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Revisiting sustainable development: Russian cultural and scientific traditions and the concept of sustainable development
Author(s) -
Oldfield J. D.,
Shaw D. J. B.
Publication year - 2002
Publication title -
area
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.958
H-Index - 82
eISSN - 1475-4762
pISSN - 0004-0894
DOI - 10.1111/1475-4762.00096
Subject(s) - sustainable development , summit , earth summit , environmental ethics , political science , meaning (existential) , cultural heritage , russian federation , sociology , regional science , geography , epistemology , law , philosophy , physical geography
The World Summit on Sustainable Development (26 August–4 September 2002), held in Johannesburg on the tenth anniversary of the first Earth Summit, provides the opportunity to reflect on the meaning of the sustainable development concept. This paper uses the case study of the Russian Federation to explore the relationship between official interpretations of sustainable development and alternative understandings concerned with the betterment of humankind, which draw on Russia's cultural and scientific heritage. It is suggested that there is much to be gained from reopening the sustainable development debate to incorporate such cultural particularities, both at the national and international levels.