Sustainable Development The Spiritual Dimension

The concept of sustainable development was accepted by the world leaders in Rio de Janerio in 1992. The concept was vague and this is natural when an international consensus has to be achieved. It was also based implicitly on the dominant Western paradigm with its stress on science and technology, its stress on management of technology and the meshing of economics and ecology as the answer to the environmental crisis. Value systems were not included in the concept of sustainable development. The book studies the Eastern paradigm base on the concepts and values of Hinduism, Buddhism and Islam and suggests that for a truly global ethic the Western and Eastern paradigms need to be integrated. This can be done through the mediation of modern science easily for the best of the properity.

This book discloses the spiritual dimension in business ethics and sustainability management. Spirituality is understood as a multiform search for meaning which connects people with all living beings and God or Ultimate Reality. In this sense, spirituality is a vital source in social and economic life. The volume examines the spiritual orientations to nature and business in different cultural traditions: Christianity, Judaism, Islam, Sufism, Hinduism, Buddhism, and Taoism. It studies how spirituality and ecology can contribute to transforming contemporary management theory and praxis. It discusses new leadership roles and business models that emerge for sustainability in business and shows how entrepreneurship can be inspired by nature and spirituality in a meaningful way.

This book presents new and important research advances in the field of sustainable development which has been defined as balancing the fulfilment 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 need". The field of sustainable development can be conceptually broken into four constituent parts: environmental sustainability, economic sustainability, social sustainability and political sustainability.

Looking beyond the materialistic boundary of the conventional development paradigm, this book identifies our spiritual underdevelopment which is being reflected as self-centeredness and greed, as the root cause of conventional development's failure to alleviate poverty and inequality, achieve sustainability and deliver happiness to humanity.

This interdisciplinary book parameterizes the global ecodynamic process. The discussion considers basic global problems of the Nature-Society-System (NSS) dynamics and reviews key problems of ensuring its sustainable development. The book includes an analysis of trends in changing ecological systems and estimates characteristics of current global ecodynamics. The authors propose a new approach to NSS numerical modelling and demonstrate the results of modelling the dynamics of this system's characteristics.

Rooted in both secular spirituality and scientific evidence, this book articulates a new model of sustainable development that is not just based on narrow definitions of GDP and economic growth, but that includes and even forefronts the social, environmental, and internal development of human beings.

'This book is state-of-the-art. the authors present refreshing ideas about sustainability. It is a challenging approach to the conceptualization, measurement and ranking of sustainable development. This goes far beyond technicalities, discussing political, managerial and spiritual aspects of societal change.' – Jan Pronk, International Institute of Social Studies, the Hague, the Netherlands Sustainable development cannot be prescribed – rather, it results from conscious personal choices in government, business and NGOs. This thought-provoking book explores both the origins and future of the global sustainable development movement, and provides an original overview of the driving forces of sustainable development, including market forces and past and future trends. the contributors, leading experts in the field, identify and analyze the sustainability attitudes of key actors in government, corporate and NGO leadership that have shaped sustainable development history. the importance of a new and unconventional role of governments in promoting sustainability is highlighted, while corporations and NGOs feel both the risk of failures and the importance of long-term global stability more directly. Exploring the present and future scope of emerging global sustainable development movement, this stimulating and thought-provoking book will prove invaluable to a wide-ranging audience encompassing: academics, researchers, students and business practitioners with an interest in sustainable development and corporate social responsibility, public administration and public-private interactions; and policymakers involved in environmental, social and economic issues in both government and non-governmental organizations.

With the world increasingly anxious about the sustainability of life as we know it on Earth, it’s a great time to consider how to unlock sustainable development. Patrick Ssempeera shares a collection of ideas focused on Africa, which is less industrialized than much of the world but quickly catching up. He tackles a variety of topics in eight chapters that encompass attitude, spirituality, shaping people into nurturing adults, government policy, promoting renewability, and fostering healthy and intimate integrations. Get answers to questions such as: • What can Africa learn from rampant levels of pollution in China and elsewhere? • How is love of culture connected to sustainable development? • What can Africans do to work toward a self-driven future? • How can spiritual leaders promote a sustainable agenda? The author also explores how politics, education, optimism, industrialization, and globalization are connected to sustainable development. Steeped in history, filled with insights, and laced with diagrams, this book is an essential resource for anyone interested in sustainable development—particularly in Africa.