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Understanding

Sustainable Development (SD) is a long-term, optimistic guiding principle for how society should develop, centred on people and their needs, abilities, and actions. Crucially, it envisions inter- and intragenerational social and economic justice, while respecting the environmental limits of natural resource use. This cross-cutting task requires contributions at all levels of decision-making. For this reason, participation is a core principle of Sustainable Development. Ideally, all actors agree on and coordinate their goals and measures as part of an overall vision. Viewed in this way, Sustainable Development is a continuous process of negotiation and compromise, to balance and coordinate diverse environmental, social, and economic interests, and to settle conflicts of interest consensually and peacefully. This participation requires, however, that actors possess the relevant knowledge and can act accordingly, or be enabled to do so. In addition to appropriate institutional frameworks, research and education are key.