Our Planet

For more than thirty years, scientists from various disciplines have warned that the constant increase in world population and exponential world economic growth are seriously threatening our ecosystems.

In this introduction to the Sustainability Project series, Jill Jäger and her colleagues disuss the complex picture of environmental, economic and social changes of the world today, linking together many of the themes covered in more depth in the rest of the series. Our Planet: How Much More Can Earth Take? shows the need to reduce drastically the consumption of natural resources, and describes the options available for reorienting society towards sustainable development.

The path to sustainable development requires changes in lifestyles, production methods and consumption behavior. These changes must be underpinned by moderation and a commitment to improving our quality of life.

At the time of writing this book, Jill Jäger was a senior researcher at the Sustainable Europe Research Institute (SERI) in Vienna.