ABSTRACT
Sustainability is not only about architectural strategies and building solutions; it is not only about environmental processes and management systems, or even about taxes and legislative systems. Sustainability is about the way people live. Everything individuals do in their lives has an impact on the environment. The choices of food, housing, entertainment, work and mobility all directly or indirectly affect the environment. Such choices are based on personal interests and values which today are often driven by aspirations to acquire material wealth and are associated with high environmental impacts. The Worldwatch team suggests that these consumerist values fill a void in people’s lives left by the loss of the belief in the value of religion, the community and the family, and even displaces these beliefs where still intact. A shift away from these consumerist values is, however, essential, as a less consumptive society is the only way of achieving a sustainable global community (Worldwatch 2004).
