The UN World Commission on Environment and Development, chaired by former Norwegian Prime Minister Gro Harlem Brundtland, alerted the world to the urgency of making progress toward economic development that could be sustained without depleting natural resources or harming the environment. This book positions the Brundtland Commission as a key event in the history of sustainable development and assesses its impact.

Iris Borowy is an Adjunct Lecturer at the Historical Institute, University of Rostock, Germany and a Research Associate at the Centre Alexandre Koyre, CNRS, Paris, France

1. Introduction - The Difficult Elements of Sustainable Development Part 1: The Time Before the WCED 2. The Background - Strands Leading up the Brundtland Commission Part 2: The Time of the WCED 3. Establishing the Commission 4. Jakarta 5. Oslo 6. São Paulo 7. Ottawa 8. Harare 9. Moscow 10. Bringing Commission Work to an End Part 3: After the WCED 11. Strands leading away from the Brundtland Commission 12. Conclusions - a Retroactive View on Sustainable Development and its Difficult Elements Bibliography Index