BASIC PRINCIPLES OF SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT

principles of sustainable development

What do you mean by sustainable development? Is it a new term in the dictionary? Will it help our future generation? Is it costly? Will it affect the present generation? What are the basic principles of sustainable development? Well, this article is all about your questions on sustainable development. Sustainable development is all about using the resources currently in the environment in an organized manner that fulfills the present generation’s needs and saves them for the future generation.

As we have limited resources in nature and it takes hundreds and thousands of years for help to be made. Mahatma Gandhi once said, “There is enough for everyone’s need but not for anyone’s greed” sustainable development is not at all costly and won’t create a problem for the present generation as well. Want to know more about it? The following are some basic principles of sustainable development. 

Protecting the ecosystem – principles of sustainable development

Humans are not the only beings living on this earth; there are other lives apart from human beings that are part of our nature. Expect for a human being. There are 1.6 billion species discovered by humans, which is only 10% of the existing species. As human beings, we are the most intelligent and able species. We have to protect other species from the line of extinction. We ought to save all the terrestrial and aquatic species for our future generation. It is pretty simple to do so; all we have to do is clean all the water bodies, landscape, mountains, and mind not to throw garbage in it ever again. 

principles of sustainable development

Conservation of biodiversity

Our environment is made of land, air, and water. And all three layers have their own species living in them. An important and significant principle of sustainable development is to preserve all the living beings living in the environment. Whether they are living on land, air, or water, moreover, it’s our duty to protect our mother earth too from all the harmful substances such as pollution as it protects us from several components that are deadly harmful to the human body, such as ultraviolet rays of the sun, meteorites, astriorides, etc. 

Uneven distribution- principles of sustainable development

All the resources present in the environment are distributed unevenly amongst all the continents on earth. Some are rich in coal, while some countries do not have coal at all. However, some are rich in petroleum, while some buy petroleum from other countries. Some have enough gold to waste, while some countries cannot afford to buy it. To overcome this challenge of uneven distribution on earth, we need to maintain relations with other countries and help each other so that everyone can enjoy the benefit of every resource present on earth. Also, there is uneven distribution amongst different states of the same country, which leads to fewer transport charges if there are enough resources in a country.

principles of sustainable development

Peace 

One of the essential and significant principles of sustainable development is peace amongst species. If we humans do not harm other species, there is no reason they will harm us. Humans should stop humiliating animals just because they can not speak or are inferior. For instance- humans are keeping animals like tigers, lions, crocodiles, chimpanzees, hyena, bear, cheetah, elephant, zebra, duck, parrot, dinosaur, deer, snake, etc in zoos just for entertainment. We keep them away from their homes and keep them in cages. We humiliate them in the circus just to earn money. And then we say ‘animals are dangerous.’

Reserving for the future generation

All the resources that are present in nature, if it is diamond, petroleum, coal, gold, or any other resources, are all limited in nature and can end up any time from now. In Order to reserve it for future generations, we need to use it in an organized manner to fulfill our needs and be sufficient for the future generation. Else our future generation will suffer because of our present greed. Furthermore, all the resources that we are using today were buried thousands of years ago. And so resources take thousands of years to be formed. If we use all the resources present in the core of the earth, it will be difficult for our future generation to survive.

Development of artificial resources- principles of sustainable development

If we have to reserve the resources present in nature for future generations, we will have to compromise somehow. We will have to limit our needs and greed in order to achieve our goals. In that case, science and humans will have to stand up together. We humans will have to make new inventions that use fewer resources and give their best as well. For instance- the cars that we use today consume and run on petroleum, while the new vehicles introduced a few years back run on electricity which is an excellent move for preserving oil for the future.principles of sustainable development

 

Conclusion

Our mother earth is doing so much for us; it is protecting, sheltering us, giving us food to eat, giving us life. We are not the only ones living here. Therefore, it is our duty to take care of other species that are a part of this earth we are living on. Apart from this, we ought to maintain the natural cycle and should not disrupt it as it plays a vital role in providing us life. Sustainable development is not at all difficult or expensive; instead, it is beneficial, and one can easily practice it.