Social Structures
Symposium
Author: Cassandra Murphy, PhD researcher in the Psychology Department of Maynooth University, funded by H2020 project GoGreenRoutes, Assisting Living and Learning Institute (ALL)
I often talk about sustainability in my work being in the realm of environmental psychology. My research explores the human-nature relationship, which inevitably links to pro-environmental behaviour. People often assume pro-environmental behaviour defines sustainability, but sustainability is much more than recycling and planting trees. Through my conversations I have learnt that the term ‘sustainability’ can be perceived differently. We constantly hear about sustainability, in the news, in our emails, in daily conversations; but what does this term really mean? Everyone’s understanding is individual to their lives and their experience. For some they instantly think of the UN Sustainable Development Goals whereas for others it can simply mean having the ability to keep up momentum of what they do each day and not burn themselves out. An all too familiar experience of many after the recent pandemic.
The most common definition of sustainability comes from the UN World Commission on Environment and Development which says sustainable development means “to ensure that it meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs.” That’s exactly what it is. Ensuring that throughout our lifetimes we strive to create a world in which we do not take from the generations that come after us, but instead make sure they have what we have, if not better. The future generations should have equal access to the resources we have and be able to benefit from them no matter where they are, or how much money they earn. In a sense, this is the idea that we are leaving no one behind.
When we look at the term sustainability and what it means in the wider context we must look at the Three Pillars of Sustainable Development: Environmental Protection, Social Equity and Economic Viability. Another way to look at this is the planet, the people, the profit. These three pillars are encompassed in our values at the ALL Institute and are echoed through the research undertook by our members.
Environmental Protection
This pillar does exactly what it says and focuses on the protection of our natural environments so they may still exist for the generations to come. It does not focus purely on green or blue spaces. Environmental protection focuses on air quality, noise pollution, wildlife protection and much more. A major element of this is not only protection but also management.
Social Equity
Social Equity refers to the people and supporting the social issues at play. Anything you do should be equally available irrespective of class, ability, or culture. The pillar considers humans as equals who deserve peace, security, education, a home and overall, a quality of life. This pillar encourages us to lessen the divide in humanity and promote diversity in everything we do irrespective of gender, culture, ability or age.
Economic Viability
This is the pillar in which many businesses are struggling right now due to their reliance on environmental resources. To have economic viability a company must be able to sustain their business long term. Profit is not the main component of making a business sustainable. As we have seen with many of our energy sources the past while, there are a limited amount of resources to use and eventually it runs out. For a business to be considered sustainable it should strive to be profitable but not at the cost of the environment or social equity.
An important point to note in all of this is that these three pillars do not work independently of each other. They all need one another to succeed. This is why transdisciplinary work is more important than ever. It is difficult to get a full grasp of each element, however, an understanding from all elements will produce the most impactful results. For example, my research in human-nature relationships has a strong footing in both the environmental and social pillars. For my findings to be worthwhile and impactful I must work with cities to ensure that the needs of the people are met while being economically viable for the city. That means that whatever environmental interventions are highlighted as necessary for creating a connection with urban citizens and their local nature must not cause the city a loss. It is hoped that, instead, it will give the citizens a higher standard of living and possibly encourage more people to live in the area.
In all of this sustainability research I often have to remind myself that I must be sustainable in myself. What I mean by this is using my understanding of sustainability to avoid burnout. Imagine on Monday you sit down and write your to-do list, made up of a combination of work responsibilities, home responsibilities and self-care. You rush your way through the work responsibilities at the start of the week, leaving no time for any self-care. By the time you get to Wednesday you still have your home responsibilities to get through but you are lacking the motivation and energy to do them. Without giving yourself time to replenish yourself it is difficult to keep going. You cannot keep taking from an empty source, there has to be a balance to keep your life sustainable. It’s important to practice this with yourself as it helps to put into perspective the impact of sustainable practices can have on lives.
This blogpost has been written within the remit of the GoGreenRoutes project (www.gogreenroutes.eu) funded by the European Union’s Horizon 2020 research and innovation programme under grant agreement No 869764.