ABSTRACT
The increasing pressures of human population growth, technical change and consumption on the ecological systems of the planet demand immediate review of the form and character of development in general, and of the built environment in particular. This need for change, which has been called the environmental imperative, has resulted in new development goals that embrace economic, social and environmental issues in a collective way. Termed ecological sustainable development (ESD), this new focus for the built environment offers an environmental brief for building design professionals.
