AECC Semester 1 Unit 1 PDF

Hydrosphere: Distribution Hydrologic cycle 5. Sustainable development “meeting the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs.” In other words, we should be able to improve conditions for the...

Hydrosphere: Distribution Hydrologic cycle 5. Sustainable development “meeting the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs.” In other words, we should be able to improve conditions for the world’s poorest populations without devastating the environment. This definition was given in Brundtland Report (1987) of the World Commission on Environment and Development, Our Common Future. This report is named after the chair of the commission, Norwegian prime minister Gro Harlem Brundtland. Sustainable development Seeking to improve lives without further damaging environmental systems—and climate change. UN Sustainable Development Goals identify strategies and targets for improving human well-being. These goals build on the largely successful UN Millennium Development Goals, which produced substantial progress. Innovations in transportation, energy sources, food production, and international cooperation for environmental protection. Often these goals are complementary with environmental protections. Sustainable development 1987 - The Brundtland Report 1992 - Earth Summit Earth Summit: United Nations meeting held in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. Spread the idea of sustainable development. The Human Development Index (HDI) FIGURE HDI Values near 1 represent strong health, education, and quality of life indicators. Source: UNEP 2016. HDI is an index that aggregates factors such as health, education, and poverty. It allows us to compare countries, and to see where need is greatest The Human Development Index (HDI) The measures in the Human Development Index are not resource- intensive factors. Providing basic access to health care and education, or providing clean drinking water and controlling pollution, improves people’s lives with few natural resources. At the same time, they greatly advance human resources—our capacity to work and dream. Increasing wealth for the already-wealthy is more costly. The Sustainable Development FIGURE Coal consumption, most of it used for electricity generation, has fueled much of China’s recent growth. Because coal is our primary source of air pollutants and greenhouse gases, projected increases would be disastrous. Source: US Energy Information Agency 2013. The Sustainable Development FIGURE Environmental indicators show different patterns as incomes rise. Water contamination decreases as people can afford wastewater treatment and drinking water filtration. Local air pollution, on the other hand, often increases as more fuel is burned; eventually, development reaches a point at which people can afford clean air technology. Delayed, distant problems, such as greenhouse gas emissions that lead to global climate change, tend to rise steadily with income because people make decisions based on immediate needs and wants rather than long-term consequences. Thus, we tend to shift environmental burdens from local and immediate to distant and delayed if we can afford to do so.. Source: World Energy Assessment, UNDP. Is Sustainable development possible? Two basic principles of sustainable development (Herman Daly 1970s): We cannot consume natural resources faster than they are produced, and We cannot produce waste faster than nature can recycle it, if we intend to be here for the long term. Is Sustainable development possible? Sustainable farming: produce food while protecting wildlife habitat, soil, and water resources. Sustainable development: distributing investment to small producers, who circulate money in their local communities. Fair trade organizations: help people in developing countries to grow or make high-value products—often using traditional techniques and designs—that can be sold on world markets for good prices Growth can also occur without increased resource consumption. Like in art, education, entertainment, can improve our lives with little environmental cost. Is Sustainable development possible? Examples By 2015, Kenya produced more than half its electric power from geothermal, wind, and solar energy sources. The World Bank calculates that Sub-Saharan Africa could produce 170 gigawatts of low carbon energy. Uruguay (South America) achieved 95 percent renewable electricity due to a decade of policy commitment. Costa Rica, with abundant geothermal energy, is approaching 100 percent renewable energy. Nicaragua is aiming for 90 percent renewable energy by 2020. Current 17 UN Sustainable Development Goals (2016- 2030) FIGURE The United Nations Sustainable Development Goals are intended to improve well-being of the world’s poorest people while also protecting biodiversity, natural resources, and climate. These goals follow the largely successful Millennium Development Goals. The past Millennium Development Goals were largely successful (2000-2015) FIGURE The United Nations Sustainable Development Goals are intended to improve well-being of the world’s poorest people while also protecting biodiversity, natural resources, and climate. These goals follow the largely successful Millennium Development Goals. Current 17 UN Sustainable Development Goals (2016- 2030) Development depends on how wealthy countries allocate spending We could end extreme poverty worldwide by 2025 if the richer countries would donate just 0.7 percent of their national income for development aid in the poorest nations (Economist, Jeffery Sachs). The United Nations Development Program has estimated that it would take about USD 135 billion per year to abolish extreme poverty and the worst infectious diseases over the next 20 years. That’s a lot of money! but it’s not much more than… the $120 billion in subsidies and tax breaks the U.S. government gives to oil companies each year. And it’s far less than the $1 trillion of global military spending each year. CORE CONCEPTS IN SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT Ecosystem services refers to services or resources provided by environmental systems or is a term for goods, services, and products we rely on; often these are invisible. Common property or “commons” Shared resources and ecosystem services can be described as “common property,” or as a “commons.” Managing common property is a key challenge. Resource use The natural world supplies the water, food, metals, energy, and other resources we use. Resource use throughput, the amount of material or resources that flow through a system. Ecological Footprint A measure for evaluating resource consumption CORE CONCEPTS IN SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT FIGURE Ecosystem services (primary and supporting services) we depend on are countless and often invisible. How to protect these services over the long term? “Tragedy of the Commons,”(by ecologist Garret Hardin, 1968, Science) Hardin argued that population growth leads inevitably to overuse and then destruction of common resources—such as shared pastures, unregulated fisheries, fresh water, land, and clean air. Hardin’s essay has influenced ideas about resource management for decades. Hardin proposed 2 ways to avoid this destruction: (a)a system of private property, in which owners protect resources because of self-interest, or (b)coercive regulation by the state. How to protect these services over the long term? Examples of destroyed commons 1.The North Atlantic cod fishery: destroyed by a free-for-all of unregulated fishing by fleets of many nations. 2.Air pollution: Industries emit pollution from unregulated incinerators and burners, spilling soot, sulfur dioxide, and carbon dioxide into the air, which is then contaminated for all users. Managing of the commons for collectively safe-guarding commonly used resources Elinor Ostrom, who won the 2009 Nobel Prize in Economic Sciences suggested: (1)effective and inexpensive monitoring of resource use; (2)an ability to exclude outsiders, who don’t understand rules Types of Institution for safegaurd:? Large institutions V/s Local solutions (Garreth Hardin V/s Elinor Ostrom) Planetary boundaries Johan Rockström and colleagues at the Stockholm Resilience Centre