{"id":304,"date":"2026-05-27T11:03:19","date_gmt":"2026-05-27T11:03:19","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/routledgelearning.com\/sustainabilityprinciplesandpractice\/?page_id=304"},"modified":"2026-05-27T11:03:20","modified_gmt":"2026-05-27T11:03:20","slug":"human-sphere","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/routledgelearning.com\/sustainabilityprinciplesandpractice\/human-sphere\/","title":{"rendered":"Human Sphere"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
birth rate<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n
The total number of people born in a given year.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n <\/div>\n <\/button>\n <\/div>\n\n \n \n
capital<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n
The supply of resources available.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n <\/div>\n <\/button>\n <\/div>\n\n \n \n
common pool resources (CPRs)<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n
Resources from which it is difficult to exclude or limit users and in which use of the resources by one person decreases the benefits for other users.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n <\/div>\n <\/button>\n <\/div>\n\n \n \n
commons<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n
A common pool resource plus a community plus a set of protocols: the rules and social practices for managing the resources.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n <\/div>\n <\/button>\n <\/div>\n\n \n \n
decoupling <\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n
The condition in which development occurs without increases in environmental impact.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n <\/div>\n <\/button>\n <\/div>\n\n \n \n
demographic transition<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n
The shift from high birth rates and death rates to low birth rates and death rates in developed countries.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n <\/div>\n <\/button>\n <\/div>\n\n \n \n
demography<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n
A field of social science that applies the principles of population ecology to human populations.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n <\/div>\n <\/button>\n <\/div>\n\n \n \n
development<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n
An increase in the quality of goods and services, with or without quantitative growth; development is a qualitative measure.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n <\/div>\n <\/button>\n <\/div>\n\n \n \n
ecological economics<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n
A discipline that merges economics and ecology and conceives of the economy as a subsystem of the Earth ecosystem.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n <\/div>\n <\/button>\n <\/div>\n\n \n \n
endangered species<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n
A species considered to be facing a high risk of extinction in the wild in the near future.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n <\/div>\n <\/button>\n <\/div>\n\n \n \n
externality<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n
A cost which is external to the entity creating the damage and not reflected in the price.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n <\/div>\n <\/button>\n <\/div>\n\n \n \n
failed state <\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n
A state, or self-governing political body, in which the ability to govern has broken down.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n <\/div>\n <\/button>\n <\/div>\n\n \n \n
failing state<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n
A state which is in the process of breaking down toward a failed state.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n <\/div>\n <\/button>\n <\/div>\n\n \n \n
governance<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n
The process of decision-making by which an organization or society regulates activities and exercises control over resources; often refers to collective actions of multiple stakeholders working together in order to achieve common goals.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n <\/div>\n <\/button>\n <\/div>\n\n \n \n
gross domestic product (GDP)<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n
A measure of economic growth consisting of the total value of goods and services produced within the boundaries of a country.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n <\/div>\n <\/button>\n <\/div>\n\n \n \n
growth<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n
An increase in size or an increase in production; growth is a quantitative measure.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n <\/div>\n <\/button>\n <\/div>\n\n \n \n
intergenerational equity<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n
The concept that all human generations, including present and future, have an equal right to a stable climate and healthy biosphere.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n <\/div>\n <\/button>\n <\/div>\n\n \n \n
paradigm<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n
A fundamental framework for understanding the world; a coherent set of assumptions and concepts that defines a way of viewing reality.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n <\/div>\n <\/button>\n <\/div>\n\n \n \n
replacement fertility rate<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n
The number of births per woman that will maintain the human population size constant at zero population growth.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n <\/div>\n <\/button>\n <\/div>\n\n \n \n
stakeholder <\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n
A person or group who can be impacted by an outcome or decision.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n <\/div>\n <\/button>\n <\/div>\n\n \n \n
strong sustainability<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n
An approach to economics which says that human and natural capital are not interchangeable and that natural capital is the limiting factor.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n <\/div>\n <\/button>\n <\/div>\n\n \n \n
total fertility rate<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n
The number of children born to an average woman during her lifetime.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n <\/div>\n <\/button>\n <\/div>\n\n \n