Sustenance has always been a prerequisite to all human activities and endeavors. However, what defines the act and value of being sustained has been changing in accordance with the dynamics of social orders, human interaction, and developmental structures. Nothing is static and everything is governed by a life cycle, this can be both- an advantage and a disadvantage in ensuring well-being for our present and future generations. Industrial Revolution and population explosion have led to increasing choices for exploiting by the beneficiaries of insatiability; calling in solutions to mitigate the imbalance caused by these choices being presented as the destruction of natural resources, growing disparity, and social divides. One of the foremost efforts in highlighting this need to mitigate these unsustainable effects and finding solutions in understanding development beyond economic and infrastructural progress came with conventional sustainability. Addressing the fact that humans exploit environmental resources that are depleting and can not eventually be replaced, also in the course of their developmental action create pollutants in the environment depreciating human quality of life- conventional sustainability aims to meet current and future human needs within the confines of the environment. In 1983, the United Nations intervened to solve problems related to the global environment and its people by applying conventional sustainability parameters while analyzing the needs and conditions necessary to deal with more rapidly appearing digressions of development. The approach however fell short and static with primarily aiming at continuous economic development in a context of finite resources. The UN initiated Brundtland Commission to address the environmental, economic, and social challenges of the world. In 1987, the Commission published a report, 'Our Common Future' popularizing the concept of Sustainable Development. The UN further published an action plan called Agenda 21, for countries to execute sustainable development at the local and national levels. The goals included efficiency, human well-being, reduction of environmental damage, economic growth, and the development and implementation of technological advancements. The acceleration of global issues like deforestation, climate change, hunger, diseases, financial crises, inequality, etc., became a clear indicator of the failure of Agenda 21 by the late 90s. +Contemporary sustainability tried to bridge the gaps conventional couldn't by enhancing the viability of ecosystems, social justice, socio-ecological technical systems, livelihoods, and regulations. The UN revised the terms of global cooperation in 2000 by introducing the Millennium Development Goals (MDG) that aimed at reducing poverty and human deprivation at unmatched scales in collaboration with several countries. The MDGs made gradual progress on each of its eight goals and its targets to be met by 2015, but were widely criticized for being mechanical and neglecting some major social issues important to sustaining collective well-being. The UN then consulted all member countries and conducted several public surveys to understand the needs of people, and the result was the draft made on Sustainable Development Goals that were introduced in 2015 with the aim to create a better and sustainable future for all. The SDGs consist of 17 goals and 169 targets drafted by an open working group that worked with global organizations and countries. Over 193 countries of the UN assembly have vowed to achieve these goals by 2030. The advancing world has brought new global challenges like information warfare, surveillance, populism, technology-based inequality, and immigration; making the differences and similarities of a contracting world appear stronger, but at the same time becoming indifferent to some native and ingenious needs and skills important to fulfilling Global Goals effectively. Is the present approach to SDGs compatible enough to cooperate with these growing needs, or is the future now dependent on widely adopting a regenerative approach towards development where we can put the essence of life at the center of every decision? A hypothesis cannot be referenced for a conclusion unless there is an experiential interaction. The common economic systems are extracting life from the earth, however, the earth system in itself is a self-funded bank with all checks and clearances dependent on human motivation to nurture and respect what they have. Regenerative sustainability is much more than bringing the earth back to life as it also brings humans back to life by giving their lives more meaning.
Holistic development is dependent on internal and external conditions that can sustain collective progress. 'Collective progress' can be understood as an eco-system thriving on regenerative actions and results, also differentiated as 'inner and outer sustainability.' This differentiation, however, can also be seen as an impediment to meeting sustainable development. Internal sustainability is understood with a personal and cultural reference, while external or outer sustainability is dependent on the overt conditions and limitations based on social, political, and geographical constructs. Regenerative practices are sourced in the unlimited potential within a human system, and its ability to create, sustain and improve the conditions prevalent without harming the progressive potential of the underlying fabric and framework of the system itself. A productive and sustainable system is seen as human with higher emotional intelligence and is governed by refining consciousness. Regenerative action and thought is not just sustainable, but transformational and therefore can create more out of less, and simplify for quality rather than compromise on the long-term effects for quantification. The deeper layers of understanding devoted to skill management, resource support, spiritual and cultural referencing in individual and social organization, and the network and interaction of these elements in each human system, drives its chemistry and physics to a more evolved state of sustenance, more consistently appreciating than depreciating.
Sustainable development is widely viewed as humanity's greatest learning challenge. Unsustainable lifestyles, as well as economic models and industrial systems that exacerbate environmental problems, are so deeply embedded in our society and daily lives that changing them seems nearly impossible. Nonetheless, this shift is the only option to ensure our continued survival on this planet. The UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and targets are based on the Modernity worldview, which is defined by science-driven standardization, formalization, and rationalization processes, as well as emancipatory and planning principles. The SDGs present ambitions for future action and areas such as ethics. Thus, the interpretation of the goals and targets in the SDGs can be enriched to identify and incorporate broader sets of values and beliefs about what 'the good life' is about. Reflecting on diverse worldviews about SDGs and their viewpoints on development and quality of life would be valuable and enlightening to select, define, and convey goals in a way that honors and incorporates as many worldviews, stakeholders, and perspectives as feasible. The SDGs can truly help the world's efforts to accelerate global progress toward more sustainable and life-enhancing forms of aid, ecological, social, and cultural—for everyone when such a system is undertaken with utmost care and inclusivity. The SDGs have made only modest progress overall. According to the United Nations, many people are living healthier lives now than they were at the turn of the millennium, demonstrating one area where the MDGs and SDGs have made progress. According to the UN, 80 percent of live births in the globe were assisted by a qualified health professional between 2012 and 2017, up from 62 percent between 2000 and 2005. While some progress has been made, attendees at sustainable development events complain that the SDGs are not being implemented at the rate or with the momentum required to fulfill the 2030 deadline. The more sustainable tools, such as organic farming or renewable energy sources have a host of drawbacks that need to be tackled intelligently to help sustainability. Industries that are more responsible for affecting the environment would have more requirements to correctly function the treatment of their waste. Changes to preserve and care for biodiversity and ecosystems can cause several industries to reduce their activities that can bring unemployment in many areas. There are sustainable limits for material and energy use. Climate change, global warming, forest fires are evidently displaying the degenerating condition of this world. The adverse effect on biodiversity can also be seen with the loss of fishes, species, pollinators, acidification of oceans, and loss of life on earth as a whole. If the natural system is manipulated by an external force, you have to face the repercussions. Therefore, these problems are not related to science, rather it's a human problem. It is a system crisis that can be healed by connecting more of it to itself. It is important to create a lasting change that the world environment needs. Regenerative development can help to enhance our lives and restore the living environment. It challenges people to live with living systems like nature does with itself. People are aware of the power of climate change but they are not aware of the power of human change. Regenerative development creates a vision for the present life that brings more joy and purpose to you by putting life at the center of living. The sustainable rate of usage of renewable resources can be no greater than the rate of regeneration of its source. Whereas, for a non-renewable resource like high-grade mineral ores, fossils - the sustainable rate of use can be no greater than the rate at which a renewable resource is used sustainably.