Sustainability Science: An emerging field of use-inspired research Presented at University of Massachusetts Boston --December 4, 2015 Symposium on “Sustainability Science: Roots and Branches” by Bill Clark Harvey Brooks Professor of International Science, Public Policy and Human Development Kennedy School of Government, Harvard University on behalf of a team of collaborators: Partha Dasgupta, Bill Turner, Pam Matson, Bob Kates, John Schellnhuber, Lin Ostrom† et al.

Sustainable Development: “The central challenge of our time” “Environment is where we live; Development is what we all do in attempting to improve our lot within that abode. The two are inseparable….” “Humanity has the ability to make development sustainable…“ (WCED, 1987)

Humanity has the ability to make development sustainable…“ global ENERGY demand 2015  2050: +40%

Humanity has the ability to make development sustainable…“ global FOOD demand 2015  2050: +50%

Humanity has the ability to make development sustainable…“ global URBAN demand 2015  2050: +60%

Interconnected needs of 10B people… Heading toward “A Perfect Storm…” (Beddington, 2009)

Science has an essential role to play in supporting “informed agitation” Ultimately a political battle against inequity… To “make development sustainable?”

Researchers have responded, addressing “sustainability” through vast range of topics and approaches… (Bettencourt & Kaur 2011)

…and coming together in an emergent “field” of Sustainability Science (Bettencourt et al. 2011) IIASA Sustainable Development

Sustainability Science today?

One (group’s) perspective on “Sustainability Science”… 1)An emerging field of ‘use-inspired’ R&D, like ‘agricultural science,’ ‘health science’ before it; 2)Defined by the practical problems it addresses, i.e. the problems of sustainable development; 3)Conducted by drawing from and integrating basic research on social-environmental systems from the natural, social, medical and engineering sciences; 4)Committed to linking knowledge with action by “informing agitation” for improved practices, technologies and policies...

1) “Use inspired research”? “Soaking and poking” Applied research (Edison) Basic research (Bohr) Use-inspired research (Pasteur) Quest for fundament al understan ding? Considerations of use? Yes No Research inspired by… (redrawn from Stokes, 1997)

Purely basic research Use-inspired basic research (Sustainability Science) Purely applied R&D Improved understanding Existing understanding Existing policy and technology Improved policy and technology (redrawn from Stokes, 1997) … centered in “Pasteur’s Quadrant”

2) Defined by the practical problems it addresses What is to be developed? – Human well-being (conserving nature as means, not end) How to value equity? – Inclusive human well-being (intra- and inter- generational) Sustainability now (rigorously) defined as development in which – inclusive human well-being is (at least) non- decreasing

3) Conducted by harnessing basic research on social-environmental systems… (IGBP, IHDP, Future Earth, etc.)

Stocks of Assets Goals of SD Consumption Processes Production Processes Goods & Services Actors / Power Ultimate Determinants of potential for achieving sustainable development Inclusive Human Well-Being (context specific) Social- Environmental Systems … to rethink how human activities can be managed to achieve sustainability goals

Which stocks of assets determine the potential for sustainability? Natural capital (C n ) – Soils, air, climate, biodiversity, ecosystems… Human capital (C h ) – Population (numbers, distribution), health, literacy Physical capital (C p ) – Manufactured goods, Cities, other infrastructure Knowledge capital (C k ) – Practical wisdom, technologies, science understanding Social capital (C s ) – Capacity to live/work with one another, institutions, trust…

4) Committed to linking knowledge with action Sustainable development as asset management to improve prospects for inclusive well-being (W)  W = f (C n, C h, C p, C s, C k |chance)  Management objective is that long term social value of the total asset stock not decrease through time…  Decreases in one must be offset by increases in others  Regular measurements by UNEP, World Bank, scholars  … and that access to those stocks and the well-being they generate is fairly distributed within and between generations.

Looking Ahead: Grand Challenges of Sustainability Science? A) Normative challenges – How should values inform sustainability science? B) Analytic challenges – How do the workings of social-environmental / production-consumption systems affect the prospects for sustainable development? C) Operational challenges – What kinds of methods, models and data are most needed to help us do sustainability science better? D) Strategic challenges – What can sustainability science say, justify about which actions can best promote sustainable development?

Doing sustainability science, integrating its multiple perspectives, is about as exciting as research gets….

But using that science to help guide the herd is the ultimate grand challenge of sustainability science

The emerging field of Sustainability Science: Further Information Sustainability Science Harvard (This presentation and related materials ) – Reader in Sustainability Science (key papers, edited by Robert Kates) – -working-papers/cid-working-paper-no.-213http:// -working-papers/cid-working-paper-no.-213 PNAS Sustainability Science (current research results) – Annual Review of Environment and Resources (reviews of core topics in sustainability science) – [Publications used for this presentation are cited in the notes to this slide]