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The Sustainable Development Portal
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Scheme of sustainable development:
at the confluence of three preoccupations. Clickable. |
Sustainable development has been defined as balancing the fulfillment of human needs with the protection of the natural environment so that these needs can be met not only in the present, but in the indefinite future. The term was used by the Brundtland Commission which coined what has become the most often-quoted definition of sustainable development as development that "meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs."
The field of sustainable development can be conceptually divided into four general dimensions: social, economic, environmental and institutional. The first three dimensions address key principles of sustainability, while the final dimension addresses key institutional policy and capacity issues.
Natural building involves a range of building systems and materials that place major emphasis on sustainability. Ways of achieving sustainability through natural building focus on durability and the use of minimally processed, plentiful or renewable resources, as well as those which, while recycled or salvaged, produce healthy living environments and maintain indoor air quality. "Natural building" is a general term with different interpretations by its – mostly – self-directed practitioners.
The basis of natural building is the need to lessen the environmental impact of buildings and other supporting systems, without sacrificing comfort, health or aesthetics. To be more sustainable, natural building uses primarily materials which are abundantly available, renewable, reused or recycled. The use of rapidly renewable materials is increasingly a focus. An emphasis on building compactly and minimizing the ecological footprint is common, as are on-site handling of energy acquisition, on-site water capture, alternate sewage treatment and water reuse.
Other concepts, methods and strategies often (or sometimes) associated with natural building include: building "underground," earth sheltering, or berming, "green" or "living" planted roofs, thatched roofs and cement-free earthen floors, rubble-trench, or gabion foundations.
Kiva is a non-profit organization with a mission to connect people through loans for the sake of alleviating global poverty. Leveraging the internet and a worldwide network of microfinance institutions, Kiva lets individuals lend as little as $25 to help fund small businesses run by low-income entrepreneurs around the world.
Loans made on Kiva.org provide 0% interest to lenders. Kiva itself charges no interest from the borrower. Borrowers are charged some interest by the respective microfinance institution handling the individual loan. Kiva.org keeps track of how much interest is charged and will not work with those charging unfair or exorbitant interest rates. Kiva borrowers have a historical repayment rate of 100%. Kiva is working with regulators to allow microfinance institutions to offer variable interest rates to lenders.
Kiva enables microfinance institutions around the world to post profiles of qualified local entrepreneurs online. Lenders consist of any individual with a credit card. Lenders browse and choose an entrepreneur they wish to fund. Kiva aggregates loan capital from individual lenders and transfers it to microfinance partners, called "Field Partners", to disburse and administer. As loan repayments are made by the entrepreneur, the Field Partners remits funds back to Kiva. Once the loan is fully repaid, Kiva lenders can withdraw their principal or re-loan it to another entrepreneur.
Jeffrey David Sachs (born November 5, 1954, in Detroit, Michigan) is an American economist known for his work as an economic advisor to governments in Latin America, Eastern Europe, the former Yugoslavia, the former Soviet Union, Asia, and Africa. He is currently a professor and director of the Earth Institute at Columbia University. He is also Special Advisor to United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon. From 2002 to 2006, he was Special Advisor to United Nations Secretary-General Kofi Annan and Director of the UN Millennium Project. He proposed shock therapy (though he himself hates the term) as a solution to the economic crises of Bolivia, Poland, and Russia. He is also known for his work with international agencies on problems of poverty reduction, debt cancellation, and disease control—especially HIV/AIDS, for the developing world. He is the only academic to have been repeatedly ranked among the world's most influential people by Time magazine. He has been appointed the 2007 lecturer for the BBC Reith Lectures.
| All of humanity now has the option to "make it" successfully and sustainably, by virtue of our having minds, discovering principles and being able to employ these principles to do more with less.
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- Attention: Environment pages, PRiSM
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- Wikify: Socially responsible investing
- Worldwide view: Recycling
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Gulf Today
Sat, 18 May 2013 13:46:23 -0700
NEW YORK: The United Arab Emirates (UAE) partnered with the president of the 67th Session of the United Nations (UN) General Assembly to host a high-level, thematic debate titled “Sustainable Development and Climate Change: Practical Solutions in the ...
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Allentown Morning Call
Thu, 16 May 2013 13:52:15 -0700
The mayor made the remarks during a panel discussion on sustainable development hosted by the Delaware Valley Green Builders Council. The other panelists, mayors Sal Panto Jr. of Easton, Ed Pawlowski of Allentown, and Ed Hozza of Whitehall ...
| ![]() University of Delaware |
University of Delaware
Thu, 16 May 2013 14:48:23 -0700
2:43 p.m., May 16, 2013--Students from the University of Delaware interested in sustainable development and agriculture are encouraged to apply for the second session of the Consortium for Sustainability beginning June 23 at Costa Rica's EARTH ...
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Allentown Morning Call
Thu, 16 May 2013 16:32:21 -0700
Pictures: Lehigh Valley mayors discuss sustainable development. Lehigh Valley mayors talk about sustainable development, urban supermarkets, and being green by reusing old buildings. Image 1 of 18 ...
| ![]() Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Belarus |
TVR
Sat, 18 May 2013 00:57:41 -0700
By Andrei Krivosheev: Vladimir Makey, Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Belarus: “Sustainable development is a harmonious, irreversible development, including the sustainable economic growth that benefits all members of the society and ...
| ![]() Environment News Service |
Environment News Service
Thu, 16 May 2013 08:50:59 -0700
KIRUNA, Sweden, May 16, 2013 (ENS) – Ministers from the eight Arctic states and representatives of the Arctic Indigenous Peoples Wednesday adopted a shared vision statement for the future development of the region as a “zone of peace and stability.” ...
| ![]() Blue & Green Tomorrow |
EU News
Thu, 16 May 2013 00:08:45 -0700
Mr Steiner spoke of the need for a fully inclusive consultation process for the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) that must involve governments, civil society and the private sector. This struck a chord with the EESC, which has already started its ...
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Afrique en Ligue
Fri, 17 May 2013 09:44:22 -0700
Sustainable development - China will provide F CFA 32 billion (US$62.7 million) to assist the West African nation of Mali to maintain peace and implement its sustainable recovery plan, PANA reported. The announcement of the assistance was made here ...
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You can talk about Sustainable development with people all over the world in our discussions.
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