Social sustainability
Encyclopedia
Social sustainability is one aspect of sustainability
or sustainable development
. Social sustainability encompasses human rights
, labor rights
, and corporate governance
. In common with environmental sustainability, social sustainability is the idea that future generations should have the same or greater access to social resources as the current generation ("inter-generational equity"), while there should also be equal access to social resources within the current generation ("intra-generational equity"). Social resources include ideas as broad as other cultures and basic human rights. Also we can speak of Sustainable Human Development that can be seen as development that promotes the capabilities of present people without compromising capabilities of future generations . In the human development paradigm, environment and natural resources should constitute a means of achieving better standards of living just as income represents a means of increasing social expenditure and, in the end, well-being..
The different aspects of social sustainability are often considered in socially responsible investing
(SRI). Social sustainability criteria that are commonly used by SRI funds and indexes to rate publicly-traded companies include: community, diversity, employee relations, human rights, product safety, reporting, and governance structure.
From the philosophical aspect of Social sustainability, it focuses on individuals' behaviours, attitude and actions. The way of living towards a socially sustainable way may not necessarily providing a promotion of luxury and wealth, but rather, the development of reverse-consumerism. The ideal sustainable life style is not to end consumption but understanding the minimalistic requirement of it. Going back to the traditional source of behavioural teachings, parenting, the value of indirect education from quotidian conversations in a cross-generation setting allows individuals to develop social awareness at an younger age. With the exposure to natural cycle of life at an early age, it allows youth to foresee the inevitable destination of biological life. It also enhance the subtlety in an individual's perspective on understanding between "wants" and "needs" in life. While leadership and motivational topics focus on prosperity in wealth and different social status, social sustaining role models take on the role of taking the risk upon changing what is necessary instead of what is wanted. From this point of view, in order to achieve a social sustainable system, there will be a possibility of challenging current infrastructure and common expectations. Some radical examples are: starvation by choice to understand the actual need of a starving individual, or the vow of poverty to understand a certain level of built-in social expectations, in which proved unnecessary when it comes to solving community issues as listed.
"Social sustainability occurs when the formal and informal processes; systems; structures; and relationships actively support the capacity of current and future generations to create healthy and liveable communities. Socially sustainable communities are equitable, diverse, connected and democratic and provide a good quality of life."
It has the following dimensions http://integral-sustainability.net/wp-content/uploads/sas4-2-hodgson.pdf:
Sustainability
Sustainability is the capacity to endure. For humans, sustainability is the long-term maintenance of well being, which has environmental, economic, and social dimensions, and encompasses the concept of union, an interdependent relationship and mutual responsible position with all living and non...
or sustainable development
Sustainable development
Sustainable development is a pattern of resource use, that aims to meet human needs while preserving the environment so that these needs can be met not only in the present, but also for generations to come...
. Social sustainability encompasses human rights
Human rights
Human rights are "commonly understood as inalienable fundamental rights to which a person is inherently entitled simply because she or he is a human being." Human rights are thus conceived as universal and egalitarian . These rights may exist as natural rights or as legal rights, in both national...
, labor rights
Labor rights
Labor rights or workers' rights are a group of legal rights and claimed human rights having to do with labor relations between workers and their employers, usually obtained under labor and employment law. In general, these rights' debates have to do with negotiating workers' pay, benefits, and safe...
, and corporate governance
Corporate governance
Corporate governance is a number of processes, customs, policies, laws, and institutions which have impact on the way a company is controlled...
. In common with environmental sustainability, social sustainability is the idea that future generations should have the same or greater access to social resources as the current generation ("inter-generational equity"), while there should also be equal access to social resources within the current generation ("intra-generational equity"). Social resources include ideas as broad as other cultures and basic human rights. Also we can speak of Sustainable Human Development that can be seen as development that promotes the capabilities of present people without compromising capabilities of future generations . In the human development paradigm, environment and natural resources should constitute a means of achieving better standards of living just as income represents a means of increasing social expenditure and, in the end, well-being..
The different aspects of social sustainability are often considered in socially responsible investing
Socially responsible investing
Socially responsible investing , also known as sustainable, socially conscious, or ethical investing, describes an investment strategy which seeks to consider both financial return and social good....
(SRI). Social sustainability criteria that are commonly used by SRI funds and indexes to rate publicly-traded companies include: community, diversity, employee relations, human rights, product safety, reporting, and governance structure.
From the philosophical aspect of Social sustainability, it focuses on individuals' behaviours, attitude and actions. The way of living towards a socially sustainable way may not necessarily providing a promotion of luxury and wealth, but rather, the development of reverse-consumerism. The ideal sustainable life style is not to end consumption but understanding the minimalistic requirement of it. Going back to the traditional source of behavioural teachings, parenting, the value of indirect education from quotidian conversations in a cross-generation setting allows individuals to develop social awareness at an younger age. With the exposure to natural cycle of life at an early age, it allows youth to foresee the inevitable destination of biological life. It also enhance the subtlety in an individual's perspective on understanding between "wants" and "needs" in life. While leadership and motivational topics focus on prosperity in wealth and different social status, social sustaining role models take on the role of taking the risk upon changing what is necessary instead of what is wanted. From this point of view, in order to achieve a social sustainable system, there will be a possibility of challenging current infrastructure and common expectations. Some radical examples are: starvation by choice to understand the actual need of a starving individual, or the vow of poverty to understand a certain level of built-in social expectations, in which proved unnecessary when it comes to solving community issues as listed.
Dimensions of Social Sustainability
According to the Western Australia Council of Social Services (WACOSS)http://auspsa.anu.edu.au/proceedings/publications/Partridgepaper.pdf:"Social sustainability occurs when the formal and informal processes; systems; structures; and relationships actively support the capacity of current and future generations to create healthy and liveable communities. Socially sustainable communities are equitable, diverse, connected and democratic and provide a good quality of life."
It has the following dimensions http://integral-sustainability.net/wp-content/uploads/sas4-2-hodgson.pdf:
- Equity - the community provides equitable opportunities and outcomes for all its members, particularly the poorest and most vulnerable members of the community
- Diversity - the community promotes and encourages diversity
- Interconnected/Social cohesions - the community provides processes, systems and structures that promote connectedness within and outside the community at the formal, informal and institutional level
- Quality of life - the community ensures that basic needs are met and fosters a good quality of life for all members at the individual, group and community level (eg. health, housing, education, employment, safety)
- Democracy and governance - the community provides democratic processes and open and accountable governance structures.
- Maturity - the individual accept the responsibility of consistent growth and improvement through broader social attributes (eg. communication styles, behavioural patterns, indirect education and philosophical explorations)
See also
- SustainabilitySustainabilitySustainability is the capacity to endure. For humans, sustainability is the long-term maintenance of well being, which has environmental, economic, and social dimensions, and encompasses the concept of union, an interdependent relationship and mutual responsible position with all living and non...
- Sustainable businessSustainable businessSustainable business, or green business, is enterprise that has no negative impact on the global or local environment, community, society, or economy—a business that strives to meet the triple bottom line. Often, sustainable businesses have progressive environmental and human rights policies...
- Socially-responsible investing
Articles and books
- Hicks, 1997 D.A. Hicks, The inequality-adjusted human development index: a constructive proposal, World Development 25 (8) (1997), pp. 1283–1298.
- Hinterberger, F., et al. (1999) Sustainable Human Development Index. A suggestion for Greening the UN Indicator of Social and Economic Welfare, Wuppertal Institute, Wuppertal.
- Partridge, E. (2005)‘Social sustainability’: a useful theoretical framework? Paper presented at the Australasian Political Science Association Annual Conference 2005, Dunedin, New Zealand, 28-30 September 2005
- United Nations Development Programme (various years) Human Development Report, Oxford University Press, Oxford.
- World Bank (1992) World Development Report 1992: Development and the Environment, Oxford University Press, New York.
- World Commission on Environment and Development (1987) Our Common Future, Oxford University Press, Great Britain.
- World Economic Forum (2002) Environmental Sustainability Index, Columbia University http://www.ciesin.columbia.edu/indicators/ESI.
External links
- Anand, S. and Sen, A.K. (2000) ‘Human development and economic sustainability’, World Development, 28(12), pp. 2029–2049.
- Costantini, V., Monni, S., (2004) "Measuring Human and Sustainable Development: An integrated approach for European Countries", Working paper n. 41, Department of Economics, Roma Tre University,
- Sustainable Human Development - University of Pittsburgh
- UNDP
- UNDP, Governance for sustainable human development, "A UNDP policy document" January 1997
- UNDP, Integrating human rights with sustainable human development, "A UNDP policy document"