A vision for human well-being: transition to social sustainability

The world is experiencing urgent and interconnected problems on many social as well as environmental fronts. Resource shortages, demographic realities, and planetary boundaries prevent us from growing our way out of these problems. A redirection towards sustainability and well-being may be the most viable option for further development. Sustainability must be defined to include meeting human physical, emotional and social needs. Equity considerations are primary in order to have the resources to reduce poverty and increase well-being in developing countries. Well-being is multidimensional and context-specific, and must be approached in a way that preserves cultural diversity and societal autonomy while meeting universal human needs. We must go beyond GDP, measuring the various objective and subjective components of well-being to monitor our progress.

► Sustainability must address social as well as environmental issues. ► Equity is an essential part of the transition to sustainability. ► Well-being is multi-dimensional and context-specific, not ‘one-size-fits-all.’ ► We need new metrics to monitor progress towards well-being. ► We need a global focus on growth in well-being rather than consumption.