ABSTRACT
As crucial as the concept may be, sustainability has become an over-marketed, hackneyed, and largely misunderstood term as it relates to urbanism. The author defines sustainability as the aspiration that human activity can be made compatible with the long-term health and safety of the natural environment, which, in turn, would ensure the longevity of our own species. Sustainability is decidedly not Henry David Thoreaus misanthropic vision of a virgin forest occupied by one person. In the contemporary context, it is not about camping, or visiting eco-resorts in areas that should remain untouched, or living in green McMansions in the wilderness. Humanity's history with such judgments is nothing short of bleak, with everything from genocide to forced sterilization representing the most terrifying moments in our collective past. Of course, as Sachs advises, we should actively promote birth control, prosperity, womens' education, public health, and all other measures that ethically reduce the rate of population growth.
