"Sustainability", the New Catchword

Sustainability is the new catchword for meshing with the natural environment. I found a great quote that communicates the basic thrust of what it means to be unsustainable.

The problem our civilization faces is that we currently are exceeding the Earth's carry capacity. Simply put, we are using too much, too fast of the Earth's resources. The Earth is simply unable to replenish those resources or to repair the environmental damage at a fast enough rate to keep up. Thus we have the many problems that are challenging our civilization - such as peak oil, climate change, the freshwater crisis, depletion of once-fertile soils, growing desertification and lost biodiversity.

Sustainability, Carrying Capacity, Impact by Tim Gamble

In order to reach sustainability, we must find a way to balance the human impact on the Earth so that the Earth's systems can find a new equillibrium. The process is not unlike balancing a car tire. Weights are placed in strategic places on the rim so that a balanced spin can be acheived. Our task as caretakers of this planet involves knowing where to place the weights and where to remove other weights. I believe relying less on fossil fuels and placing our emphasis on alternative energy sources will help us toward the goal of sustainability and the health of the whole world.