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Introduction -- Sustainability and time -- The geography of sustainability -- Ecological resilience and environmental health -- Technological solutions and their problems -- The political and legal challenge -- Sustaining economies -- Culture and change -- Conclusion

"Sustainability as a reference frame for dealing with the interconnection of environmental, economic and social issues on a global scale is not only characterized by complex problems and long-term strategies but also by differences and disagreements with regard to its meanings and how they should be realised. Therefore, Rather than seeking a single most appropriate definition of Sustainability, the main focus of this book is on how specific Sustainability problems are defined by whom and in which contexts, what solutions are pursued to tackle them, and which effects they have in practice. This account of the social nature of Sustainability is intended to assist its readers to better understand the complexities, dynamism, and ambivalence of this concept as well as to find their own position in relation to it. For this purpose, the book traces the historical development of the larger discourse on Sustainability and investigates responses to three grand Sustainability challenges: climate change, energy, and agricultural food production. It suggests that promoting Sustainability requires continuous and active care and is inseparable from political debate about the normative foundations of society"--Provided by publisher

"Die Nachhaltigkeitsdiskussion ist durch zunehmende Zerfaserung und Konturlosigkeit gekennzeichnet. Dieses ursprünglich aus der Debatte um den langfristigen Umgang mit unseren natürlichen Lebensgrundlagen entstandenen Konzept droht dabei, seinen Kern zu verlieren. Im Anschluss an eine Beschreibung der Nachhaltigkeitsdiskussion innerhalb der Wissenschaft in Deutschland wird die eigentliche Kontroverse zwischen dem Konzept schwacher und starker Nachhaltigkeit dargestellt. Nachdem Kriterien für eine rationale Wahl zwischen den beiden Konzepten diskutiert werden, wird die Wahl eines Konzeptes gerechtfertigt. Im Anschluss daran werden weiterführende Fragestellungen formuliert und es werden einige Konsequenzen der Wahl einer Konzeption starker Nachhaltigkeit dargelegt." (Autorenreferat)

A comprehensive resource to sustainability and its application to the environmental, industrial, agricultural and food security sectors Sustainability fills a gap in the literature in order to provide an important guide to the fundamental knowledge and practical applications of sustainability in a wide variety of areas. The authors – noted experts who represent a number of sustainability fields – bring together in one comprehensive volume the broad range of topics including basic concepts, impact assessment, environmental and the socio-economic aspects of sustainability. In addition, the book covers applications of sustainability in environmental, industrial, agricultural and food security, as well as carbon cycle and infrastructural aspects. Sustainability addresses the challenges the global community is facing due to population growth, depletion of non-renewable resources of energy, environmental degradation, poverty, excessive generation of wastes and more. Throughout the book the authors discuss the economics, ecological, social, technological and systems perspectives of sustainability. This important resource: • Explores the fundamentals as well as the key concepts of sustainability; • Covers basic concepts, impact assessment, environmental and socio-economic aspects, applications of sustainability in environmental, industrial, agricultural and food security, carbon cycle and infrastructural aspects; • Argues the essentiality of sustainability in ensuring the propitious future of earth systems; and • Authored by experts from a range of various fields related to sustainability. Written for researchers and scientists, students and academics, Sustainability: Fundamentals and Applications is a comprehensive book that covers the basic knowledge of the topic combined with practical applications.

1. Introduction -- 2. Sustainability : a technical and normative endeavor -- 3. Index theory -- 4. Comparative ethics for sustainability -- 5. An ethical examination of sustainability indexes -- 6. Environmental justice: a resource for sustainability indexes? -- 7. Aggregating local indicators -- 8. Ethics in sustainability indexes.