Resources for Green Living in the Chesapeake Bay Area

Many definitions and interpretations of “sustainability” permeate the field. According to one source, there are over 100 definitions of the term. However, the earliest defining articulation of the term occurred in 1987, when the United Nations’ World Commission on Environment and Development released Our Common Future, which defined sustainable development as “development which meets the needs of the present without endangering the ability of future generations to meet their own needs.”

A sample of alternative “sustainability” definitions follows:

Minnesota Pollution Control Agency/Office of Environment Assistance
Sustainable development is an ambitious process in which a community develops attitudes and ongoing actions that strengthen its natural environment, economy and social well-being. Benefits include more livable communities, lower costs and an environment safe for future generations. A growing number of communities across America have begun this process, gathering a number of local initiatives under the umbrella of sustainability. They are bringing preventive, integrative strategies to bear on crime, health, jobs, land use and community values. Sustainable development means development that maintains or enhances economic opportunity and community well-being while protecting and restoring the natural environment upon which people and economies depend. Sustainable development meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs.

A sustainable community can persist over generations, enjoying a healthy environment, prosperous economy and vibrant civic life. It does not undermine its social or physical systems of support. Rather, it develops in harmony with the ecological patterns it thrives in. A sustainable community is one that:

• Acknowledges that economic, environmental and social issues are interrelated and that these issues should be addressed "holistically."
• Recognizes the sensitive interface between the natural and built environments.
• Understands and begins to shift away from polluting and wasteful practices.
• Considers the full environmental, economic and social impacts/costs of development and community operations.
• Understands its natural, cultural, historical and human assets and resources and acts to protect and enhance them.
• Fosters multi-stakeholder collaboration and citizen participation.
• Promotes resource conservation and pollution prevention.
• Focuses on improving community health and quality of life.
• Acts to create value-added products and services in the local economy.

Concern, Inc.
A sustainable community uses its resources to meet current needs while ensuring that adequate resources are available for future generations. It seeks improved public health and a better quality of life for all its residents by limiting waste, preventing pollution, maximizing conservation and promoting efficiency, and developing local resources to revitalize the local economy."

Institute for Sustainable Communities
"Sustainable communities are defined as towns and cities that have taken steps to remain healthy over the long term. Sustainable communities have a strong sense of place. They have a vision that is embraced and actively promoted by all of the key sectors of society, including businesses, disadvantaged groups, environmentalists, civic associations, government agencies, and religious organizations. They are places that build on their assets and dare to be innovative. These communities value healthy ecosystems, use resources efficiently, and actively seek to retain and enhance a locally based economy. There is a pervasive volunteer spirit that is rewarded by concrete results. Partnerships between and among government, the business sector, and nonprofit organizations are common. Public debate in these communities is engaging, inclusive, and constructive. Unlike traditional community development approaches, sustainability strategies emphasize: the whole community (instead of just disadvantaged neighborhoods); ecosystem protection; meaningful and broad-based citizen participation; and economic self-reliance."

Greening USA
GreeningUSA, a private, not-for-profit organization, has undertaken a study of communities and organizations that are rising to the level of identifying sustainable community solutions. The "Twelve Traits of Sustainability Communities" is meant as one way to understand what makes a community “sustainable” and serve as a basis for a community to rate or assess its own sustainability when compared to these twelve traits. As such, it is a vehicle for positive change towards a higher level of sustainability in the lives of citizens, now and in the future.

The Twelve Traits are:

1. Land Use Planning and Development that is integrated, balanced, and diversified.
2. Transportation & Parking with numerous options.
3. Infrastructure Systems addressing long and short term.
4. Buildings and Housing are environmentally sensitive and energy efficient.
5. Economic Development with diversified economic base.
6. Energy Usage and Generation without fossil fuels.
7. Natural Resources Management that is balanced and integrated.
8. Waste Material Management is holistic and value based.
9. Public Education of high quality including sustainability education.
10. Community Involvement and participation by citizens.
11.Governmental Leadership by Executive, staff, and legislators.
12. Human Health and Safety based on clean, safe, healthy, communities.

League of Women Voters
Sustainable communities recognize their interdependence with the global community and seek to meet current economic, environmental, and social demands through equitable and democratic means without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs. In sustainable communities, levels of pollution, consumption, and population size are in keeping with regional carrying capacity; their members share an ethic of responsibility to one another and to future generations; the full social and environmental costs of production, provision, and disposal of goods and services are acknowledged; their systems of governance and leadership encourage democratic deliberation; and their systems of urban planning enhance neighborhood livability and preserve ecological integrity.