An effective transport system is vital for a successful society and economy, and a good quality of life. However, the growth of transport is widely believed to have damaging effects on our environment, and in particular the atmosphere. Pollutants that are emitted from motor vehicles can lead to human health problems, poor air quality, acid ...

Biodiversity has been defined by the International Committee for Bird Preservation as ‘the total variety of life on Earth.’ [It can mean the range of species at a site, the size of the gene pool, or the number of different ecosystems on the planet.] It is important for sustainable development because it represents the wealth ...

Natural resources are derived either from the air, soil, water, and organisms of the biosphere, or from the subterranean areas of the Earth. Resources of the first type come from more usual parts of ecosystems, and are labelled ‘renewable’. Resources of the second type are labelled ‘non-renewable’. Since non-renewable resources are derived from beneath the ...

Poor health is very often linked to poverty – the world’s poorest people are often in the poorest state of health owing to disease, malnutrition or starvation. Commonly in developing countries public health suffers from a lack of sanitation from dirty drinking water, and from a lack of food. However, over-consumption and unhealthy lifestyles in ...

The Earth is unique in the solar system in that, as far as we know, it is the only place that sustains life. Some people even like to view the Earth, or Gaia after the Greek Earth goddess, almost as a living thing itself. Life on Earth has passed through many stages of dynamic evolotion. ...

Sustainable Development is as much about society as it is about the environment. Thriving regions, cities, towns, villages and neighbourhoods are fundamental to quality of life. We need to achieve a sense of social cohesion, cultural inclusion and people empowerment. Building sustainable communities is about improvements to the places where people live and work, and ...

The ever-increasing demand for products and services is taking a toll on the environment. Exploitation of resources and manufacturing by-products are increasing stresses on the natural world. The reductions in consumption for countries are largely based on the premise that they should consume no more than their fair share of resources – a premise that ...

In the preparation for a long, deep space voyage, the brains of a group of astronauts were inadvertently altered. These alterations had a very unfortunate effect on the behaviour of the crew, and every time a member carried out a spaceship maintenance operation, an important wire leading to the life support system was disconnected. The ...

Although it has often received bad publicity, many people argue that nuclear power has a significant part to play in maintaining a balanced energy policy. It currently contributes to 29% of the UKs electricity generation and a great deal more in countries like France and Germany. Nuclear power generation does not contribute to air pollution ...

Cycling is often the quickest way to make short journeys. It also has the advantage that it does not release air pollution to the atmosphere, unlike motorised forms of transport. Cycling has been popular in many European countries with excellent cycle lanes segregated from main road traffic routes. In the UK, cycling has declined in ...