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What is sustainable development?

Delivering sustainable development should involve planning for the long-term, fully integrating economic, social and environmental factors into decision making and considering impacts beyond the local area.

For the public sector, the overarching framework for delivering sustainable development in the UK is set out in One Future - Different Paths, in which "the goal of sustainable development is to enable all people throughout the world to satisfy their basic needs and enjoy a better quality of life, without compromising the quality of life of future generations".

 At the local level, terms such as sustainable communities, well-being, good corporate citizenship and sustainable procurement all fall under the banner of sustainable development.
The UK's shared sustainable development framework sets out a set of principles (right) to help guide public sector decision-makers, whereby the aim to achieve the goals of living within environmental limits and a just society by means of sustainable economy, good governance and sound science. Sustainable development principles
 
Further reading
HM Government, One future - different paths: the UK's shared framework for sustainable development, March 2005, www.sustainable-development.gov.uk

HM Government, Securing the future: UK delivering sustainable development strategy, March 2005, www.sustainable-development.gov.uk

You can find out more about sustainable development on the SDC website.