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A BETTER FUTURE

As our towns and cities grow at unprecedented rates setting the social, political, cultural and environmental trends of the world, sustainable urbanisation is one of the most pressing challenges facing the global community in the 21st century. In 1950, one-third of the world’s people lived in cities. Just 50 years later, this proportion has risen to one-half and will continue to grow to two-thirds, or 6 billion people, by 2050. Cities are now home to half of humankind. They are the hub for much national production and consumption – economic and social processes that generate wealth and opportunity. But they also create disease, crime, pollution and poverty. In many cities, especially in developing countries, slum dwellers number more than 50 per cent of the population and have little or no access to shelter, water, and sanitation.

The economic development of any town or city is closely linked to that place's stewardship of natural resources, environments, and people. Communities face enormous challenges as their social, economic, and environmental resources are depleted and destroyed. The framework or foundation for sustainability is community. Sustainable development represents a holistic way to achieve recovery and enhance the quality of life for everyone in these communities by developing local assets to revitalize economies, limiting waste and pollution, improving the status of disadvantaged people, conserving natural resources, and promoting cooperation and efficiency. Issues associated with sustainability speak to values of future, of relationships, of ecosystems. In order to achieve a sound means of connection and support between development and stewardship, there must be a strong foundation of community capacity. In the process of trying to achieve this community capacity, groups and organizations are encouraged to identify and discuss their particular Community Needs that they believe will improve human well-being without degrading environmental health.

Un-Habitat - The United Nations Human Settlements Programme, UN-HABITAT, is the United Nations agency for human settlements. It is mandated by the UN General Assembly to promote socially and environmentally sustainable towns and cities with the goal of providing adequate shelter for all.

Institute for Sustainable Communities - The Institute for Sustainable Communities (ISC) is an independent, nonprofit organization that helps communities in existing and emerging democracies solve problems while building a better future for themselves and the world. The Institute focus on environmental, economic, and social concerns, and on the need to address all three to succeed. The common term for this integrated approach is sustainable development.

Environmental Defense Fund - Get answers to your questions about local air quality. Putting pollution information about your neighborhood in your hands at the click of a mouse.

Environmental and Energy Study Institute - The Environmental and Energy Study Institute (EESI) is a non-profit organization dedicated to promoting environmentally sustainable societies. EESI believes meeting this goal requires transitions to social and economic patterns that sustain people, the environment and the natural resources upon which present and future generations depend. EESI produces credible, timely information and innovative public policy initiatives that lead to these transitions.

Center for a New American Dream– The Center for a New American Dream helps Americans consume responsibly to protect the environment, enhance quality of life, and promote social justice. The Center exists to create that positive impact. We work with individuals, institutions, communities, and businesses to conserve natural resources, counter the commercialization of our culture, and change the way goods are produced and consumed.

Communities by Choice - Communities by Choice is a national network of communities, organizations and individuals committed to learning and practicing sustainable development. Our strategies include building a learning network, building the capacity of network participants, managing knowledge and resources, redirecting resources in support of sustainable development and measuring our collective progress.

Time Dollars, USA - Time Dollar USA’s mission is to build local economies and communities that reward decency, caring and a passion for justice.

The E. F. Schumacher Society - The E. F. Schumacher Society, named after the author of Small Is Beautiful: Economics As If People Mattered, is an educational non-profit organization founded in 1980. Our programs demonstrate that both social and environmental sustainability can be achieved by applying the values of human-scale communities and respect for the natural environment to economic issues.

Citizen’s Network for Sustainable Development - The Citizens Network for Sustainable Development (CitNet) is an independent, non-profit network bringing together US based organizations, communities, and individuals working on sustainability issues across the US. CitNet works in the local, regional, and global arenas to make sustainable development a reality. By supporting citizen-led activities in development, monitoring and implementation of sustainability initiatives, promoting civil society participation in important policy fora, and connecting individuals and organizations, CitNet is helping build an ecologically sound and socially equitable and economically just world.

Tools for Change - Last-First Networks is a non-profit resource centre, dedicated to advancing effective community renewal and grassroots development. It achieves this by raising awareness of proven practical approaches to working with the poorest and marginal groups of any society, and by resourcing practitioners and organisations who work with these groups. Our geographical focus is Asia and the Pacific, but we source books from all over the world, and also deliver worldwide. The vision of Last-First Networks is the widespread adoption and use of knowledge, skills, attitudes and practices that promote self-reliance and self-esteem among the poorest and marginal groups of the world.

Appalachian Sustainable Development (ASD) - Appalachian Sustainable Development is a not-for-profit organization working in 10 counties of the Appalachian section of Virginia and Tennessee, a region which suffers from double digit unemployment, out migration of young people and chronic environmental problems. ASD focuses on developing healthy, diverse and ecologically sound economic opportunities through education and training, and the development of cooperative networks and marketing systems. ASD's two main programs are in Sustainable Forestry and Wood Products and Sustainable Agriculture.

Creating the Space for Good Things to Grow - Our urban environment faces some significant challenges. But they are challenges D.C. Greenworks is meeting head on, responding with innovative programs and technologies designed to advance and safeguard the city’s urban ecosystem. A nonprofit organization that operates as a social enterprise, DCG takes an entrepreneurial approach, working hand-in-hand with community leaders, inner-city residents, neighborhood organizations, and small businesses to leverage grassroots participation and bring about creative solutions and improved community outcomes. DCG sees a vital connection between ecology and economy, between employment potential and environmental sustainability. We actively seek to discover, promote, and deliver cutting-edge solutions that are cost-effective, eco-friendly, and socially beneficial.

Education for Sustainable Development Toolkit - The Education for Sustainable Development Toolkit is an easy-to-use manual for individuals and organizations from both the education and community sectors. This resource addresses the potentially powerful alliance of school systems and communities working together to reach local sustainability goals. Together they can reorient existing curriculums to create locally relevant and culturally appropriate education.

Green Map System - From its beginning in 1995, the Green Map System was inspired by a desire to: help urban dwellers of all ages represent and share the ecological and cultural resources in their cities; promote good greening efforts underway in communities across the globe, build inclusive networks that extend community capacity and expedite progress toward sustainability, employ the info-web in service of the web-of-life celebrate and learn from the beauty, brilliance and diversity of Nature, and together, make our hometowns better, healthier places. are locally created maps that chart the natural and cultural environment. Using adaptable tools and a shared visual language of Green Map Icons to highlight green living resources, Green Maps cultivate citizen participation and community sustainability.