Sustainable development

a. Definition

Yvette Veyret, Geographer, conference proceedings - Environmental Education for Sustainable Development 17-19 December 2003 :

« Indeed, the concept of sustainable development inspires in me a relative scepticism.

First of all, I recall that sustainable development is a concept promoted by the environmental movement in the 1970s, before the Brundtland report, due to the negative impact of our management on the state of the planet and societies. The approach is built on findings that are systematically catastrophic and often globalizing.

Secondly, an ethical dimension is at the centre of the concept of sustainable development. This is to correct imbalances and establish justice for all. The approach is based on three pillars: Ecology, economy and the social aspect.

Thirdly, it cannot be said that sustainable development is a field of research in science, because it does not include scientific indicators. It is being constantly developed and is more political than scientific. By the late 1980s, shortly after the popularization of the term, there were already forty definitions which corresponded to different types of positions, depending on the greater or lesser importance given to liberalism.

Fourthly, sustainable development can lead to very different approaches in rich countries and poor regions. In the former, scholars and researchers raise the question of maintaining the current economic development. Regulations are more numerous at all levels. The idea of a better quality of life (in the broadest sense, a better state of the world around us) is easily accepted by the people and increasingly incorporated in education.

The choice of an economic model raises questions in developing countries. Should we reorder our development model? Can you imagine that 1. 3 billion Chinese citizens have cars ? Should we envisage that the needs of these populations should be met, without putting in place a development similar to ours ? Is it conceivable to have a world government that would watch over the planet and its biodiversity? This raises the question of the integration of citizens and governance.

Sustainable development as advocated in rich countries poses a problem in developing countries: The need to preserve biodiversity led to the establishment of a large number of stocktaking activities for more patents than the protection of the inhabitants. One can therefore wonder, in a provocative voluntary manner, if a form of "neo colonialism" is not behind this terminology. Sustainable development therefore raises the question of interference. This is advocated for by some stakeholders and writers from countries in the North to countries in the South for the management of biodiversity.

I am really not sceptical because I agree on a number of points contained in the concept. My recent research, however, compels me to be extra cautious. »

	Sustainable development a. Definition *Yvette Veyret, Geographer, conference proceedings* - Environmental Education for Sustainable Development 17-19 December 2003 : « Indeed, the concept of sustainable development inspires in me a relative scepticism. First of all, I recall that sustainable development is a concept promoted by the environmental movement in the 1970s, before the Brundtland report, due to the negative impact of our management on the state of the planet and societies. The approach is built on findings that are systematically catastrophic and often globalizing. Secondly, an ethical dimension is at the centre of the concept of sustainable development. This is to correct imbalances and establish justice for all. The approach is based on three pillars: Ecology, economy and the social aspect. Thirdly, it cannot be said that sustainable development is a field of research in science, because it does not include scientific indicators. It is being constantly developed and is more political than scientific. By the late 1980s, shortly after the popularization of the term, there were already forty definitions which corresponded to different types of positions, depending on the greater or lesser importance given to liberalism. Fourthly, sustainable development can lead to very different approaches in rich countries and poor regions. In the former, scholars and researchers raise the question of maintaining the current economic development. Regulations are more numerous at all levels. The idea of a better quality of life (in the broadest sense, a better state of the world around us) is easily accepted by the people and increasingly incorporated in education. The choice of an economic model raises questions in developing countries. Should we reorder our development model? Can you imagine that 1. 3 billion Chinese citizens have cars ? Should we envisage that the needs of these populations should be met, without putting in place a development similar to ours ? Is it conceivable to have a world government that would watch over the planet and its biodiversity? This raises the question of the integration of citizens and governance. Sustainable development as advocated in rich countries poses a problem in developing countries: The need to preserve biodiversity led to the establishment of a large number of stocktaking activities for more patents than the protection of the inhabitants. One can therefore wonder, in a provocative voluntary manner, if a form of "neo colonialism" is not behind this terminology. Sustainable development therefore raises the question of interference. This is advocated for by some stakeholders and writers from countries in the North to countries in the South for the management of biodiversity. I am really not sceptical because I agree on a number of points contained in the concept. My recent research, however, compels me to be extra cautious. »
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