Proceedings: 2nd International Conference on Food and Agricultural Economics: SELECTED ASPECTS OF SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT IN AGRICULTURE

Sustainable development is the progress which meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs. All definitions of sustainable development require that we see the world as a system—a system that connects space and a system that connects time. When we think of the world as a system over space, we grow to understand that air pollution from power plants of North America affects air quality in Europe and Africa, and that tragedy of nuclear station in Fukushima could harm fish stocks off the coast of Australia. And when we think of the world as a system over time, we start to realize that the decisions of our grandparents made about how to farm the land continue to affect agricultural practice today and the economic policies we endorse today will have an impact on urban poverty when our children are adults. Sustainable development has been defined in many ways, but the definition which is the most frequently quoted comes from the Brundtland Report (3.27). Sustainable development is development that meets the needs of the present, without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs. This means meeting the diverse needs of all people in existing and future communities, (1) promoting personal wellbeing, (2) social cohesion and inclusion, and (3) creating equal opportunity. From the agricultural point of view, the three points mentioned above concerning the sustainable development, can be describe as: a) Food Security - Sustaining the Potential. Food security requires attention to questions of production and distribution, It can be furthered by land reforms, and by policies to protect vulnerable subsistence farmers, pastora1ists, and the landless. b) Species and Ecosystems - Resources for Development. Conservation of living natural resources - plants, animals, and micro-organisms, and the non-living elements of the environment on which they depend - is crucial for development. c) Energy - Choices for Environmentand Development. Energy is necessary for daily survival. Future development crucially depends on its long-termavailability in increasing quantities from sources that are dependable, safe, andenvironmentally sound. At present, no single source or mix of sources is at hand to meet thisfuture need. Many macro and micro analysis on the influence of the growth-oriented agricultural policies have showed that achievements in increasing food production have been attained at the expense of depleting the environmental and natural resources, that are indispensable for the sustainability of any agricultural systems.Sustainability and sustainable development have become issues of global policies over the past two decades. Continuously and systematically transforming of the agricultural sector for the age of sustainable developmentrequires tracking these interactions, evaluating if objectives are being achieved and allowing for adaptive management within the diverse agricultural systems that make up global agriculture