什么是可持续性？
“Sustainability” seems to be the latest fad among corporate speak and corporate bigwigs often employ the word when addressing shareholders or the media alike. However, contrary to its current ubiquity in the media or being discussed at length during annual shareholders’ meetings, the very essence of “sustainability” precisely hinges on its ability to outlast its status of being the latest buzzword. So, what exactly does “sustainability” mean?
In its simplest form, “sustainability” means doing things in a certain way which would meet the needs of the current generation without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own. Some people equate sustainability with dealing with climate change, some with reducing carbon emissions and some with switching to renewable energy sources. It is the sum of everything stated above and more.
可持续发展不仅仅落在政府、企业和非政府组织的肩上。事实上，每个人在可持续发展方面都扮演着同等重要的角色，因为地球是我们唯一知道并拥有的家园。
为了更全面地理解可持续性，它分为 3 个支柱： 环境、经济和社会.
➀ Environmental
Environmental sustainability is the one most people are familiar with. It simply pertains to the management of Earth’s natural resources, that we take care not to exhaust these resources or destroy the environment in the extraction of these resources; that these resources are not over-extracted to the point that renewing them becomes impossible. For example, at the rate we are currently consuming fossil fuel or cutting down forests to make way for development, these practices are simply not sustainable. The carbon emissions of the former and reduced ability to remove carbon dioxide from the environment due to more deforestation only serve to exacerbate the problem.
➁ Economic
经济可持续性强调能够支持长期经济增长，同时又不损害社区的社会、环境和文化方面的商业实践。例如，引入立法限制或禁止在许多居民区附近进行水力压裂，将确保该地区的居民能够获得干净的饮用水。
➂ Social
社会可持续性确保没有人在追求利润的过程中受到剥削或歧视；每个人都得到公平对待，并能获得基本必需品，如清洁水、充足的食物、医疗保健、住所和人权。一个很好的例子就是消费者和股东大规模抵制在贫困国家剥削童工或不公平就业做法的公司。
总的来说，这三大可持续发展支柱也被称为三重底线。道德实体应始终考虑其三重底线，包括成功指标，包括对环境健康（地球）、社会福祉（人）和公正经济（繁荣）的贡献，也称为 3 P。
有些人可能认为个人太无能为力，无法对政府或公司的可持续发展思维方式产生任何改变或影响。那么，普通人如何成为拯救他们所知道的唯一家园的十字军呢？
这一切都始于受教育（你通过阅读到这里）并帮助将福音传播给不知情的人。注意并有兴趣了解更多关于您购买的公司的信息。始终支持从事可持续发展实践并享有盛誉的公司，并从那些不这样做的公司手中夺走你的美元选票。
Ultimately, corporations’ main purpose is to generate profits and you, the consumer, would be giving them a very effective message by hurting them where it hurts most – in their pockets. Should enough consumers respond in like manner, this very simple action would generate a whole chain event which would reach all the way to the top of the corporations and force them to relook at their company policies.
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何家俊
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德斯蒙德周
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