Durban International Convention Center
Durban, South Africa
Globally, societies are in transition due to environmental challenges such as climate change, shifts in political power as seen in Europe and the USA, and social changes such as mass migration. All these changes and challenges pose a threat to the sustainability of the physical and human environment, and growing inequality threatens both the social and natural environment.
Although the aim of development is to create a more sustainable environment, the reality is often that only few people benefit while others are left to bear the brunt of the impacts and greater inequality. Environmental management should serve to translate environmental costs into wellbeing benefits for all of humankind and not just the privileged few.