Social Sustainability

Social Sustainability

Lisa Nave, MFT

Nothing exists for its own sake but for a harmony greater
than itself which includes it.
~ Wendell Berry

Environmental sustainability is a concept now widely recognized in popular culture. Even if some may not believe in the scientific truths of environmentalism, most Americans are aware of issues such as global warming, and the importance of reducing our impact on the environment in order to create more sustainability. We are aware of our limited natural resources, of air and water pollution, of rainforest destruction, and of the thinning ozone. Most of us understand that the health of our planet depends upon us making significant changes in the ways we live, practice business, and think. We know we are challenged with the task of becoming thoughtful stewards of the earth who consider the long-term affects of our actions, and the impact they will have upon future generations.

The word sustainable is defined in the Merriam-Webster Dictionary as: capable of being sustained; able to continue over a long period of time; of, relating to, or being a method of harvesting or using a resource so that the resource is not depleted or permanently damaged (2007).

Social sustainability is really no different. Social sustainability, like environmental sustainability, strives to take future generations into consideration, and to live with the awareness that our actions make an impact on others and the world at large. Therefore, social sustainability takes a larger worldview into consideration in relation to marriage, family, parenting, divorce, community, culture, nationality, and globalization. It asks us to not only think of ourselves and what we want, but to take the whole system into consideration as well. This is a different concept than those of traditional communal cultures such as China, where the individual is denied in favor of the community. Social sustainability is not about denying the self, but about including both the self and other - the community, in the decision making process.

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