Sustainability is about sustaining “something” over time.
Sustaining the system of us
The 2 dimensions of the sustainable practice
This implies that “something” has a certain value in the eyes of Today’s observer. This value should be preserved (sustained) over time and brought to future generations unaltered. Therefore, we can derive two main dimensions in the Sustainable practice:
- Sustaining “something” over time. (objectivity)
- Teach ourselves and future generations to recognise the value of that “something”. (subjectivity)
What are we aiming to sustain exactly?
In Sustainability lies the idea of a continuous effort to support and preserve something. However, that something is not static, it evolves based on the support it is given. That something is a complex system.
A system is “an interconnected set of elements that is coherently organized in a way that achieves something. … a system must consist of three kinds of things: elements, interconnections and a function or purpose.” (D.Meadows). We find sub-systems embedded into supra-system and the scale is infinite.
A system is considered complex when its dynamics are unpredictable and boundaries hard to define. In other words, the temporal and spatial outskirts of the system are unknown to the observer.
The complex system we wish to sustain is a certain way of living in society which is respectful of our planetary boundaries.
Ever-lasting sustainability
We don’t achieve Sustainability; we achieve a state of dynamic balance that is sustainable over time. Practicing sustainability is therefore an ever-lasting quest to find an equilibrium (there could be multiple of them) that can last. This takes constant adjustments, and we should learn to be at peace with it.
How to make an impact as an individual
Our time being limited, how to prioritize the actions or activities that will be the most impactful when striving for sustainability?
Coming back to the 2 dimensions of the sustainable practice, we can argue that we have two main means of action:
- Working in sustaining our way of living within the scope of the planetary boundaries.
- Execution
- Educating ourselves and future generations to recognize the value of this way of living.
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