Outline of sustainability

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Sustainable development.svgEnvironmentEquitableSustainableBearable (Social ecology)Viable (Environmental economics)EconomicSocial
Venn diagram of sustainable development:
at the confluence of three constituent parts

The following outline is provided as an overview of and topical guide to sustainability:

Contents

Sustainability capacity to endure. For humans, sustainability is the long-term maintenance of well being, which has environmental, economic, and social dimensions, and encompasses the concept of stewardship and responsible resource management.

Essence of sustainability

Taxonomy

Sustainability is divided into two main branches: sustainability science and sustainability governance. Each of these branches is divided into a number of subfields:

Sub-fields of sustainability science

Sub-fields of sustainability governance

Sustainable packaging - molded pulp uses recycled newsprint to form package components. Here, researchers are molding packaging from straw. Molding packaging from straw, k9837-1.jpg
Sustainable packagingmolded pulp uses recycled newsprint to form package components. Here, researchers are molding packaging from straw.

Biodiversity

Coral reefs are amongst the most diverse ecosystems on earth. Blue Linckia Starfish.JPG
Coral reefs are amongst the most diverse ecosystems on earth.

see also: Biodiversity

Levels of biological organisation

Politics of sustainability

Population control

Population control

Environmental technology

Sustainable urban design and innovation: Photovoltaic ombriere SUDI is an autonomous and mobile station that replenishes energy for electric vehicles using solar energy. Ombriere SUDI - Sustainable Urban Design & Innovation.jpg
Sustainable urban design and innovation: Photovoltaic ombrière SUDI is an autonomous and mobile station that replenishes energy for electric vehicles using solar energy.

Energy conservation

Over consumption

Food

Urban horticulture - Salad lettuce cultivation at the Growing Communities' urban plot, in Springfield Park, Clapton, North London. Urban salad growing-London.jpg
Urban horticulture – Salad lettuce cultivation at the Growing Communities‘ urban plot, in Springfield Park, Clapton, North London.

Water

Materials

Recycling and rubbish bin in a German railway station DeutscheBahnRecycling20050814 CopyrightKaihsuTai Rotated.jpg
Recycling and rubbish bin in a German railway station

Sustainability organizations

Sustainability publications

Sustainability (journal)

Sustainability advocates

See also

Sustainability lists
Sustainability glossaries

Related Research Articles

The carrying capacity of an environment is the maximum population size of a biological species that can be sustained by that specific environment, given the food, habitat, water, and other resources available. The carrying capacity is defined as the environment's maximal load, which in population ecology corresponds to the population equilibrium, when the number of deaths in a population equals the number of births. Carrying capacity of the environment implies that the resources extraction is not above the rate of regeneration of the resources and the wastes generated are within the assimilating capacity of the environment. The effect of carrying capacity on population dynamics is modelled with a logistic function. Carrying capacity is applied to the maximum population an environment can support in ecology, agriculture and fisheries. The term carrying capacity has been applied to a few different processes in the past before finally being applied to population limits in the 1950s. The notion of carrying capacity for humans is covered by the notion of sustainable population.

This is an index of conservation topics. It is an alphabetical index of articles relating to conservation biology and conservation of the natural environment.

The following outline is provided as an overview of and topical guide to sustainable agriculture:

A green economy is an economy that aims at reducing environmental risks and ecological scarcities, and that aims for sustainable development without degrading the environment. It is closely related with ecological economics, but has a more politically applied focus. The 2011 UNEP Green Economy Report argues "that to be green, an economy must not only be efficient, but also fair. Fairness implies recognizing global and country level equity dimensions, particularly in assuring a Just Transition to an economy that is low-carbon, resource efficient, and socially inclusive."

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Environmental resource management</span> Type of resource management

Environmental resource management or environmental management is the management of the interaction and impact of human societies on the environment. It is not, as the phrase might suggest, the management of the environment itself. Environmental resources management aims to ensure that ecosystem services are protected and maintained for future human generations, and also maintain ecosystem integrity through considering ethical, economic, and scientific (ecological) variables. Environmental resource management tries to identify factors between meeting needs and protecting resources. It is thus linked to environmental protection, resource management, sustainability, integrated landscape management, natural resource management, fisheries management, forest management, wildlife management, environmental management systems, and others.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sustainable habitat</span>

A Sustainable habitat is an ecosystem that produces food and shelter for people and other organisms, without resource depletion and in such a way that no external waste is produced. Thus the habitat can continue into the future tie without external infusions of resources. Such a sustainable habitat may evolve naturally or be produced under the influence of man. A sustainable habitat that is created and designed by human intelligence will mimic nature, if it is to be successful. Everything within it is connected to a complex array of organisms, physical resources, and functions. Organisms from many different biomes can be brought together to fulfill various ecological niches.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sustainable city</span> City designed with consideration for social, economic, environmental impact

A sustainable city, eco-city, or green city is a city designed with consideration for the social, economic, and environmental impact, as well as a resilient habitat for existing populations. This is done in a way that does not compromise the ability of future generations to experience the same. The UN Sustainable Development Goal 11 defines sustainable cities as those that are dedicated to achieving green sustainability, social sustainability and economic sustainability. In accordance with the UN Sustainable Development Goal 11, a sustainable city is defined as one that is dedicated to achieving green, social, and economic sustainability. They are committed to this objective by facilitating opportunities for all through a design that prioritizes inclusivity as well as maintaining a sustainable economic growth. Furthermore, the objective is to minimize the inputs of energy, water, and food, and to drastically reduce waste, as well as the outputs of heat, air pollution. Richard Register, a visual artist, first coined the term ecocity in his 1987 book Ecocity Berkeley: Building Cities for a Healthy Future, where he offers innovative city planning solutions that would work anywhere. Other leading figures who envisioned sustainable cities are architect Paul F Downton, who later founded the company Ecopolis Pty Ltd, as well as authors Timothy Beatley and Steffen Lehmann, who have written extensively on the subject. The field of industrial ecology is sometimes used in planning these cities.

The natural environment, commonly referred to simply as the environment, is all living and non-living things that occur naturally on Earth or some part of it. This includes complete ecological units that function as natural systems without massive human intervention, including all vegetation, animals, microorganisms, rocks, atmosphere and natural phenomena that occur within their boundaries. And it includes universal natural resources and physical phenomena that lack clear-cut boundaries, such as air, water, and climate, as well as energy, radiation, electric charge, and magnetism, not originating from human activity.

Manitoba Environment and Climate Change is a department of the Government of Manitoba that is responsible for the management and protection of Manitoba's wildlife, water, species at risk, forestry, and other matters related to environmental stewardship and Manitoba's biodiversity of natural resources.

This is a glossary of environmental science.

This is a list of climate change topics.

This page is an index of sustainability articles.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sustainability</span> Societal goal and normative concept

Sustainability is a social goal for people to co-exist on Earth over a long period of time. Definitions of this term are disputed and have varied with literature, context, and time. Sustainability usually has three dimensions : environmental, economic, and social. Many definitions emphasize the environmental dimension. This can include addressing key environmental problems, including climate change and biodiversity loss. The idea of sustainability can guide decisions at the global, national, organizational, and individual levels. A related concept is that of sustainable development, and the terms are often used to mean the same thing. UNESCO distinguishes the two like this: "Sustainability is often thought of as a long-term goal, while sustainable development refers to the many processes and pathways to achieve it."

The natural environment, commonly referred to simply as the environment, includes all living and non-living things occurring naturally on Earth.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">History of environmental pollution</span>

The history of environmental pollution traces human-dominated ecological systems from the earliest civilizations to the present day. This history is characterized by the increased regional success of a particular society, followed by crises that were either resolved, producing sustainability, or not, leading to decline. In early human history, the use of fire and desire for specific foods may have altered the natural composition of plant and animal communities. Between 8,000 and 12,000 years ago, agrarian communities emerged which depended largely on their environment and the creation of a "structure of permanence."

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Green urbanism</span> Practice of creating communities beneficial to humans and the environment

Green urbanism has been defined as the practice of creating communities beneficial to humans and the environment. According to Timothy Beatley, it is an attempt to shape more sustainable places, communities and lifestyles, and consume less of the world's resources. Urban areas are able to lay the groundwork of how environmentally integrated and sustainable city planning can both provide and improve environmental benefits on the local, national, and international levels. Green urbanism is interdisciplinary, combining the collaboration of landscape architects, engineers, urban planners, ecologists, transport planners, physicists, psychologists, sociologists, economists and other specialists in addition to architects and urban designers.

The following outline is provided as an overview of and topical guide to environmentalism:

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ministry of Environment and Climate Change (Brazil)</span> Federal ministry in Brazil

The Ministry of Environment and Climate Change is a cabinet-level federal ministry in Brazil. The ministry emerged from the Special Secretariat for the Environment within the now-extinct Ministry of the Interior from 1974 to 1985. It has gone through several name changes since its inception.

References