Ethics of Sustainability

Sustainability is an important concept that is widely referenced and that has achieved
broad support. Yet it remains inherently difficult to implement because of its complexity
and due to the enormous shifts in thinking that it proposes. Particularly challenging is the
development and implementation of technology, the vast majority of which has
significant potential negative consequences for the health of both people and planet. This
book provides natural and social scientists, engineers, architects, builders and other
technical professionals with a clear description of the meaning of sustainability and a
practical guide to the ethical challenges involved in its promotion and achievement. It
describes the ethical concepts and principles that are inherent in sustainability and is
designed to aid these professions in evaluating and directing their activities, particularly
when developing, deploying, and employing technology.
Sustainability is commonly understood to require the balanced pursuit of three goods:
ecological health, social equity, and economic welfare. It is grounded on the ethical
commitment to the well-being not only of contemporary populations but also the wellbeing and enhanced opportunities of future generations. The scientific and technical
professions have a special responsibility in this regard because the knowledge and
technologies they develop and employ have immense impacts on natural environments,
economies, and the empowerment of citizens and societies. Moreover, their efforts and
achievements can continue to produce effects, for good or ill, well into the future.
In articulating the challenge of pursuing both intergenerational and intragenerational
benefits for environments, societies and economies, this book grounds practical decision making in ethical concepts and values. Through exposure to a wide variety of concrete
examples, case studies, moral debates, and exercises, readers will gain a nuanced
understanding of the ethics of sustainability and develop a set