Environmental Sustainability —A Consumption Approach

Surely one of the greatest achievements of the current phase of globalization has been the spurt of economic growth in countries that were desperately poor just a few decades ago and some of which, even now, carry huge burdens of poverty. This spurt in economic growth and the consumption growth that accompanied it have lifted hundreds of millions out of poverty and, concurrently, provided a glimpse of possibilities to those countries large proportions of whose populations live in abject poverty. For poverty reduction it is imperative that this spurt in economic growth be sustained.