You may have heard people talking about Sustainable Development either in public events, on television and on radio. Consultants talk about it, university professors lecture on it, and at various levels of government, it may even be mandated. But what exactly is Sustainable Development?

Programs of Sustainable Development deals with the ability to use today’s resources effectively without having to maximize the world’s resources, and leaving none for the use of our future generations.

Sustainable development is the balance of economic growth, environmental protection and social equity. Because of the limits of the earth’s natural systems, this balance is essential to securing life as we know it into the long term. When this balance is achieved, we will have reached “sustainability”.

Sustainable Development involves a number of inter-related global issues such as poverty, inequality, hunger and environmental degradation, etc.

People tend to think that we have to make a choice between environmental protection and development. To achieve sustainable development, the three pillars (economic, social and environmental) must be integrated with a balance. Conserving land and water resources, protecting biodiversity and managing agricultural heritage systems are very important for sustainable development.

A sound management of the worlds natural resources, energy saving and a population size in harmony with the productive potential of the ecosystems will automatically result in sustainable development for everyone.

Tune In: To watch a two-part TIME/World News with Charles Gibson series about the future, visit abcnews.com and click "World News"

Learn more: To read more on sustainable development, including essays by Rajendra Pachauri, Jakaya Kikwete and E.O.Wilson, go to time.com/whatsnext