Defining and applying sustainability: pillars, indicators and contested meanings

What this note covers

1. 1. What sustainability actually means: origins and core definition
2. 2. The three pillars: ecological, economic and social dimensions
3. 3. Measuring sustainability I — the Ecological Footprint
4. 4. Measuring sustainability II — the Human Development Index and SDGs
5. 5. Tensions between development and environmental protection
6. 6. Evaluating the concept: contested meanings and whose sustainability?
7. 7. Synthesis — applying sustainability thinking to geographic problems

7 sections · 14 key terms & formulas · 6 common mistakes