The Origins of the Sustainability Concept: Risk Perception and Resource Management in Early Urban Centers

Purpose This paper examines the conditions under which ancient peoples might have developed a concept of “sustainability,” and concludes that long-term resource management practices would not have been articulated prior to the development of the first cities starting c. 6,000 years ago. Methodology/approach Using biological concepts of population density and niche-construction theory, cities are identified as the first places where pressures on resources might have triggered concerns for sustainability. Nonetheless, urban centers also provided ample opportunities for individuals and households to continue the same ad hoc foraging strategies that had facilitated human survival in prior eras. Climate Change, Culture, and Economics: Anthropological Investigations Research in Economic Anthropology, Volume 35, 215 238 Copyright r 2015 by Emerald Group Publishing Limited All rights of reproduction in any form reserved ISSN: 0190-1281/doi:10.1108/S0190-128120150000035009