Concepts and definitions of sustainability and sustainable livelihoods

Concepts and definitions of sustainability and sustainable livelihoods

 

The concept of sustainable livelihoods is a reference point for a wide range of people involved in different aspects of development policy formulation and planning. As analysts point out, there are two broad approaches to defining livelihoods. One has a narrower economic focus on production, employment and household income. The other: takes a more holistic view which unites concepts of economic development, reduced vulnerability and environmental sustainability while building on the strengths of the rural poor.4 The livelihoods concepts and methodological approaches in this book are rooted in this more holistic view. The livelihoods framework is not restricted to analysing rural livelihoods. It has important applications in understanding urban livelihoods and vulnerability and the linkages between rural and urban areas. Although there are differences of interpretation and different variations of the livelihoods framework, they all build on earlier development theory. These include aspects of the integrated rural development planning (IRDP) approaches of the 1970s; food security initiatives during the 1980s; rapid rural appraisal (RRA); participatory rural appraisal (PRA); farming systems research; gender analysis; new understandings of poverty and well-being; risk and vulnerability assessment; and agrarian reform. Many earlier development approaches assumed that rural society was homogenous (in other words, that there was no differentiation between households in rural areas) and that households had single-purpose economies (in other words, that they only had one way of making a living). As a result, development agencies tended to focus on narrow, sectoral, production-orientated strategies that often bypassed those most at risk and failed to recognise that poor households have multiple economic strategies.6 One of the key findings that flowed from participatory research and appraisal was a much more subtle understanding of livelihoods and the different elements that they combine. The work of Chambers and Conway in the early 1990s built on participatory research practices and ideas put forward by the World Commission on Environment and Development. They developed a definition of livelihoods and the factors that make them sustainable which underpins all of the livelihoods frameworks currently being used: A livelihood comprises the capabilities, assets (stores, resources, claims and access) and activities required for a means of living: a livelihood is sustainable which can cope with and recover from stress and shocks, maintain and enhance its capabilities and assets, and provide sustainable livelihood opportunities for the Learning about livelihoods next generation; and which contributes net benefits to other livelihoods at the local and global levels in the long and short term. The Chambers and Conway definition was modified by DFID in 1999, a definition that is widely used: A livelihood comprises the capabilities, assets (including both material and social resources) and activities required for a means of living. A livelihood is sustainable when it can cope with and recover from shocks and stresses and maintain and enhance its capabilities and assets both now and in the future, whilst not undermining the natural resource base. Other livelihoods definitions make people more central and are less concerned with precise terminology for different kinds of assets. They highlight issues of ownership, access and decision making. One of these definitions of livelihoods states: People’s capacity to generate and maintain their means of living, enhance their well-being and that of future generations. These capacities are contingent upon the availability and accessibility of options which are ecological, economic and political and which are predicated on equity, ownership of resources and participatory decision making. Despite differences in emphasis by different practitioners, the livelihoods framework helps us to:

• identify (and value) what people are already doing to cope with risk and uncertainty.

• make the connections between factors that constrain or enhance their livelihoods on the one hand, and policies and institutions in the wider environment.

• identify measures that can strengthen assets, enhance capabilities and reduce vulnerability.