundaries

Scientifically defined environmental limits within which humanity can safely operate.