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Has the time come for a new word to replace sustainability? The word itself has become

so overused that it has become difficult to even define, as the definition changes with every

application of the word. Perhaps the word has even lost some of its original impact when used. In

a world where sustainability has become a major concern for all peoples, whether they are

economists, environmentalists, or something else, this word has a meaning to them. What then

happens to the term when applied to community planning? We look at sustainability in the

social, economic and environmental sense. The time has come for a new word to replace

sustainability, a new word with a significant meaning, not just in definition, but in what it calls

on from humanity in general. I propose that the word stewardship take the place of

sustainability when we speak or write of human interactions with the Earth. Throughout this

paper I will outline why sustainability has become a clouded word and why stewardship

should take its place. As a planner it becomes a duty to ensure that planning is sustainable.

Utilizing the word stewardship to express the responsibility to plan sustainably emphasises the

task of a planner and outlines just how much of an effect they have on the world. Throughout the

paper, I will primarily focus on stewardship in an environmental sense. Of course it can also be

applied to social, economic, political and numerous other areas of our lives. An environmental

analogy will serve to demonstrate how the word stewardship can alter our perceptions of our

role on Earth.

The idea of sustainability, in an environmental sense, can be applied on all sorts of levels.

For example, if we look at a closed system with a set amount of resources and organisms of both

plant and animal varieties, we would find that natural processes keep the environment in balance.

Environments have carrying capacities and organisms populations are controlled through natural

means such a predation, starvation, disease, or weather. These natural events keep an

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environment sustainable and continuing. Throughout history, we see that major environmental

changes occur because of devastating weather events or natural disasters such as volcanoes,

landslides, and floods. What happens to an environment that is introduced to an organism that

has the power to consume from the environment, exceed carrying capacities and fight off natural

population controls? Environments tend to suffer at the hands of organisms that are tolerant to

natures power. There are many invasive organisms that have this power on Earth, we can look at

invasive plant species such as dandelions or Purple loosestrife, and we can look at animal species

such as Africanised Bees or Asian Carp. The most invasive species on Earth, however, are the

Homo sapiens. We humans spent years living in harmony with nature and in a very sustainable

way. Our populations were controlled by the resources that could be gathered for food, the

climate conditions that limited our spread, and the natural occurrences of disease and disaster

that curbed our growth. As a species though, we became too intelligent for our own good. Soon

we began to harness nature to meet our needs. The agricultural revolution allowed us to grow

food in abundance and in consistent amounts. Populations grew. Then the industrial revolution

allowed us to urbanise and produce goods in mass quantities. We were now taking a heavier toll

on nature. The sustainability of ecosystems that kept us alive for generations was now been

disrupted by our interactions with nature. Sustainability became less of a concern for humanity in

many regions of the world as power and wealth become the standard of measurement for society.

We overpowered nature.

A newfound power over entire ecosystems and need to micromanage every part of our

lives, from the soil that produces our food, to what we do for entertainment, the environment

took a seat in our collective list of priorities right along with what we would be having for dinner

and what we would be wearing the next day. Having gone from the only means of our survival to

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just a thought in a day, the environment and its wellbeing has been trivialized over time. The

word sustainability used today to describe our need to maintain what we have has been adopted

by other parts of our lives to describe the need to maintain and nurture other systems, such as our

economy. It is time that a new word is ascribed to the wellbeing of nature. The word must be one

that makes an impact when heard and one that distinguishes our responsibility to protect our

global environment. I propose that word to be stewardship

Stewardship, as a word, denotes a responsibility an individual or individuals have to an

issue, person, place, or thing. In our world, we have become stewards of our environment. With

the power to alter the environment and many other aspects of our lives, comes a responsibility to

sustain these aspects. Stewardship applied to environmental and social structures will be

common when discussing planning.

The word stewardship goes beyond the scope of mere sustainability. While

sustainability is a clear aspect and goal of stewardship, the new term adds a whole new layer to

the discussion. Stewardship implies a responsibility charged to humanity to protect and

maintain what we have power over. As our society has the ability to alter environments on large

scales, we must accept the responsibility to sustain our surroundings. By applying a layer of

responsibility, people would likely take the issue of sustainability more seriously. Making it a

duty akin to raising a child, caring for the elderly, or even maintaining a car, sustainability

becomes a larger concern. The environment moves from being a nicety to a ward needing our

care. Attempts to make issues such as the environment a greater priority to society, like the

Kyoto Protocol have largely been unsuccessful to this point. Many states simply do not agree to

take responsibility, or if they do agree, they ignore those responsibilities. A key step in changing

the viewpoints of people is to construct a new culture around the word stewardship. The issue of

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sustainability needs to be properly recognised as a problem before solutions can be seriously

considered.

Stewardship is potentially a very dangerous word for us to begin using. The idea of

placing responsibility on people can be received negatively by those who become responsible.

Let us look at how a government would react. Currently governments use the environment,

sustainability and green policy as tools to gain political support, there tends to be little

consequences in speaking about changing our ways and what happens when plans are not

followed through. Placing responsibility on actors such as the government, by determining issues

such as the environment, social issues, etc. are responsibilities of the government, who are the

stewards, can be met with resistance. If suddenly people are forced to act on issues, especially

environmental ones, they will find ways to skirt their responsibilities. Costs both in time and

money quickly mount when the wellbeing of the environment is considered.

Corporations and individuals would resist have responsibility placed on them as well.

Like governments, private individuals and corporations do not want to have extra responsibilities

that may have an associated cost. Environmental issues are a quagmire of problems for many

industries. Imagine for a moment if the auto industry were required to run a zero waste

production line and to harness energy that was both renewable and clean. The products that they

produce would also need to be clean. Changes like this would take many years and many dollars

to complete.

Placing the responsibility of environmental care on everyone is where this word aims to

take us as a society. No longer can we afford to consider the environment to be just a source of

basic resources that is never ending. We, along with nature have limits and if those limits are not

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taken seriously, the consequences could be severe. Through long term conditioning, a greater

emphasis on the word stewardship can foster a belief that responsibility lies with everyone.

Political and corporate cultures are the most important ones to change, but a grass-roots change

through the private citizen is where the word would make initial inroads.

Through the use of a charged word, that denotes responsibility on the part of humanity,

we will encourage greater levels of action from people and further promote the need for

sustainability. Sound, sustainable planning becomes not only an ideal, but also a duty. Holding

everyone to a duty rather than a goal becomes the incentive to make solid gains. For these

reasons, I feel replacing the word sustainability with stewardship would be a great change for

the planning community. Purposely putting issues, such as the environment, society, the

economy, and other things, at the forefront in planning makes for great results and long term

success.