I dare to say that all of us have heard the word “sustainability,” making one think that its definition is quite simple. But to the contrary, the definition of the word “sustainability” is quite complex, not only due to the fact that not everyone can agree on its definition, but due to the fact that it encompasses a wide range of ideals.
In 1987, the United Nations defined sustainability as “meeting the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs.” The United States Environmental Protection Agency states that sustainability is based on a simple principle: Everything that we need for our survival and well-being depends, either directly or indirectly, on our natural environment. To pursue sustainability is to create and maintain the conditions under which humans and nature can exist in productive harmony to support present and future generations. The Cambridge dictionary defines sustainability as the quality of being able to continue over a long period of time. As you can see, while there is a common thread among the definitions, there certainly is a degree of variation.
3 Pillars of Sustainability
Overall, sustainability aims to create a harmonious balance between environmental health, economic viability, and social equity as it encompasses three main pillars:
Environmental Sustainability: Protecting and conserving natural resources and ecosystems, reducing pollution, and mitigating climate change to ensure a healthy planet for future generations.
Economic Sustainability: Promoting economic growth and development that provides jobs and prosperity without depleting resources or causing ecological damage. It involves creating a balanced approach that supports long-term economic health.
Social Sustainability: Ensuring social equity, access to resources, and opportunities for all individuals, fostering community well-being, and respecting cultural diversity. This includes addressing issues like poverty, inequality, and human rights.
While economic and social sustainability are great goals, I will let other experts tackle those areas. I will focus on environmental sustainability as that is what we attempt to help by planting trees at The Gifted Tree. Let us delve into why the planting of trees is a sustainable endeavor. Planting trees can help sustainability in many ways, including:
Environmental Sustainability
Climate change
Trees remove carbon dioxide from the air, store carbon in the soil and trees, and release oxygen through photosynthesis. A single mature tree can absorb around 21 kilograms of carbon dioxide per year. Reforestation projects can sequester millions of tons of carbon annually.
Air quality
Trees act as natural filters, absorbing harmful pollutants like nitrogen oxides, ozone, and carbon monoxide, and trapping dust and smoke in their leaves and bark. They also absorb odors and other gases like ammonia, sulfur dioxide, and ozone.
Water quality
Trees trap and absorb excess nutrients and sediments before they reach waterways, helping to reduce contamination of freshwater resources.
Biodiversity
Trees provide food, cover, and places to raise young for wildlife, such as birds, insects, squirrels, and bees. A single tree can be home to hundreds of species of insect, fungi, moss, mammals, and plants, whereas forests create a wonderfully balanced system where soil, plants, and animals all depend on each other to thrive as a diverse ecosystem.
Conclusion
In summary, forests support human life all over the world as they regulate our climate, clean the air we breathe, and filter the water we drink. They also provide habitat for more than two-thirds of terrestrial wildlife and plants. They are one of our most important resources, offering a renewable supply of the materials and the goods we need for a more sustainable future. While plating memorial trees and celebration trees with The Gifted Tree helps one connect on a personal level with loved ones and friends by expressing your feelings and showing you care, on a macro-level, our tree planting supports vital reforestation efforts around the world, helping to improve our planet’s health and giving a gift to the world.
