A literature review 'what are the concepts behind sustainable housing Essay

A literature review 'what are the concepts behind sustainable housing development' - Essay Example The term ‘sustainable development’ is perhaps one of the most important terms in the context of global society. World Commission on Environment and Development defined ‘sustainable development’ as â€Å"development that meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs† (Munier, 2005). Often people think that ‘sustainable development’ is synonymous with ‘economic development’. However the concept of sustainable development is applied to every area. Fundamentally there are three major areas that are addressed by sustainable development. These are In the present era when activities are more involved in destructions rather than constructions, it is very important to have sustainable development in both economic and social sectors. Housing development is basically a part of both social as well as economic development of the region. As a result sustainable housing development has to be considered crucial if the objectives regarding sustainable economic and social development are needed to be achieved. Housing can be seen as a basic human need and it is one of the major issues in the everyday life of people. In 1948, United Nations stated that â€Å"everyone has the right to a standard of living adequate for the health and well-being of himself and of his family including food, clothing, housing and medical care and necessary social services†¦Ã¢â‚¬  (Bakar, A. H. et al, n.d.). Housing initiatives have to be socially acceptable, economically viable, environmentally compatible and technically feasible in order to achieve sustainability. Sustainable housing has been defined in several different ways by different experts and organizations. The European Union provided a definition from three different perspectives – economy and society (e.g. psychological impacts and affordability), construction (e.g. construction quality) and