Week 7: Challenge of Sustainable Development

 

Salam all, for this week the topic is Challenge of Sustainable Development. We learned that sustainability is not just about recycling bins, tree-planting campaigns, or switching to reusable straws. It goes beyond just "being green". It's deeply tied to social justice, economics, governance, and power. Once you start pulling on those threads, the picture becomes much more complex.

One thing that kept coming up in our discussions was inequality. Many people around the world still can't access to things we consider as basic needs like clean water, food, healthcare, and education. That’s not just unfair, it’s heartbreaking. It made me see that sustainable development isn’t just about saving the planet but also about fixing the systems that have failed so many people for so long.

Our lecturer, Prof. Suhaimi, shared an example I haven’t been able to forget, a cow in Europe receives a daily subsidy almost equal to what a person in Africa survives on their daily basis. That comparison hit me hard. It made global injustice feel less like a number in a report and more like a real, human problem.

Another eye-opener was realizing that unsustainability isn’t accidental. It’s not just bad luck or poor planning. It’s often designed into systems that prioritize short-term profits, corporate interests, and elitism over people and the planet. They're all come from the same roots. That make sustainability is not just a technical issue, but a moral one too.

And let’s not forget the environment. We’ve acted like Earth is an unlimited resource, even though it’s been telling us for decades that it’s not. We’re already seeing the consequences like extreme weather, species going extinct, water running out. The scary part is, the ones hit hardest are usually those who have the least power to change things.