Living in a Sustainable World

This essay reviews life in a sustainable world from the perspectives of population policy in the South and patterns of consumption in the North. It is held to be essential that the rate of population growth and consumption decrease in a full world scenario. Examples are cited which show that primary environmental care with the added focus on empowerment of women can be a successful approach to promote family planning. The development of a new ethic or morality of consumption to change consumption patterns in the North is suggested. This process could be encouraged by governments helping to make prices reflect full environmental costs and providing increased incentives for the development of environmentally benign technologies.