This week I keep seeing posters on the tube for the ‘Britain in 2009‘ report, on sale now in all good newsagents. Among the teasers on the front page is the line ‘sustainable living – can it work in Britain?’
This is a little like asking ‘can survival work in Britain?’ Or ‘non-suicidal living – will it ever catch on?’ It’s unsustainable living that doesn’t work, and sustainable living can and must work everywhere. Even, God forbid, in Britain. I don’t know what editor or copywriter put that teaser there (the article inside is fine) but it does no credit to the Economic and Social Research Council who authored the report.
Unfortunately it’s not untypical of the way the word ‘sustainable’ is used, and it is in danger of losing its meaning. It’s one of those noble words that gets casually dropped into official-speak along with ‘diversity’, or ‘inclusive’. Either that or it’s used alongside fluffy environmental terms like ‘green’ or ‘friendly’. The fact is that sustainability is a matter of life and death. Sustainability is not a preference, an aspiration or an optional extra – if something isn’t sustainable, it is doomed. It has a death sentence hanging over it and cannot continue.
The Earthbound Report 