Peter Jacques

Sustainability is a pressing concern for people and governments around the world, but it is also an essentially contested concept that requires an understanding of the stakes, trade-offs, and complex politics at play. Sustainability: The Basics offers an accessible and interdisciplinary introduction to the concept, and discusses key questions such as: What are the core principles of sustainability? What are the key ethical considerations for questions of sustainability? How do we measure sustainability? What are the critical obstacles to achieving global sustainability? What happens when societies fail to observe principles of sustainability? Fully updated in its second edition, Sustainability: The Basics now includes coverage of the Sustainable Development Goals, a global range of case studies and explores the complex social dynamics of Earth system changes that affect our critical life supports. The second edition also proposes a new, "sustainable humanism" that animates much of our work to make a better, more humane world. As the world reels from the effects of the Covid-19 pandemic, this book is an ideal starting point for anyone who wants to know more about what we need to do to sustain civilization, humanity, and the world we live in.

Sustainability is concerned with the issues around the ongoing and mutual preservation of both society and the environment. It is a widely used term and supposed goal for many governments but it is also easily misunderstood. Sustainability: The Basics offers an accessible and interdisciplinary introduction to the concept, and discusses key questions such as: How do we decide who or what should be sustained? How can we ensure that the world's resources are distributed fairly? What lessons can we learn from the collapse of previous civilizations? Sustainability studies is in a position to ask some of the most interesting questions about human purpose, identity, modernity, ethics, and the nature of "progress". This book is an ideal starting point for anyone who wants to know more about we can 'hold up' civilization, humanity, and the world we live in.

Environmental scepticism denies the seriousness of environmental problems, and self-professed ‘sceptics’ claim to be unbiased analysts combating ‘junk science’. This study quantitatively analyses 141 English-language environmentally sceptical books published between 1972 and 2005. We find that over 92 per cent of these books, most published in the US since 1992, are linked to conservative think tanks. Further, we analyse CTTs involved with environmental issues and find that 90 per cent of them espouse environmental scepticism. We conclude that scepticism is a tactic of an elite-driven counter-movement designed to combat environmentalism, and that the successful use of this tactic has contributed to the weakening of US commitment to environmental protection.