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Week 2

The document provides an introduction to sustainability concepts including: - The historical roots of sustainability stemming from issues with the industrial revolution like environmental degradation and resource exploitation. - Theories of development and limits to growth that raised concerns about sustaining economic growth. - The Brundtland Commission's 1987 report that defined sustainable development as "development that meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs." - The role of sustainable engineering in ensuring natural resources and cycles don't diminish quality of life now or in the future.

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Faris Qocey
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10 views18 pages

Week 2

The document provides an introduction to sustainability concepts including: - The historical roots of sustainability stemming from issues with the industrial revolution like environmental degradation and resource exploitation. - Theories of development and limits to growth that raised concerns about sustaining economic growth. - The Brundtland Commission's 1987 report that defined sustainable development as "development that meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs." - The role of sustainable engineering in ensuring natural resources and cycles don't diminish quality of life now or in the future.

Uploaded by

Faris Qocey
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© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
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Download as PPTX, PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
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Introduction to

Sustainability
model and
management
MARFIAH AB.WAHID PHD
FACULTY OF CIVIL ENGINEERING
UiTM SHAH ALAM
LEARNING OUTCOMES

Sustainable Sustainable
concept? economy?

Sustainable
Sustainability
Contents
and Ethics?
governance?

Sustainable Sustainable society?


development?

Sustainable Sustainable
Engineering? management?
Historical roots of the concept
• Industrial revolution (18th century)
• Transform human societies
• Economic growth
• Material advancement
• A big issue linked to industrial development was environmental degradation
caused by the exploitation of raw materials on an unprecedented global scale
( Goudie,1986;Boyden, 1997)
• 20th century – terms ‘sustainability’ and ‘sustainable’ appeared in Oxford English
Dictionary
• Van Zon (2002) points out that the demand for raw materials and its impact on
the environment have been a constant issue through out human history.
Continue…
• Population growth
• Consequences for the consumption of resources
• Threatened to food production
• Overcrowding, uncontrolled urbanization, housing shortage, slum condition, inability
of government to supply proper municipal, medical, education.
• Energy consumption – wasteful consumption
• Coal deposits exhausted
• Oil – became the primary source of energy , drastic increase in oil consumption raised
alarm that oil supplies might be exhausted (1974-1976 oil crisis)
• Over exploitation of natural resources
• Wood – ex. deforestation
• etc
Theories of development
• Development was defined as ‘an evolutionary process in which the
human capacity increased in terms of initiating new structures, coping
with problems, adapting to continuous change, and striving
purposefully and creatively to attain new goals’ (Committee on
comparative politics of the United States Social Science Research
Council)
Sustainable development
During world war and after world war:
• Developed and developing countries in colonial period
• Scientific and technological progress causing terrible damage to the natural
environment
• Ecological disaster – awareness about environment in mass media, Earth day
celebration (1970), Greenpeace movement (1999)
• Environmental concern became more acute and radical because of
the fear that economic growth might endanger the survival of human
race and the planet.
Limit Growth

• Fears that present and future generations might not be able to maintain their living
standards stimulated a mode of thinking the way for the emergence and global
adoption of sustainable development.
• The limits to growth:
“If the present growth trends in world population, industrialization, pollution, food
production, and resource depletion continue unchanged, the limits to growth on this
planet will be reached sometime within the next one hundred years. The most probable
result will be a rather sudden and uncontrollable decline in both population and industrial
capacity” the remedy was seen in further scientific and technological development
New technologies – to counter the damage caused by industrialization and wasteful
consumerism, and to help the underprivileged to enjoy a better quality of life (Von
Wright, 1997) – Debate about this idea
Brundtland Commission
• The United Nations commissioned a group of 22 people from
developed and developing countries to identify long-term
environmental strategies for the international community. This World
Commission on Environment and Development (WCED), better known
as the Brundtland Commission, submitted their report, entitled Our
common future, to the UN in 1987 (WCED 1987)
• The Brundtland Report focused primarily on the needs and interests of
humans, and was concerned with securing a global equity for future
generations by redistributing resources towards poorer nations to
encourage their economic growth in order to enable all human beings
to achieve their basic needs
Brundtland Report on
sustainable
development:

• Brundtland Report:
"Sustainable
development is developme
nt that meets the needs of
the present without
compromising the ability of
future generations to meet
their own needs."
• The design of human and industrial
systems to ensure that human
kind's use of natural resources and
Sustainable cycles do not lead to diminished
quality of life due either to losses in
Engineering future economic opportunities or to
adverse impacts on social
conditions, human health
Engineer

"ENGINEERS PLAY A CRUCIAL ROLE IN IMPROVING LIVING


STANDARDS THROUGH- OUT THE WORLD. AS A RESULT,
ENGINEERS CAN HAVE A SIGNIFICANT IMPACT ON
PROGRESS TOWARDS SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT"
WORLD FEDERATION OF ENGINEERING
ORGANIZATIONS(2002)
Engineers and Ethics
• Engineering is an important and learned profession. As members of
this profession, engineers are expected to exhibit the highest
standards of honesty and integrity.
• Engineering has a direct and vital impact on the quality of life for all
people.
• Accordingly, the services provided by engineers require honesty,
impartiality, fairness, and equity, and must be dedicated to the
protection of the public health, safety, and welfare.
• Engineers must perform under a standard of professional behavior
that requires adherence to the highest principles of ethical conduct.
Activity
• Refer to Code of Professional Conduct (BEM), Professional Engineers
and Code of Ethics
• Overview the content
• What is engineering ethics?
• Why code of ethics is important in engineering?
• What are the rights of engineer?
• What are the responsibilities of engineers?
• What are the differences between ethics and moral?
• Why being a moral engineer is not sufficient to uphold ethical practices?
Sustainable management
• Sustainable management takes the concepts from sustainability and
synthesizes them with the concepts of management.
• Defined as- the application of sustainable practices in the categories
of business, agriculture, society, environment and personal life by
managing them in a way that will benefit current generations and
future generations.
Sustainability revolution
Current emphasis Sustainability emphasis
Pollution clean up Pollution prevention
Waste disposal (bury or burn) Waste prevention
Protecting species Protecting habitat
Environmental degradation Environmental restoration
Increasing resource use Less resources waste
Population growth Population stabilization
Depleting and degrading natural capital Protecting natural capital
Sustainable society
• A sustainable society is one that can continue indefinitely. Its level of
consumption should reflect environmental and resource balance. It
should assure its citizens equality, freedom and a healthy standard of
living.
• How to build sustainable society?

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