Defining & Measuring Development
This widely used indicator combines GNI per capita, life expectancy, and years of schooling to provide a more holistic view of a country's progress than GDP alone.
Human Development Index (HDI)
This pillar of sustainability focuses on the responsible management of natural resources and reducing the human "footprint" on ecosystems.
Environmental Sustainability
These 17 global objectives were adopted by all UN Member States in 2015 as a universal call to action to end poverty and protect the planet by 2030.
Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)
This economic process describes the increasing interconnectedness of the world's markets and cultures, which can both promote and hinder a country's development.
Globalization
This term describes the gap in wealth and power between the industrialized nations (mostly in the Northern Hemisphere) and the developing nations.
Global North-South Divide
This concept describes development that meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own.
Sustainable development
This pillar emphasizes the importance of fairness, inclusion, and access to opportunities like education and healthcare for all members of a society.
Social Sustainability (or Social Equity)
These international financial institutions, like the IMF and World Bank, are major stakeholders that provide loans and advice for development projects.
International Intergovernmental Organizations (IGOs)
These "unproductive social functions" are major institutional factors that can reverse decades of development gains in a matter of months.
Conflict and Political Instability
This perspective argues that modern "sustainable development" is just another way for wealthy nations to control the resources of the Global South.
Environmental Colonialism
his statistical measure is used to analyze income or wealth distribution within a nation, with a score of 0 representing perfect equality.
Gini Coefficient (or Gini Index)
This term describes the trade-off or balance required when a country tries to achieve industrial growth while protecting its ecological systems.
Economic vs. Environmental Protection
This stakeholder group, which includes local activists and grassroots initiatives, often holds governments accountable for their sustainability promises.
Civil Society
This theory explains why countries with an abundance of valuable natural resources often experience slower economic growth and more corruption than countries without them.
Resource Curse (or Paradox of Plenty)
This alternative economic model focuses on "regenerative" systems where waste is eliminated and resources are continually reused.
Circular Economy (or Regenerative Approach)
This type of poverty refers to a lack of resources compared to the average standard of living in a specific society, rather than a universal lack of basic needs.
Relative Poverty
This principle, often debated in climate negotiations, argues that all nations share a duty to protect the planet, but that wealthier nations should take the lead due to their historical emissions.
Common but Differentiated Responsibilities
This group of stakeholders is often blamed for "greenwashing" or using their economic power to influence national environmental policies to their advantage.
Multinational Corporations (MNCs)
This social factor is a major barrier to development, as it limits the productivity and potential of half the global population.
Gender inequality
This debate centers on whether economic growth is a prerequisite for environmental protection or if the two are fundamentally incompatible.
Growth vs. Environment Debate
This theoretical framework suggests that global poverty is caused by a historical "center-periphery" relationship where wealthy nations exploit the resources and labor of poorer ones.
Dependency Theory
This radical alternative view of sustainability advocates for a planned reduction in production and consumption in wealthy nations to ensure planetary health.
De-growth
This term refers to the "top-down" influence of wealthy nations or IGOs when they attach environmental or economic "strings" to the aid they provide to developing countries.
Conditionality (or Green Conditionality)
This environmental factor describes the increasing frequency of hazards like droughts and hurricanes that disproportionately affect fragile, developing nations.
Climatic Hazards (or Climate Change Impacts)
This institutional factor refers to the "culture of bureaucracy" and the misuse of public power for private gain, which acts as a significant barrier to both economic development and social sustainability.
Corruption (or the Lack of Transparency/Accountability)