Introduction
Introduction to Sustainable Development is a component of Encyclopedia of Development and Economic Sciences in the global Encyclopedia of Life Support Systems (EOLSS), which is an integrated compendium of twenty one Encyclopedias.
The Theme on “Introduction to Sustainable Development implies processes of fundamental change in our social systems and institutions. The thrust of this change [entails] … addressing the … new global awareness that the earth is finite, and all of the planet's life support systems – including social and economic systems – are globally interconnected and interdependent.” This volume is aimed at the following five major target audiences: University and College students Educators, Professional practitioners, Research personnel and Policy analysts, managers, and decision makers and NGOs.
Editor(s) Biography
David Bell is interested in the Politics of Sustainability; the transformation in political practices, policies, institutions, and culture that will be necessary to support sustainability in the twenty-first century. He has served as consultant and advisor to private sector companies and to governments at all 3 levels in Canada and internationally to the G8, the Government of China, and the Government of Jamaica. A political scientist by training, David was an undergraduate at York University in its earliest years, graduating with his B. A. in 1965. He received his PhD from Harvard University in 1969, and taught at Michigan State University for 2 years before returning to York in 1971. He served as Dean of the Faculty of Graduate Studies (1981-87) and Dean of the Faculty of Environmental Studies from 1992-1996 at York University.
David is Professor Emeritus and Senior Scholar in Environmental Studies and was until July 2003 the Director of the York Centre for Applied Sustainability (YCAS). This Centre, which he founded in 1996, has now evolved into the York University Institute for Research and Innovation in Sustainability (IRIS).
David is currently the Chair of Learning for a Sustainable Future ( www.lsf-lst.ca) and co-chair of the Education Alliance for a Sustainable Ontario (EASO), and of the National Education for Sustainable Development Expert Council (NESDEC). He served as a member of the National Round Table on Environment and Economy (www.nrtee-trnee.ca) from June 2003 to February 2007. From December 2002 until November 2006, David served as Chair Of the Board of Directors of Parc-Downsview-Park Inc. (www.pdp.ca), a federal Crown Corporation whose mandate is to create for the people of Canada an “urban greenspace for the enjoyment of future generations” at former CFB Downsview. David was a member of the Environmental Task Force of the City of Toronto (1998 – 2000) and the Toronto Sustainability Round Table (2000 – 2003). David chaired the SRT Governance Working Group. He was a founding member of the International Sustainability Indicators Network (ISIN) and was also Chair of the Technical Advisory Committee of the Voluntary Challenge and Registry (VCR Inc) from 1997 until 2004. He served for the Minister of Environment (Ontario) as Chair/facilitator of the Expert Panel on the Taro East Landfill which released its Final Report in October, 2000. In July 2005 he was appointed Chair/facilitator of the Toward Sustainability in York Region Advisory Group which presented its Report to the York Region Council in June 2006.
Yuk-kuen Annie Cheung, York Centre for Applied Sustainability (YCAS); The University of Toronto, York University - Joint Centre for Asia Pacific Studies, Canada
