Sustainable development is an international environmental law concept that is most often described as development that meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs. This definition comes from meetings of the 1987 World Commission on Environment and Development (WCED). The definition is by no means the universal, authoritative definition on the subject, as the issue of sustainable development continues to be widely debated in international law. The term itself also varies in usage - from sustainable development to sustainable use, sustainability, and sustainable management, among others. Generally, however, the concept (by whatever term it is referred to) promotes the balance between improvement of quality of life for the current citizens of the world, while not using the Earth's natural resources to the point where they can not be regenerated or preserved for future generations. WCED recommended, among other things, the following specific actions for achievement of sustainable development: (1) meet essential needs for jobs, food, energy, water, and sanitation; (2) ensure a sustainable level of population; (3) conserve and enhance the resource base; and (4) combine environment and economics considerations in decision-making.
One important international agency in the field of sustainable development is the Commission on Sustainable Development (CSD), which was created in 1992 in response to the United Nations Conference on Environment and Development (UNCED), also referred to as the Earth Summit. At UNCED, the document "Agenda 21" was formulated. Agenda 21 includes a plan for achieving sustainable development in the 21st century, among other goals. CSD is a commission of the United Nations Economic and Social Council. Its mandate is to monitor implementation of the goals agreed to at UNCED. The 1992 World Summit on Sustainable Development (WSSD) set forth a plan to enhance the role of the CSD. Many people working in the field of sustainable development state, however, that progress has been slow. Another WSSD was held in 2002 in South Africa. As a result of the 2002 WSSD, the United States focused its contributions to sustainable development on forming global partnerships with other countries, international organizations, and private sector organizations.
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