An Analysis of The Brundtland Commission's Report Our Common Future

"Our Common Future is a joint work produced in 1987 by a United Nations commission headed by former Norwegian Prime Minister, Gro Brundtland. Also known as The Brundtland Report, it offers a classic approach to problem solving by first asking a productive question. How do we protect the world we live in for future generations, while at the same time stimulating economic and social development right now? The solution the work proposes is "sustainable development", defined in the report as humanity's ability "to ensure that it meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs." The key conclusion the report came to - that we need long-term strategies to manage the earth's natural resources - proved to be so universally welcomed it introduced the term "sustainability" into the everyday language of international politics. Solving the problem of workable sustainable development became a hot topic, leading to the birth of a new academic discipline, environmental economics. The book offered a solution to the problem of ensuring sustainable development by highlighting the critical importance of international cooperation."--Provided by publisher Our Common Future , produced in 1987 by a United Nations commission, responded to a growing number of environmental concerns faced by the global community. Recognizing the need for long-term strategies to manage natural resources, the report argues we must collaborate to protect the environment, while at the same time stimulating economic and social development. These goals can be summarized as 'sustainable development,' defined as humanity's ability 'to ensure that it meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs."' Brundtland argues that human development and the environment are deeply linked and have to be looked at together. Cover Title Page Copyright Page Contents WAYS IN TO THE TEXT Who Is Gro Brundtland? What Does Our Common Future Say? Why Does Our Common Future Matter? SECTION 1: INFLUENCES Module 1: The Author and the Historical Context Module 2: Academic Context Module 3: The Problem Module 4: The Author’s Contribution SECTION 2: IDEAS Module 5: Main Ideas Module 6: Secondary Ideas Module 7: Achievement Module 8: Place in the Author’s Work SECTION 3: IMPACT Module 9: The First Responses Module 10: The Evolving Debate Module 11: Impact and Influence Today Module 12: Where Next? Glossary of Terms People Mentioned in the Text Works Cited