The proponents of sustainable development proved highly adept in framing the
issue in a manner that implicated and was relevant to all; in constructing a vocabulary
that cut across gender, class and cultural divides; and in creating a solution
set that, in theory, could be endorsed by virtually all stakeholders.7 Perhaps this
is not so surprising: at a high enough level of abstraction, who is going to oppose
the idea of designing policies and practices to better coordinate economic development,
equity and environmental protection activities? Prominent advocates
of sustainable development such as US presidential candidate Al Gore have been
remarkably fluent on this plane, arguing across multiple media that the barriers
to sustainable development are mainly technological and political, and can be and
will be overcome as more people demand—and participate in—changing behaviour,
cultivating innovation and restoring leadership at all levels of all societies.