Taking a Scientific Approach: Understanding the Foundations of Sustainability

This is Note 2 of the Sustainability Essentials Notebook, my new series of notes on essential sustainability knowledge.

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Foundations of a Scientific Approach to Sustainability

If we want to work ‘in’ or ‘on’ sustainability professionally, it is imperative to have a clear sense of what sustainability is and what it isn’t.

Any scientific approach to sustainability requires that we understand :

• The object of sustainability: to meaningfully discuss sustainability, we clarify the object of study and engagement answering the questions: what is sustainability about, what system or systems are involved or in scope? What is the language we use to speak about sustainability; what is part of sustainability, what is it part of? What place does sustainability refer to (location)?, and for what point or period in time are sustainability assertions valid? (See also: What is sustainability…