Technology for a Sustainable Future

A VISION FOR SUCCESS

The Institute for Alternative Futures recently organized a dialogue between 40 business leaders, environmentalists and government officials on how to speed the transition to a new generation of environmentally advanced technologies. Surprising levels of agreement emerged on a shared vision for a successful, preferred future. In this vision of success, change will occur along at least six major dimensions:

1. Eco-Efficiency and Industrial Ecology will become key design principles in technological development. Eco-efficiency is a measure of environmental impacts per unit of production. Using nature as a model, the concept of Industrial Ecology points to a more advanced and integrated industrial economy in which one firm's "waste" is always another firm's "food."

2. Total Quality Design (TQD) will become a central business value. TQD will integrate environmental quality into traditional quality concepts and encourage design solutions that produce high quality results from every point of view. Pursuing preventive solutions rather than reactive (end-of-the-pipe) approaches is an important part of Total Quality Design.

3. A Dematerialized, Knowledge-Based Economy will continue to emerge. As more advanced technologies "do more with less,"the emerging economy will run increasingly on the production and exchange of knowledge. This shift represents the emergence of a revolutionary new way of generating wealth on a global scale that will sharply reduce the environmental impacts of economic development.

4. A Transformed Citizen and Consumer Base will help steer technological change. As consumer attitudes "green," new tools like environmental quality certification programs will help consumers act on their values. The idea of "sustainable development" will become politically influential, and citizen activism will become less "no-oriented" and more directed toward positive goals and collaborative approaches.

5. True Cost Pricing will internalize costs of environmental damage into market prices. One approach is to eliminate subsidies for environmentally damaging activities. Another is to develop full-cost environmental accounting methods for corporations and government. Another is a revenue-neutral tax shift that cuts taxes on work, savings and investment and raises taxes on pollution and nonrenewable energy consumption.

6. Integrated Policy Reform will bring policies and programs in scores of areas into alignment with a coherent national strategy for environmental technology. Areas where major reforms are needed include environmental regulations that encourage innovation, priorities within civilian research and technology development programs, missions of the EPA and other agencies, export policy, and development assistance.