ESS Topic 1 - Foundation

Perspective

How a particular situation is viewed and understood by an individual. It is based on a mix of personal and collective assumptions, values and beliefs.

How are perspectives shaped?

Sociocultural norms, scientific understandings, laws, religion, economic conditions, local and global events, and lived experience.

Values

Qualities or principles that people feel have worth and importance in life.

Values surveys

Surveys that can be used to investigate the perspectives shown by a particular social group towards environmental issues.

Worldviews

Broader lenses shared by groups of people through which they perceive, make sense of and act within their environment. They shape people’s values and perspectives through culture, philosophy, ideology, religion and politics

Environmental value system

A model that shows the inputs affecting our perspectives on environmental issues and the resulting outputs. They can be classified into 3 broad categories.

Ecocentrism

Sees the natural world as having pre-eminent importance and intrinsic value.

Anthropocentrism

Views humankind as being the central, most important element of existence.

Technocentrism

Believes all environmental issues can be resolved through technology.

Perspectives can change over time through…

Government or non-governmental organization, campaigns, or social and demographic change.

Environmental movement - individual

Wangari Maathai was a Kenyan politician and environmental activist. In 1977 she founded The Green Belt Movement, a grassroots organisation that planted around 30 million trees in order to slow the process of deforestation. It also inspired many similar initiatives in Africa and around the world, such as in Tanzania, Ethiopia, and Zimbabwe. She empowered women by encouraging them to care for their local environments and each other, allowing them to be self-sufficient. In 2004 she became the first black African woman to win the Nobel Peace Prize. Overall, she developed a holistic approach to sustainability and demonstrated the importance of collective/community action in the fight for environmental justice.

Environmental movement - literature

This Changes Everything: Capitalism vs. The Climate by Naomi Klein was published in 2014 and argues that climate change is not the fault of individuals or nations, but the system of capitalism as a whole. It provided a new way to look at the climate crisis and inspired activists to focus on other, often overlooked, aspects of the movement.

Environmental movement - media

Before The Flood was a movie/documentary released in 2016. In it, actor Leonardo DiCaprio traveled around the world to gain a first-hand insight into the effects of climate change. It highlighted the urgency of the climate crisis and called for both individual and collective action.

Environmental movement - disaster

Chernobyl was a disaster at a nuclear power station in Ukraine in 1986. During a testing of the reactor, operators made several mistakes, leading to a chain reaction of explosions that destroyed the reactor and released significant amounts of radiation into the atmosphere. The estimated amount of deaths (from the initial explosion + radiation) is around 30 people. However, estimates of eventual radiation deaths (such as from cancer) are as high as 4,000. The area around the plant remains uninhabitable. This event showed how dangerous and unstable nuclear power is, and forced governments to implement regulations on the testing/development of nuclear weapons.

Environmental movement - international agreement

The Paris Agreement is an international treaty on climate change signed by 195 parties in 2016. The agreement aims to limit global warming to “well below” 2°C above pre-industrial levels by reducing greenhouse gas emissions and prioritising international cooperation.

Environmental movement - new technology

Electric vehicles were developed as early as the 1890s, but have had a surge in popularity in the 20th and 21st centuries. They are an alternative to gasoline-powered vehicles as they run on electricity, thus producing significantly less greenhouse gas emissions. Many consumers make the shift to EVs to reduce their carbon footprint.

Environmental movement - scientific discoveries

Natural, or “white” hydrogen is a natural form of molecular hydrogen found deep under the Earth’s surface. Recent discoveries of natural hydrogen reserves (in France, United States, Canada + Mali) have the potential to be inexhaustible sources of clean energy.

Systems

Sets of interacting or interdependent components organized to create a functional whole.

A systems approach is…

A holistic way of visualizing a complex set of interactions, and it can be applied to ecological or societal situations.

Storages

Where energy/matter can be stored.

Flows

Processes + pathways within a system along which energy and matter flow.

Inputs

Import of matter or energy across a boundary.

Outputs

Export of matter or energy across a boundary

Boundaries

Defines the limits of a system.

Transfer

Movement of matter/energy.

Transformation

Changes in matter, energy or state.

Open system

Exchange of matter and energy.

Closed system

Exchange of energy only.

The Earth system

The Earth is a single (closed) integrated system encompassing the biosphere, the hydrosphere, the cryosphere, the geosphere, the atmosphere and the anthroposphere.

Negative feedback loops

Occur when the output of a process inhibits or reverses the operation of the same process in such a way as to reduce change. They are stabilizing as they counteract deviation.

Stable equilibrium

Open systems can exist in a stable equilibrium, which is a system with a tendency to return to the previous equilibrium after a disturbance.

Steady-state equilibrium

Open systems can also exist in a steady state equilibrium, which is a system in which flows still occur but inputs are balanced with outputs, and create an average equilibrium over time.

Positive feedback loops

Occur when a disturbance leads to an amplification of that disturbance, destabilizing the system and driving it away from its equilibrium. Positive feedback loops drive systems towards tipping points.

Tipping points

The minimum amount of change that will cause destabilization within a system. The system then shifts to a new equilibrium or stable state (regime shift).

Tipping points example

Many scientists predict that rising temperatures and increased deforestation in the Amazon rainforest may soon cause a regime shift from the dense, wet rainforest atmoshpere to a dry savannah biome.

Model

A simplified representation of reality; it can be used to understand how a system works and to predict how it will respond to change. It can be graphs, diagrams, equations, simulations, etc. 

Simplification of a model…

Involves approximation and, therefore, loss of accuracy.

Emergent properties

Interactions between components in systems can generate emergent properties; the components themselves do not have these properties (more than the sum of its parts).

Resilience

A system’s tendency to avoid tipping points and maintain stability; the capacity to resist damage and recover from, or adapt efficiently to, disturbance.

Diversity

Increased diversity in a system increases resilience.

Storage size

Increased storage size in a system increases resilience (e.g. relative stability of a puddle compared to a lake).

Human impact on resilience

Humans can affect the resilience of systems through reducing these storages and diversity.

Sustainability

The extent to which practices allow for the long-term viability of a system; the responsible maintenance of socio-ecological systems such that there is no diminishment of conditions for future generations.

Increased resilience…

generally leads to increased sustainability.

Three pillars of sustainability

Sustainability is comprised of environmental, social and economic pillars.

Environmental sustainability

The use and management of natural resources that allows replacement of the resources, and recovery and regeneration of ecosystems. It focuses on decreasing resource depletion and pollution, while increasing biodiversity.

Social sustainability

Focuses on creating the structures and systems, such as health, education, equity and community, that support human well-being

Economic sustainability

Focuses on creating the economic structures and systems to support production and consumption of goods and services that will support human needs into the future.

Sustainable development

Development meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs (social equity, economic stability and ecological integrity).

Ecosystem collapse

Occurs when there is an unsustainable use of natural resources.

Ecosystem collapse example

In 1992, overfishing caused the Newfoundland cod fishery in the North Atlantic Ocean to collapse. The fishery had been in in use for many years, but intensified fishing, technological advancements, and a lack of sustainable practices led to the near extinction of the cod population. There was a regime shift in the ecosystem (dominated by cod → dominated by invertebrates), which led to the halt of commercial fishing in that area.

GDP

The Gross Domestic Product is the total value of goods and services produced and sold by a country; but it often neglects natural systems and may lead to unsustainable development (Green GDP measures environmental costs and subtracts these from GDP).

Sustainability indicators

Quantitative measures of biodiversity, pollution, human population, climate change, material and carbon footprints, and others. These indicators can be applied on a range of scales, from local to global.

Ecological footprint

The area of land and water required to sustainably provide all resources and absorb all the waste for a specific population. If these footprints are greater than the area or resources available to the population, this indicates unsustainability.

Carbon + water footprint

Carbon footprint measures the amount of greenhouse gases produced, measured in carbon dioxide equivalents (in tonnes). The water footprint measures water use (in cubic metres per year).

Biocapacity

The capacity of a given biologically productive area to generate an ongoing supply of renewable resources and to absorb its resulting wastes. Unsustainability occurs if the area’s ecological footprint exceeds its biocapacity.

Citizen science

When citizens help scientists to collect data; it plays a role in monitoring Earth systems and whether resources are being used sustainably

Environmental justice

The right of all people to live in a pollution-free environment, and to have equitable access to natural resources, regardless of issues such as race, gender, socioeconomic status, nationality, etc.

Inequalities…

In income, race, gender and cultural identity within and between different societies lead to disparities in access to water, food and energy.

Sustainability + environmental justice can be applied from individual to global systems

This ranges from individual, business, community, city, country and global levels.

Environmental injustice - local example

Since it was established in 1948, Israel has systematically dispossessed Palestinians of their land and forced them into smaller and smaller areas. In these areas (such as Gaza) they have complete control of the resources that go in and out of the territory, and often deprive Palestinians of the resources they need to survive. For example, in March 2025, Israel imposed a total blockade on the Gaza Strip, preventing all resources, even essential ones like food, water and medicine, from reaching the strip. Depriving Palestinians of their land and access to resources is an example of environmental discrimination/inequality based on ethnicity/religion.

Environmental injustice - global example

Water pollution is a widespread problem that impacts all areas of the world (though some more than others). If one area of a river/lake/sea or ocean is contaminated, it can quickly spread to others, making this a global issue. Even in developed countries, studies find that around 80% of people have microplastics in their blood/bodies from water contamination. And in developing countries, the effects are much worse. In a UN study it was found that 40% of bodies of water are severely polluted, and around 1 in 4 people do not have access to safe drinking water (WHO) - most of these cases occur in developing countries.

Different models that measure sustainability

There are a range of frameworks and models that support our understanding of sustainability, each with uses and limitations. The four most common are: SDGs, the Planetary Boundaries model, the Doughnut Economics model, and the circular economy model.

UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)

A set of social and environmental goals and targets to guide action on sustainability and environmental justice.

Uses: Setting of a common ground for policymaking; relating to both developed and developing countries; galvanizing the international community into addressing economic and social inequality.

Limitations: Goals not going far enough; goals being top down and bureaucratic; tending to ignore local contexts; lacking in supportive data.

SDG Example

An example of a sustainable development goal is SDG 7: Affordable and Clean Energy. Many countries (e.g. Norway and Iceland) around the world are making the shift to renewable energy instead of relying on fossil fuels.

Planetary Boundaries model

Quantifies the limits of Earth’s 9 major regulating systems to determine the “safe operating zone” of human activity. Predicts that crossing those limits increases the risk of abrupt and irreversible changes to Earth systems.

Uses: Identifies science-based limits to human disturbance of Earth systems; highlights the need to focus on more than climate change; stresses the urgent need for action to protect Earth systems.

Limitations: Focuses only on ecological systems and does not consider human needs; the model is a work in progress; the focus on global boundaries may not be useful in local contexts.

Doughnut Economics model

Combines the social foundation (SDGs) with the ecological ceiling (Planetary Boundaries). Together, they represent the minimum conditions for an economy that is ecologically safe and socially just—thus, the doughnut is the “safe and just space for humanity”. Mostly, humanity falls short of the social foundation, while overshooting most of the planetary boundaries. The goal is to move into the doughnut and create a regenerative and distributive economy.

Uses: Includes both ecological and social elements, supports the concept of environmental justice; is being used at different scales to support action on sustainability.

Limitations: The model is a work in progress; it advocates broad principles of regenerative and distributive practice but does not propose specific policies; has a potential Western bias.

Circular Economy model

A circular economy is an economic model that aims to eliminate all waste and pollution, circulate products and materials, and regenerate nature. There are two branches of a circular economy: the biological cycle and the technical cycle.

Uses: Regeneration of natural systems; reduction of greenhouse emissions; improvement of local food networks; reduction of waste by extending product life cycle; changed consumer habits.

Limitations: Lack of environmental awareness by consumers and companies; lack of regulations enforcing recycling of products; some waste is not recyclable; lack of finance.

Circular economy example

The REFOOD program in Portugal is an example of a circular economy because it attempts to recycle and extend the lifespan of food products. It collects food waste from partnered companies and turns it into animal feed/fertiliser (or even meals if the food is safe) in order to be reused.