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Working Toward a Sustainable Future
Citation:
Hecht, A., J. Fiksel, AND M. Moses. Working Toward a Sustainable Future. Sustainability: Science, Practice, and Policy (SSPP). ProQuest, Bethesda, MD, 10(2):1-10, (2014).
Impact/Purpose:
Article lays out research and management needs necessary to meet problems of the 21st century. "This paper describes the “innovation cycle” for sustainability, which includes engaging stakeholders, advancing sustainability science and systems thinking, encouraging transdisciplinary public-private collaboration, and developing decision support capabilities to enable sustainable and resilient solutions."
Description:
Population growth and economic growth have driven increased consumption of energy and materials as well as significant changes in land use, leading to erosion of natural capital. To deal with these problems in the 21st century, federal agencies must build on the existing regulatory framework and complement ongoing work on risk assessment with new efforts to promote sustainable growth through science and technology, innovative design and management, improved collaboration and enhanced awareness and education. This paper describes the “innovation cycle” for sustainability, which includes engaging stakeholders, advancing sustainability science and systems thinking, encouraging transdisciplinary public-private collaboration, and developing decision support capabilities to enable sustainable and resilient solutions. The paper cites several examples of how the innovation cycle is currently working or needs to be applied in order to make progress toward the goal of sustainability in the future. The paper concludes with five themes needed to move forward.
