Sustainability

Sustainability itself is a complex and contested concept. To some it implies persistence and the capacity of something to continue for a long time. To others, it implies resilience and the capacity to bounce back after unexpected difficulties. With regard to the environment, it involves not damaging or degrading natural resources. Others see it as a concept that means developmental activities simply take account of the environment. (Pretty, 1995, p. 11)

Sustainability as a concept arose in response to the challenges associated with industrialization and its exploitation of natural resources at a pace that could not be sustained and the relatively high population growth during the same period. Sustainability is one form of response to industrialism (Martinez-Alier, 2002; Dryzek, 2005). One form of sustainability, which has gained central importance today is sustainable development which Lotz-Sisitka (2008a, p. 1) defined as “practices that take full account of the economy- environment-society nexus in development interventions and initiatives (e.g. production processes), and that are oriented towards ecological sustainability, social justice, and a more benign economic system”. She proposed the deployment of the notion of sustainability practices in the Rhodes University SAQA research programme “for reflexive and critical engagement in workplace learning contexts where emergence of new practice and social change is both possible and necessary”.

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Issues and discourses of sustainability took centre stage from the 1960s but the term sustainability gained currency in the 1980s (Dryzek, 2005). Sustainability is one form of environmentalism in response to growing population and industrialism and finds expression in sustainable development. The most widely used definition of sustainable development comes from the World Commission on Environment and Development (WCED) (1987), which sees the aim of sustainable development as seeking to ensure that needs of the present generation are met without compromising those of future generations, thus ensuring inter- generational and intra-generational equity. WCED further explained sustainable development as “a process of change in which the exploitation of resources, the direction of investments, the orientation of technological development, and the institutional change are all in harmony and enhance both current and future potential to meet human needs and aspirations” (WCED, 1987, p. 46). Below I discuss two ways of looking at the notion of sustainability: one is concerned with the grouping of environmentalisms into three major types and the other is concerned with the discourses, the main stories being told about environmentalism of which sustainability is one, largely based on the typologies of Martinez-Alier (2002) and Dryzek (2005) respectively. Büscher and Whande (2007, p. 24) defined discourse as “the way reality is viewed, constructed and represented”.

In this study, sustainability will include the ecological, economic and social dimensions of development.

1.7.4.1Three kinds of environmentalisms

Martinez-Alier (2002) discussed three typologies of environmentalism: the cult of wilderness, with a strong interest in pristine areas and preservation of such areas; the eco-efficiency environmentalism which promotes efficient and responsible use of the natural resources; and environmentalism of the poor which has a strong interest in the fair and equitable distribution of benefits of resources as well as equitable sharing of costs, avoiding their externalization and displacement. Each type of environmentalism is discussed further below.

a. Cult of the Wilderness

Martinez-Alier (2002) identified the cult of the wilderness as the first stream of environmentalism which was developed in the 1950s in defence of nature from growing populations and industrialization. Some of the influential figures that promoted the cult of the wilderness are John Muir, the Sierra Club and Aldo Leopold. Its main thrust was and is to make sure that what remains of the pristine environment should be preserved outside the market. It fits in well with the idea of protected areas, national parks, world heritage sites and endangered species that are well insulated from physical exploitation by people. Some of the institutions known for promoting this stream of environmentalism are the Worldwide Fund for Nature (WWF), the Union for Nature and Natural Resources (IUCN), and the national

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Departments of National Parks and Wildlife in different parts of the region and the world, which are concerned with nature preservation and conservation (Martinez-Alier, 2002).

b. Eco-efficiency

Martinez-Alier (2002) proposed ecological efficiency as another form of environmentalism that seeks to manage and reduce the negative impacts of urbanization, industrial activities and agriculture on the environment. This stream of environmentalism therefore expands the notion of environmentalism beyond the boundaries of protected and pristine areas to all other places: urban, rural, commercial, communal, industry and agriculture, the land and the atmosphere. Eco-efficiency finds expression in sustainable development and ecological modernization. It basically argues that ecological efficiency can allow more to be derived from the Earth. One of its interesting concepts is that increasing incomes will initially increase environmental impacts and subsequently reduce them (Kuznet‟s environmental curves). Ecological modernization has two main tools: use of eco-taxes and permits on emissions and secondly, technological development that leads to more efficiency and less energy use. The prices are set right through internalizing the externalities (Martinez-Alier, 2002).

c. Environmentalism of the poor

Martinez-Alier (2002) proposed that environmentalism of the poor is concerned with matters of social justice in the utilization of natural resources and is also known as livelihood ecology. Environmentalism of the poor argues that the poor have a stake in the environment in which they live and should benefit from it. Such environmentalism has had a racial and minority drive and character in countries such as the United States. It is also pushed for by majority groups, especially in developing countries, from where there has been a huge flow of energy and natural resources to the developed countries. Eco-feminism falls within this stream of environmentalism. The poor have co-evolved sustainably with nature and have ensured conservation of biodiversity and should benefit from it. The argument goes further to say that the cost of ecological distribution of conflicts or “bads” should be borne equitably. These “bads” are by-products of development and include toxic waste, displacement of people and forests where carbon from the atmosphere sinks (Martinez-Alier, 2002). This study is located more in the environmentalism of the poor than the other two types of environmentalism, thus adopting a social justice orientation to sustainable agriculture discourses and practices.

1.7.4.2 Discourses of Environmentalism

A second major way of looking at environmentalism and therefore at sustainability is to analyze the discourses that are taking place. Hajer (1995, p. 44) defined discourse as “a specific ensemble of ideas, concepts and categorizations that are produced, reproduced, and

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transformed in a particular set of practices and through which meaning is given to physical and social realities”. Dryzek (2005) identified nine environmental discourses clustered around four broad categories: Survivalism; Problem Solving; Sustainability; and Green Radicalism.

a. Discourses of survivalism

Dryzek (2005) argued that within the Survivalism theme, there are two discourses which have the following storylines: The Earth has finite resources and the human population should be reduced to appropriate levels; and the second which says, growth forever, because the human being has so much ingenuity that he/she can always overcome the challenges by using natural resources as brute matter to make the necessary resources. The latter is called Promethean based on Prometheus, a character in Greek mythology, who stole fire from the god Zeus and from then on increased human capacity to manipulate the world. This discourse rejects the limits talk arguing that people will always find ways to overcome problems. Julian Simon established himself as the leading American Promethean in the 1980s (Dryzek, 2005).

b. Discourse of problem solving

Dryzek (2005) proposed that the problem solving discourse on environmentalism recognizes that there are ecological problems and assumes that these can be addressed within the basic framework of the industrial society and seeks to address associated ecological and economic tensions. It is essentially agnostic about global limits. He suggested that one of the three discourses under the problem solving school is: leave the problem to the ingenuity of the market and environmental problems will be solved through the intelligent use of market mechanisms to achieve public ends. Environmental taxes (green taxes) are part of the game plan and are used to induce consumers to buy goods that are more environmentally friendly. Eco-labelling is another way of influencing consumer choices (of what does not harm or harms the environment less). Denmark, Finland and the Netherlands were the first countries to introduce a „carbon tax‟. The other discourse in this category is called administrative rationalism and its storyline is leave it to the experts who will dissect the problem and find solutions through collaboration of government officials and experts in different fields who offer their services (Dryzek, 2005). It gives prominence to scientific expertise harnessed through science, professional administration and bureaucratic structures. It is strong in France and Germany. Administrative rationalism is hardly theorized but can be observed. It uses expert commissions and methods such as cost-benefit analyses through, for example, environmental impact assessments. The third problem-solving discourse is called democratic pragmatism and its storyline is: leave it to the people (Dryzek, 2005). It is characterized by interactive, pragmatic problem solving, flexible approach, involving many voices and cooperation across a plurality of perspectives as reflected in negotiations between opposing parties and between nations. It was a response to administrative rationalism limitations, and

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seeks to respond to varieties of situations as well as to secure legitimacy from the broader public (Dryzek, 2005). Public consultation, alternative conflict resolution, policy dialogue and lay citizen participation, such as citizen jury and public enquiries are some of the methods employed to secure democratic pragmatism.

c. Discourses of sustainability

The third theme of discourses is sustainability which seeks to combine ecological protection, economic growth, social justice and inter-generational equity locally and globally in perpetuity within the current capitalist structure. The two discourses that run within the sustainability discourse are: sustainable development and ecological modernization. The storyline of sustainable development is economic development should be promoted and should be done in ways that are environmentally benign and socially just. Sustainable development is a discourse that started in earnest in the 1980s, and was particularly propelled by the publication of the Brundtland Commission report in 1987. It has its history in the concept of “maximum sustainable yield” derived from ecology and natural resources management in the 1970s. It promotes intelligent utilization of both natural resources and human systems and sees development not simply as economic but also environmental and social. It assumes that if the developing countries followed the production and consumption of the developed world, development would not be sustained by the Earth. This is where the concepts of appropriate technologies and intermediate technologies in keeping with local cultures emerged. The discourse of Sustainable Development is marked by such developments as the United Conference on Environment and Development also known as the Earth Summit (1992), which produced practical recommendations in Agenda 21, which was endorsed by 171 national government delegates. Ten years later, the World Summit on Sustainable Development (WSSD) was held in Johannesburg, South Africa where a Plan of Implementation for Agenda 21 was endorsed. The concept of sustainable agriculture, which is going to be subject of this study, is closely linked to this discourse of sustainability. This study is primarily located within this discourse but is also influenced by Martinez-Alier‟s environmentalism of the poor as discussed above.

Ecological modernization discourse was developed in the 1980s and is built on the notion of partnerships between the state, the corporate sector, labour and environmentalists to develop ways of production that are environmentally good. Its storyline is capitalist political economy needs conscious reconfiguring and far-sighted actions so that economic development and environmental protection can proceed hand in hand and reinforce each other. It is guided by such principles as: pollution prevention pays and the „precautionary principle‟. It is concerned with the “restructuring of the capitalist political economy along more environmentally sound lines” (Dryzek, 2005, p. 167; see also Martinez-Alier discussed above).

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d. Discourses of Green Radicalism

The theme, green radicalism, has two discourses: green consciousness and green politics. The former is concerned with building sustainability through influencing people‟s consciousness to be green, wherever they may be and this should then lead to green societies, including structures. Its proponents are the green movement, deep ecologists, eco-sociologists, bio- regionalists and eco-theologists. Green politics is concerned with penetrating and becoming part of the decision making structures so that policies and practices are made green through the institutions as well as through building people‟s consciousness. It targets institutions, structures and practices more directly and this includes green parties and social ecologists The Green Party of Germany serves as a good example (Dryzek, 2005).

In this study, the approach to learning in the context of sustainability was “relatively open- ended and transformative … rooted in the life-worlds of people and the encounters they have with each other” (Wals & van der Leij, 2007, p. 19). Dryzek (2005) argued that learning should not be situated in any one of his discourses but should engage critically and dialogically across them.