The world scientific community's definitive statement on strategies needed to safeguard the environment and promote development.

This volume brings together the understanding and the judgment of the world's scientific community on the issues of highest priority for the future of the environment and development. It looks beyond the state of the art and formulates the environment and development research agenda and identifies the scientific knowledge base that will be needed for rational policy decisions during the coming decades. Diverse topics such as population, land use, energy, and global cycles are covered under sixteen themes that have been grouped into three sections: "Problems of Environment and Development" "Scientific Understanding of the Earth System" and "Responses and Strategies".

Agendas and Sustainability considers the processes used for devising global environment and development agendas and provides practical suggestions for their future development and influence. A collaboration of the latest research from the Stockholm Environment Institute and the Earth Council, the book presents similarities and differences in problem definition, objectives, principles, priorities and actions across eleven of the major agendas put forward for environment and development after Rio. Points of divergence and areas of common ground are investigated for over 30 environment and development-related topics, such as biodiversity, consumption patterns, trade, urbanization, population, education, deforestation and water resources.

World human population is expected to reach upwards of 9 billion by 2050 and then level off over the next half-century. How can the transition to a stabilizing population also be a transition to sustainability? How can science and technology help to ensure that human needs are met while the planet's environment is nurtured and restored? Our Common Journey examines these momentous questions to draw strategic connections between scientific research, technological development, and societies' efforts to achieve environmentally sustainable improvements in human well being. The book argues that societies should approach sustainable development not as a destination but as an ongoing, adaptive learning process. Speaking to the next two generations, it proposes a strategy for using scientific and technical knowledge to better inform future action in the areas of fertility reduction, urban systems, agricultural production, energy and materials use, ecosystem restoration and biodiversity conservation, and suggests an approach for building a new research agenda for sustainability science. Our Common Journey documents large-scale historical currents of social and environmental change and reviews methods for "what if" analysis of possible future development pathways and their implications for sustainability. The book also identifies the greatest threats to sustainabilityâ€"in areas such as human settlements, agriculture, industry, and energyâ€"and explores the most promising opportunities for circumventing or mitigating these threats. It goes on to discuss what indicators of change, from children's birth-weights to atmosphere chemistry, will be most useful in monitoring a transition to sustainability.

As a concept, sustainable development is in conflict with traditional development based upon economic growth. Sustainable development is an attempt to formulate a programme that integrates different aspects (ecological, social, and economical) which were usually considered as separate from each other. Sustainable Development as a Civilizational Revolution. A Multidisciplinary Approach to the Challenges of the 21st Century expands the discussion on sustainable development, including ethical, technical/technological, legal and political aspects. Since it is not possible to solve environmental problems solely by technical means, without taking into account economic or environmental aspects, the degree to which they overlap is discussed. In addition it is necessary to emphasize the importance of social and moral considerations. A clean environment is a valuable attribute, but its achievement at the expense of high unemployment -- or some other form of severe social conflict -- cannot be regarded as action in line with the sustainable-development principle. The tremendous scope of these changes makes it reasonable to expect this new vision for development to achieve the status of a revolution comparable to those known from the past: the agricultural, scientific and industrial revolutions. Sustainable Development as a Civilizational Revolution. A Multidisciplinary Approach to the Challenges of the 21st Century will be invaluable to graduate and post-graduate students following advanced courses on sustainable development, scientists dealing with sustainable development, and academia interested in environmental and social sciences.

Agenda 21 is a non-binding, voluntarily implemented action plan of the United Nations with regard to sustainable development. It is a product of the UN Conference on Environment and Development (UNCED) held in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, in 1992. Its purpose is an action agenda for the UN, other multilateral organizations, and individual governments around the world that can be executed at local, national, and global levels. The "21" in Agenda 21 refers to the 21st century.