1. Analyze the historical interplay between sustainability concerns and environmental policy. Do you agree with the assertion in the Theis/Tomkin book (pages 16ff) that an interest in sustainability has been present since at least 1850? Or is sustainability really a twentieth-century phenomenon? Support your reasoning with reference to the history of the environmental movement.
2. Our Common Future(often referred to as The Brundtland Report), published in 1987, was the first major document to suggest a link between social inequity and environmental degradation. In Section II of the report, the authors identify six (6) policy directions. Choose one of the directions, and indicate whether you believe progress has been made in that area since the report was originally published. Use appropriate academic evidence to support your position.
Many factors have contributed to unsustainable practices in today's world (reread Miller and Spoolman Chapter 1, pages 11-15). Focus on three (3) of those factors to illustrate their specific effects on Earth's resources and inhabitants.
3. Examine the sustainability paradigm, located in the Theis/Tomkin text on page 7. Many people perceive only two parts to the sustainability paradigm: environment (environmental protection) and economic (economic interests). Why do you think it is more difficult for people to recognize the role of social (or sociopolitical) issues, which include justice and equality? Using academic evidence, propose and defend an argument that supports or rejects the notion that society has an ethical obligation to support the well-being of future generations