Sustainability, Vol. 6, Pages 8310-8328: Rethinking Sustainable Development: Considering How Different Worldviews Envision `Development` and `Quality of Life` (Sustainability)

The concept of sustainable development does not articulate what needs to be sustained, developed, or how, and is consequently intersubjective and intercultural. I therefore argue that it is essential to consider different worldviews when discussing sustainable development, and I offer broad, provisional suggestions as to how we can begin doing this. I first discuss how the notion of sustainable development at its heart is an attempt to unite conservation with growth. I then consider how different worldviews relate to this unitary ideal, by articulating how they envision `development` and `quality of life`. I do this by drawing on the Integrative Worldview Framework, which distinguishes between multiple, ideal-typical worldviews. However, I argue that more important than any typology of worldviews is the reflexive attitude a worldview-perspective supports. I conclude with implications for more reflexive and inclusive forms of policy-making, also in light of the to-be-formulated Sustainable Development Goals.