What is Sustainable Development?

The World Commission on Environment and Development (the Brundtland Commission) defined sustainable development as "development that meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs." In other words, development is essential to satisfy human needs and improve the quality of human life. At the same time, development must be based on the efficient and environmentally responsible use of all of society's scarce resources - natural, human, and economic.

Sustainable development has multiple objectives. In planning for development, there must be deliberate consideration of how to maintain the quality of the environment, human well-being, and economic security. The Brundtland Commission, in Our Common Future, and subsequently Agenda 21 set out recommendations for developed and developing nations regarding sustainable development strategies concerning clean air and water, water supply, energy, land use, housing, waste treatment, transportation, and health care. The same advice applies locally. Just as the economic development of a country is linked to its environment and citizens, a community takes into account this interconnectedness in planning for the future. Both face the same set of challenges.

In Canada, the concept of sustainable development has been integrated into federal legislation and into amendments to the Auditor General Act in 1995, which established the office of the Commissioner of the Environment and Sustainable Development. Departments are required to prepare sustainable development strategies and to table them in Parliament. The strategies set out goals, objectives, and specific commitments and are an important tool by which the federal government can advance sustainable development.