The Relationship Between Development and Sustainability
1. Sustainability & Development
- Traditional development focused too much on economic growth.
- This approach was unsustainable and caused negative environmental impacts (e.g. climate change).
- There’s now a stronger push to combine poverty reduction with long-term sustainability.
2. UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)
- Created to replace MDGs in 2015 under Agenda 2030.
- Include 17 goals with targets and indicators (2017 update).
- Promote a balanced approach to economic, social, and environmental sustainability.
- Recognize that development is more than just economic—also includes human rights and environmental protection.
- Widely adopted despite flaws
- SDGs face criticism for being idealistic, hard to enforce, and sometimes overlooking local contexts
Self review
- Why is it important to integrate environmental sustainability into development strategies rather than focusing solely on economic growth?
- What are the strengths and limitations of the SDGs in promoting global development?
