Redclift, Michael. 1991. "The Multiple Dimensions of Sustainable Development." Geography 1991: 36-42.

Thesis:

"This paper examines the contribution that a broadly-based concept of sustainable development can make: focusing attention on poor peoples' use of sustainability in seeking livelihoods from resource-poor areas of the South" (Abstract, p. 36).

Summary:

Redclift outlines several approaches to sustainable development including that of the Brundtland Commission and Robert Chamber's concept of sustainable livelihoods. There are, of course, several areas of convergence and divergence: "Sustainable development, then, is about meeting human needs or maintaining economic growth or conserving natural capital, or about all three" (p. 37).

The absence of political economy:

Redclift discusses two sets of contradictions:

1) an important difference of emphasis - some view sustainability as a major constraint on human progress while others are concerned with the goal of progress itself and call for a re-examination of the "ends" of development as well as the "means" to achieving it;

2) the North/South framework requires attention to "contradictions imposed by the structural inequalities of the global system" (p. 38). The recipe for sustainability in the North does not always apply to conditions in the South. Redclift argues, "the discussion of sustainable development should not be confined to an assessment of environmental and economic trade-offs, for to do so implies ignoring other essential points of reference, including the regional and national political economy of resource use. It also tacitly endorses a highly ethnocentric, and North-biased, view of the development process. It fails to take seriously the integrity of other cultures, and their view of sustainability" (p. 39).

The multiple dimensions of sustainable development:

Redclift identifies three dimensions of sustainable development: economic, political, and epistemological. In his discussion of the economics, Redclift briefly introduces the ideas of Malthus and Ricardo.

Two elements comprise the political dimension: 1) the weight to be attached to human agency and social structure; and 2) the relationship between knowledge and power. Redclift applies Anthony Giddens' work with agency and social structure to environmental management and conflicts over the environment. He discusses Foucault's three fields of resistance in explaining the relationship between knowledge and power.

Redclift addresses epistemology because, he argues, it tends to be overlooked in most discussions of sustainable development: "It is assumed that 'our' system of acquiring knowledge in the North, through the application of scientific principles, is a universal epistemology" (p. 41). Consequently, the knowledge of small-scale rural societies, which is often derived from religious rituals or other historical traditions, tends to be ignored.

In conclusion, Redclift notes that this paper introduces dimensions of sustainable development which usually are not considered in Northern policy. He argues, "by enlarging the discussion it is hoped that we can begin to get at the texture of 'actually existing' sustainable practices, and thus to make more qualified decisions about the direction that future policy should take" (p. 41).

Keywords: political economy, fields of resistance, epistemology