ICAEW SE · Chapter 1
Concepts and significance of sustainability MCQs with Answers
13 multiple-choice questions on Concepts and significance of sustainability for ICAEW SE Sustainability and Ethics. Try each one before revealing the answer and explanation.
Practise this chapter interactivelyQuestion 1
Which of the following is the widely used definition of sustainable development set out in the 1987 Brundtland Report?
- A) Development that maximises economic growth while keeping pollution within legal limits
- B) Development that protects the natural environment by halting all further industrial expansion
- C) Development that meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs
- D) Development that ensures every country reaches the same level of income per head
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Answer: C) Development that meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs
The Brundtland Report (Our Common Future) defined sustainable development as meeting present needs without compromising the ability of future generations to meet theirs. The definition is about balancing needs across generations, not about maximising growth within legal limits. It does not require halting industrial activity, nor does it set a goal of equal income per head between countries.
Question 2
The United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (UN SDGs) were adopted by UN member states in 2015. How many goals do they contain?
- A) 17
- B) 8
- C) 12
- D) 169
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Answer: A) 17
There are 17 SDGs, supported by 169 targets, forming the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. Eight was the number of the earlier Millennium Development Goals. The figure of 169 is the number of targets, not goals.
Question 3
Which of the following best explains why the UN SDGs are significant for businesses as well as governments?
- A) They are legally binding on all listed companies and must be reported against in annual accounts
- B) They replace national law on environmental protection in every UN member state
- C) They apply only to developing countries, so businesses use them mainly for overseas aid programmes
- D) They provide a shared global framework that businesses can use to identify and communicate how their activities affect social, environmental and economic priorities
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Answer: D) They provide a shared global framework that businesses can use to identify and communicate how their activities affect social, environmental and economic priorities
The SDGs are a voluntary, universal framework agreed by governments, but they are widely used by businesses to align strategy, set targets and communicate their contribution to sustainable development. They are not legally binding on companies and do not override national law. Unlike the earlier Millennium Development Goals, the SDGs apply to all countries, not only developing ones.
Question 4
What does the term 'Anthropocene' describe?
- A) An informal term for the current period in which human activity has become a dominant influence on the Earth's climate and ecosystems
- B) A model of business strategy that places people ahead of profit
- C) The period before industrialisation when human impact on the planet was negligible
- D) An international agreement on reducing greenhouse gas emissions
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Answer: A) An informal term for the current period in which human activity has become a dominant influence on the Earth's climate and ecosystems
The Anthropocene is a widely used term for the period in which humans have become a dominant force shaping the planet's climate, ecosystems and geology. Although it has been debated by geologists, it has not been formally adopted as a unit of the geological time scale, so it is best described as an informal term rather than an official epoch. It is not a business model or a treaty, and it describes the opposite of the pre-industrial period, when human influence was much smaller.
Question 5
The planetary boundaries framework identifies nine Earth-system processes. What is the main purpose of the framework?
- A) To define a 'safe operating space' for humanity, beyond which there is an increased risk of large-scale and possibly irreversible environmental change
- B) To set legally enforceable emission limits for each country
- C) To measure the minimum social needs, such as food and housing, that every person should have
- D) To rank countries according to the size of their economies relative to their land area
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Answer: A) To define a 'safe operating space' for humanity, beyond which there is an increased risk of large-scale and possibly irreversible environmental change
The planetary boundaries framework identifies limits for processes such as climate change, biosphere integrity and freshwater use, within which humanity can operate safely. Crossing these boundaries increases the risk of abrupt or irreversible change. The framework is scientific, not legally enforceable, and the social foundation of minimum needs is a feature of Doughnut Economics rather than of planetary boundaries.
Question 6
Kate Raworth's 'Doughnut Economics' model has an inner ring and an outer ring. A country provides good healthcare, education and housing for all its citizens but its resource use greatly exceeds the Earth's capacity. How would this country be described using the model?
- A) It falls short of the social foundation but stays within the ecological ceiling
- B) It meets the social foundation but overshoots the ecological ceiling
- C) It is operating within the safe and just space for humanity
- D) It overshoots the social foundation and falls short of the ecological ceiling
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Answer: B) It meets the social foundation but overshoots the ecological ceiling
In Doughnut Economics the inner ring is the social foundation (minimum standards for human wellbeing) and the outer ring is the ecological ceiling (limits on pressure on the planet). Meeting citizens' needs means the social foundation is met, but excessive resource use means the ecological ceiling is overshot. The safe and just space is only achieved when both conditions are satisfied at once.
Question 7
A manufacturer of office furniture stops selling chairs and instead leases them to customers. At the end of each lease it takes the chairs back, refurbishes them and re-leases them, and recycles parts that cannot be reused. Which concept does this business model best illustrate?
- A) The linear 'take-make-dispose' economy
- B) Degrowth
- C) The circular economy
- D) Weak sustainability
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Answer: C) The circular economy
A circular economy keeps products and materials in use at their highest value for as long as possible, designing out waste through reuse, refurbishment and recycling. Product-as-a-service models such as leasing support this because the producer keeps ownership and has an incentive to make durable products. A linear economy disposes of products after use, while degrowth refers to reducing overall economic throughput.
Question 8
Under the six-capitals model used in integrated reporting, which pairing of item and type of capital is correct?
- A) Trust built with local communities and suppliers: social and relationship capital
- B) Software developed in-house: manufactured capital
- C) Cash held in the bank: natural capital
- D) Employees' motivation and ability to innovate: intellectual capital
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Answer: A) Trust built with local communities and suppliers: social and relationship capital
The six capitals are financial, manufactured, intellectual, human, social and relationship, and natural. Trust and relationships with communities and suppliers are social and relationship capital. In-house software is intellectual capital, cash is financial capital, and employees' motivation and capabilities are human capital.
Question 9
Which statement correctly distinguishes 'weak sustainability' from 'strong sustainability'?
- A) Weak sustainability applies to small businesses, whereas strong sustainability applies to large listed companies
- B) Weak sustainability focuses only on social issues, whereas strong sustainability focuses only on environmental issues
- C) Weak sustainability assumes natural capital can be replaced by other forms of capital, whereas strong sustainability holds that critical natural capital must be preserved because it cannot be substituted
- D) Weak sustainability requires zero emissions immediately, whereas strong sustainability allows emissions to fall gradually
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Answer: C) Weak sustainability assumes natural capital can be replaced by other forms of capital, whereas strong sustainability holds that critical natural capital must be preserved because it cannot be substituted
The distinction concerns substitutability between forms of capital. Weak sustainability treats total capital as what matters, so a loss of natural capital can be offset by gains in manufactured or financial capital. Strong sustainability holds that some natural capital is critical and non-substitutable, so it must be maintained in its own right. The terms are not about business size, a single pillar, or the speed of emission cuts.
Question 10
Which of the following best describes the concept of 'degrowth' as contrasted with 'green growth'?
- A) Degrowth argues that economies should grow faster to fund environmental clean-up, whereas green growth argues for zero growth
- B) Degrowth argues for a planned reduction in energy and resource use in high-income economies, whereas green growth argues that economic growth can continue if it is decoupled from environmental harm
- C) Degrowth and green growth both argue that GDP must fall in every country
- D) Degrowth refers to falling population, whereas green growth refers to rising population
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Answer: B) Degrowth argues for a planned reduction in energy and resource use in high-income economies, whereas green growth argues that economic growth can continue if it is decoupled from environmental harm
Green growth holds that GDP can keep rising while environmental pressures fall, through technology and efficiency that decouple growth from resource use. Degrowth questions whether sufficient decoupling is achievable and proposes a deliberate scaling down of material and energy throughput in wealthy economies, with a focus on wellbeing rather than GDP. Neither concept is about population size.
Question 11
Over a period, a country's GDP rose from £500bn to £600bn and its greenhouse gas emissions rose from 200 million tonnes CO2e to 210 million tonnes CO2e. Which of the following correctly describes what happened?
- A) Emissions intensity fell by 12.5%, which is absolute decoupling
- B) Emissions intensity rose by 5.0%, so there was no decoupling
- C) Emissions intensity fell by 20.0%, which is relative decoupling only
- D) Emissions intensity fell by 12.5%, which is relative decoupling only
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Answer: D) Emissions intensity fell by 12.5%, which is relative decoupling only
Emissions intensity was 200/500 = 0.40 Mt per £bn at the start and 210/600 = 0.35 Mt per £bn at the end. The fall is (0.40 - 0.35) / 0.40 = 12.5% (rounded to one decimal place). Because total emissions still rose, this is relative decoupling; absolute decoupling would require emissions to fall in total while GDP grows. The 5.0% figure is the rise in absolute emissions and 20.0% is the rise in GDP, not the change in intensity.
Question 12
Which of the following global sustainability challenges is primarily social and demographic rather than environmental?
- A) Loss of species due to habitat destruction
- B) Accumulation of plastic waste in the oceans
- C) Rapid urbanisation and migration placing pressure on housing and public services
- D) Rising average global temperatures
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Answer: C) Rapid urbanisation and migration placing pressure on housing and public services
Urbanisation and migration are population trends that mainly affect society, for example through demand for housing, infrastructure and services. Species decline, plastic pollution and rising temperatures are primarily environmental challenges, although all of these issues are interconnected.
Question 13
When identifying the key stakeholders in sustainability, why are future generations often described as a particularly challenging stakeholder group?
- A) They have the greatest economic power over current business decisions
- B) They are legally entitled to sue companies for damage caused before they were born
- C) They are already represented on most company boards
- D) They will bear the consequences of today's decisions but cannot express their views or influence those decisions directly
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Answer: D) They will bear the consequences of today's decisions but cannot express their views or influence those decisions directly
Future generations are central to the definition of sustainable development, yet they have no voice in present-day decision-making. Their interests therefore have to be considered through others, such as regulators, NGOs and responsible boards. They have no current economic power and no general legal right to sue, and they are not represented on boards.