In 1987 the World Commission on Environment and Development sought to address the problem of conflicts between environment and development goals by formulating a definition of sustainable development: 

Sustainable development is development which meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs.

In particular, an environmentally sustainable system must maintain a stable resource base, avoiding over-exploitation of renewable resource systems or environmental sink functions, and depleting nonrenewable resources only to the extent that investment is made in adequate substitutes. This includes maintenance of biodiversity, atmospheric stability, and other ecosystem functions not ordinarily classed as economic resources.

The conservation of ecosystems and natural resources is essential for sustainable economic production and intergenerational equity. From an ecological perspective, both human population and total resource demand must be limited in scale, and the integrity of ecosystems and diversity of species must be maintained.

Sustainability, however, is more than limits on population or restraint in consumption - though these are important. It means that the choice of goods and technologies must be oriented to the requirements of ecosystem integrity and species diversity as well as to social goals. Elements of all three perspectives – economic, ecological, and social – are essential to an understanding of the requirements for sustainability.

Both supply limits and environmental impacts, in particular the accumulation of greenhouse gases, mean that it will be necessary to accomplish a transition away from fossil fuels well before 2050. A non-fossil energy system would be significantly more decentralized, adapted to local conditions and taking advantage of opportunities for wind, biomass, and off-grid solar power systems. This is unlikely to occur without a major mobilization of capital resources for renewable energy development in countries now rapidly expanding their energy systems.

As the scale of global industrial production increases several-fold over current levels, which themselves represent a quadrupling over 1950 levels, it is apparent that ‘end-of-pipe’ pollution control not be adequate. The concept of ‘industrial ecology’ implies the restructuring of whole industrial sectors based on a goal of reducing emissions and reusing the materials at all stages of the production cycle.

Enhanced with AR:

  • Leverage AR platforms such as Assemblr EDU to allow students to create virtual prototypes of eco-inspired designs​ for sustainable development.
  • Simulate the biogas cycle with all the steps of the bio energy production process.
  • Collaborative AR environments encourage group brainstorming and enhance team-based problem-solving for industrial ecology​.

New Learning Outcome: Students learn to bridge ecology and engineering by designing eco-inspired solutions with AR-enhanced feedback mechanisms.