Good for the Planet

Doing good for the planet has many angles, each focussing on specific, sometimes overlapping elements.

The Sustainability pillars

Sustainable development is based on three fundamental pillars: environmental, social and economic.

• • Environmental sustainability, Environmental sustainability is the responsibility to conserve natural resources and protect global Ecosystems to support health and wellbeing, now and in the future.
  • Social sustainability, Social sustainability is about identifying and managing business impacts, both positive and negative, on people. The quality of a company's relationships and engagement with its stakeholders is critical.
  • Economic sustainability, Economic sustainability refers to practices that support long-term economic growth without negatively impacting social, environmental, and cultural aspects of the community.

Environmental sustainability

In simple terms, environmental sustainability is the practice of interacting with the planet responsibly. The survival of humanity and other species on the planet is threatened by the negative impact of irresponsible behaviour:

• Resource depletion, Running out of natural resources will cause instability of the eco-system and finally extinction
• Pollution, Risk to biodiversity (loss of habitat), health and living conditions
• Climate change, resulting in rising minimum temperatures, rising sea levels, higher ocean temperatures and an increase in heavy precipitation (heavy rain and hail).

The total impact is defined as the environmental footprint. Foodprint is the effect that a person, company, activity, etc. has on the environment, for example, the number of natural resources that they use and the number of harmful gases that they produce.

The circular economy

The circular economy can be an important instrument to tackle the current triple planetary crises on climate, biodiversity and pollution. By keeping resources in the loop for longer, we'll avoid emitting greenhouse gases caused by the energy needed to make products.

What is the circular economy?

The circular economy is a systems solution framework that tackles global challenges like climate change, biodiversity loss, waste, and pollution.

Another angle

If we want to survive as Human species we need a healthy, sustainable biosystem. We are not Ecological overshoot occurs when human demand exceeds the regenerative capacity of a natural ecosystem. Global overshoot occurs when humanity demands more than what the biosphere can renew. In other words, humanity's Ecological Footprint exceeds what the planet can regenerate.

Agroecology is the application of ecological concepts and principles in farming. Agroecology promotes farming practices that; Mitigate climate change - reducing emissions, recycling resources and prioritizing local supply chains.

Related

• Resource Conservation
• Agriculture and forestry
• Private households and consumption
• Environment and Economy

https://www.umweltbundesamt.de/en/data/environmental-indicators

External links

• Climate Visuals Library