Understanding sustainability and sustainable development Sustainability:2 the capacity for continuance into the long term Sustainable development: development that meets the need of the present without compromising the needs of future generations to meet their own needs UK Government’s sustainable development strategy identifies four objectives to be met at the same time:3 1 social progress which recognises the needs of everyone; 2 effective protection of the environment; 3 prudent use of natural resources; 4 maintenance of high and stable levels of economic growth and employment.

Towards a sustainable world

Creating a sustainable future, economically, socially and environmentally requires governments, society, organisations and individuals to rethink how we use our resources, how we interact, and what we want to achieve.

There is increasing recognition that we are all part of a complex and interdependent system. Some of our behaviours are causing irreparable damage that threatens the continued survival of our species and planet. Sustainable development¹ offers the opportunity of a new course, towards a better future.

The organisational contribution to a sustainable world

Organisations are part of our increasingly complex and global system, drawing on and impacting on that system. Sustainable development poses a challenge to the traditional mindset of organisations. Increasingly their performance is judged not just by the services, products and profits they make but also by the impacts they have on human and social well-being and on the natural environment on which we all depend for life. Expectations are changing, bringing both risks and opportunities.

	footnotes 1 Corporate Social Responsibility, corporate citizenship and triple bottom line are some of the terms variously used by companies to describe their non-financial performance. We prefer to use the term ‘sustainable development’ as explained above, to encompass an organisation’s economic, social and environmental performance. 2 ‘Our Common Future’ Tomlinson C. Report of the World Commission on Environment and Development chaired by Norwegian Prime-Minister Gro Harlem Brundtland 1987. Oxford Paperbacks. Widely known as ‘The Brundtland Report’. 3 A better quality of life: a strategy for sustainable development for the UK May 1999 (Cm 4345, The Stationery Office, London, ISBN 0-10-143452-9).

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