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Sustainability thoughts 142: Expanding sustainability line theory to point out
the nature of sustainability problems and of unsustainability paradigm zones
separating sustainabilit...
Article · August 2024
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Muñoz, Lucio, 2024. Sustainability thoughts 142: Expanding sustainability line theory to
point out the nature of sustainability problems and of unsustainability paradigm zones
separating sustainability and unsustainability-based paradigms, Copy rights Lucio Muñoz,
In: ISRG Journal of Economics, Business, and Management (ISRGJEBM), ISSN: 2584-0916
(Online), Volume – II Issue - IV (July – August), Pp. 167-171, India.
[Link]
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Sustainability thoughts 142: Expanding sustainability line theory to point out the nature of
sustainability problems and of unsustainability paradigm zones separating sustainability
and unsustainability-based paradigms
By
Lucio Muñoz*
* Independent Qualitative Comparative Researcher / Consultant, Vancouver, BC, Canada Email: munoz@[Link]
Abstract
Sustainability line theory tells us that sustainability varies from 0 to 1 or from full
unsustainability to full sustainability. This thinking can be expanded step by step to show the
following: i) The location of full unsustainability paradigms and of full sustainability paradigms;
ii) The possible contractions and expansions of sustainability paradigms; iii) The possible
contractions and expansions of unsustainability paradigms; iv) The nature of the sustainability
problem separating full sustainability paradigms and full unsustainability paradigms; v) The
nature of the unsustainability paradigm zone separating full sustainability paradigm and full
unsustainability paradigms; and vi) The expected expansion of unsustainability paradigms and of
full sustainability paradigms once they are in place. The overall goal of this paper is to show how
this step-by-step expansion of the sustainability line idea works as well as to highlight the
relevant implications at each step.
Key concepts
Sustainability, Unsustainability, Sustainability problem, Unsustainability paradigm zone,
Optimal paradigm, non-optimal paradigm, Golden paradigm, Flawed paradigm, Paradigm
expansion, Paradigm contraction
Introduction
a) The sustainability line theory
Sustainability line theory has been used to advance paradigm evolution ideas(Muñoz
2019) through sustainability inversegram based thinking and sustainability gaps or to share
pareto optimality ideas(Muñoz 2021) through sustainability rightgrams and leftgrams and cost
externalization and cost internalization thinking to gain an outside the box understanding of the
sustainability problems associated with Adam Smith’s traditional market model(Smith 1776)
such as the socio-environmental sustainability problems the Brundtland Commission identified
in 1987(WCED 1987) or the environmental sustainability problems the United Nations
Commission on Sustainable Development tried to address in 2012 Rio + 20(UNCSD 2012a;
UNCSD 2012b), a sustainability idea that can be expressed in its simplest general form as in
Figure 1 below:
From left to right on Figure 1 above, we have the sustainability rightgram, telling us that
sustainability (Si) varies from zero to one, meaning that there can be full unsustainability (Si =
0), partial sustainability (0 < Si <1), and full sustainability (Si = 1). From right to left on Figure
1 above, we have the unsustainability leftgram, indicating that unsustainability (UNSi) varies
from one to zero, meaning that there can be no unsustainability at all (UNSi = 1), partial
unsustainability (0 < UNSi < 1), and full unsustainability (UNSi = 0). Hence, either way we
look we see that sustainability varies from 0 to 1 as Si = 0 = UNSi means no sustainability at all
and Si = 1 = UNSi means full sustainability.
b) Expanding the sustainability line idea
As indicated above sustainability line theory tells us that sustainability varies from 0 to 1
or from full unsustainability to full sustainability. This thinking can be expanded step by step to
show the following: i) The location of full unsustainability paradigms and of full sustainability
paradigms; ii) The possible contractions and expansions of sustainability paradigms; iii) The
possible contractions and expansions of unsustainability paradigms; iv) The nature of the
sustainability problem separating full sustainability paradigms and full unsustainability
paradigms; v) The nature of the unsustainability paradigm zone separating full sustainability
paradigm and full unsustainability paradigms; and vi) The expected expansion of
unsustainability paradigms and of full sustainability paradigms once they are in place. The
overall goal of this paper is to show how this step-by-step expansion of the sustainability line
idea works as well as to highlight the relevant implications at each step.
Goals of this paper
a) To use sustainability line theory to place full sustainability paradigms and full
unsustainability paradigms as its boundaries; b) To use the sustainability line structure above to
show how each of those paradigms can expand or contract; c) To use the sustainability line
structure above to point out where the sustainability problems and the unsustainability paradigm
zones are located; and d) To use the sustainability line structure above to indicate how full
sustainability paradigms and unsustainability paradigms are expected to expand once in place.
Methodology
First, the terminology and operational concepts relevant to this paper are shared. Second,
sustainability line theory is used to place full sustainability paradigms and full unsustainability
paradigms as its boundaries and the main implications of doing this are highlighted. Third, the
sustainability line structure given above is adapted to show how sustainability paradigms can
expand or contract and the main implications of doing this are given. Fourth, the sustainability
line structure given above is used to show how unsustainability paradigms can expand or
contract and the main implications of doing this are provided. Fifth, the sustainability line
structure above is used to point out where the sustainability problems are located and the main
implications of this location are stressed. Seventh, the sustainability line structure above is used
to indicate where the unsustainability paradigm zone is located and the main implications of this
location are shared. Eight, the sustainability line structure given above is used to stress how full
sustainability paradigms and unsustainability paradigms are expected to expand once in place
and the main implications of the way they expand are exalted. And finally, ninth, some food for
thoughts and relevant conclusions are given.
Terminology
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S = Sustainability Si = Sustainability paradigm “i”
P = Price D = Demand
UNS = Unsustainability UNSi = Unsustainability paradigm “i”
SOP = Sustainability problem SOPi = Sustainability problem “i”
UNSPZ = Unsustainability paradigm zone EXP = Expansion
EXPi = Expansion “i” CON= Contraction
CONi = Contraction “i” GOP = Golden paradigm
FLP = Flawed paradigm Ai = Abnormality “i”
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Operational concepts
1) Full sustainability, the paradigm where there is no externality cost externalization.
2) Partial sustainability, the paradigm where there is partial cost externalization.
3) Full unsustainability, the paradigm where there is full cost externalization.
4) Sustainability problem, the gap created when unsustainability-based paradigms are placed
below full sustainability.
5) Unsustainability paradigm zone, the gap that separate full unsustainability paradigms from
full sustainability paradigms.
6) Golden paradigm, a full sustainability paradigm.
7) Flawed paradigm, any paradigm placed on any point on the unsustainable paradigm zone.
8) Optimal paradigm, a golden paradigm.
9) Non-optimal paradigm, a flawed paradigm.
10) Optimal expansion trend, the tendency that sustainability paradigms have to produce at the
lowest optimal price possible to maximize sustainability paradigm-based profits.
11) Non-optimal expansion trend, the tendency that unsustainability paradigms have to produce
at the lowest non-optimal price possible to maximize unsustainability paradigm-based profits.
The location of full unsustainability paradigms and of full sustainability paradigms
If we place full sustainability(S) as the right boundary of the sustainability line and we
place full unsustainability (UNS) as the left boundary on the sustainability line given in Figure 1
of the introduction, and represent these boundaries as vertical lines we produced the situation in
Figure 2 below:
Figure 2 above simply shows the boundaries on the sustainability line.
Implications:
The boundaries on the sustainability line are full sustainability(S) and full
unsustainability (UNS). And therefore, a move away from full unsustainability is a move closer
to full sustainability; and any move away from full sustainability is a move closer to full
unsustainability. In other words, the level of sustainability a paradigm has depends on whether it
is closer to full unsustainability or closer to full sustainability.
The possible contractions and expansions of full sustainability paradigms
Full sustainability paradigms(S) are optimal paradigms so they can expand (EXP) or
contract (CON) as needed in an optimal fashion as indicated in Figure 3 below:
Figure 3 above describes i) how full sustainability paradigms(S) can contract optimally as
needed as the contraction from S to S2 (CON2) and contraction from S to S3 (CON3) show; and
ii) how full sustainability paradigms(S) can expand optimally as needed as the move from S to
S1 (EXP1) indicates, as in all cases optimality maintains full sustainability intact as represented
by the 1 below S1, S, S2, and S3.
Implications:
Full sustainability is maintained when optimal contractions and optimal expansions take
place, and therefore, full sustainability paradigms can expand or contract optimally as needed.
The possible contractions and expansions of unsustainability paradigms
Unsustainability paradigms (UNS) are non-optimal paradigms so they cannot expand
(EXP) forever, but they can contract, and the more they contract the closer they are to full
sustainability(S) a situation shown in Figure 5 below:
We can appreciate the following aspects based on Figure 4 above: i) Unsustainability
cannot expand beyond full unsustainability(UNS) as the broken arrow indicating the expansion
EXP1 from UNS to UNS1 tells us; ii) Unsustainability can be contracted as needed as the
contraction CON1 from UNS to UNS2 and the contraction CON2 from UNS to UNS3 indicate;
iii) The contraction UNS3 is more sustainable than the contraction UNS2 as it is closer to full
sustainability(S); and iv) The contraction UNS2 is more unsustainable than contraction UNS3 as
it is closer to full unsustainability.
Implications:
Unsustainability paradigms cannot expand beyond full unsustainability; and the larger the
contraction that unsustainability paradigms have the closer to full sustainability they are.
The nature of the sustainability problem separating full sustainability paradigms and full
unsustainability paradigms
The gap between unsustainability paradigms and full sustainability paradigm(S)
represents the sustainability problem (SOP) associated with the working of unsustainability
paradigms (UNSi), a situation reflected by the blue arrows moving from left to right in Figure 5
below:
We can extract the following relevant aspects based on the information in Figure 5 above:
i) There is a sustainability problem(SOP) separating full unsustainability(UNS) from full
sustainability(S) as indicated by the blue arrow from left to right from UNS to S; ii) There is a
sustainability problem(SOP2) separating partial unsustainability(UNS2) from full
sustainability(S) as shown by the blue arrow from left to right from UNS2 to S; iii) There is a
sustainability problem(SOP3) separating partial unsustainability(UNS3) from full
sustainability(S) as represented by the blue arrow from left to right from UNS3 to S; and iv) The
higher the contraction of unsustainability the smaller the sustainability problem separating them
from full sustainability(S) as in the case of UNS2 and UNS3 we can see that unsustainability
paradigm UNS2 has a larger sustainability problem than unsustainability UNS3 does since SOP3
< SOP2 as indicated by the lengths of their respective blue arrows.
Implications:
There is a sustainability problem separating unsustainability-based paradigms from full
sustainability; and the sustainability problem associated with full unsustainability is bigger than
the sustainability problem associated with any of its contractions since the closer the contractions
are to full sustainability the less unsustainable, they are.
The nature of the unsustainability paradigm zone separating full sustainability paradigm
and full unsustainability paradigms
The unsustainability paradigm zone (UNSPZ) captures of non-optimal paradigms that can
be found below full sustainability(S) as indicated by the brown arrow from right to left going
from S to UNS, as pointed out in Figure 6 below:
We can see directly from Figure 6 above that paradigms UNS, UNS2, and UNS3 are
within the unsustainability paradigm zone (UNSPZ); and therefore, they are non-optimal
paradigms that in terms of unsustainability can be ranked as UNS > UNS2 > UNS3. We can also
appreciate based on Figure 6 above that when an unsustainability paradigm is placed in the
unsustainability paradigm zone (UNSPZ) we also allocate the sustainability problem (SOP)
associated with it as for example, placing the unsustainability paradigm UNS3 on the
unsustainable paradigm zone makes it a non-optimal paradigm with the associated sustainability
problem SOP3.
Implications:
Any paradigm found or placed in the unsustainability paradigm zone is a non-optimal
paradigm, which has a specific sustainability problem associated with it. In other words, any
non-optimal paradigm is below full sustainability, and it has a sustainability problem embedded
in it.
The expected expansion of unsustainability paradigms and of full sustainability paradigms
once they are in place.
Once paradigms are in place, they will tend to expand at the lowest price possible, in the
case of optimal paradigms like full sustainability they expand at the lowest optimal price
possible; and in the case of unsustainability paradigms, they will tend to expand at the lowest
non-optimal price possible, a view expressed in Figure 7 below:
On the right side on top of Figure 7 above we have the optimal expansion of full
sustainability(S), which can expand as needed as the expansion EXP1 from S to S1 and beyond
as represented by the green arrow shows. This is because as the optimal paradigm price
decreases sustainability paradigms expand and as the optimal paradigm price continues to
decrease beyond S1 they expand more. On the left side on top of Figure 7 above we have the
non-optimal expansion of unsustainability paradigms such as paradigm UNS2 and paradigm
UNS3, which will tend to expand towards full unsustainability (UNS) as the expansions EXP4
from UNS2 towards UNS and the expansion EXP3 from UNS3 to UNS2 and beyond as
represented by the green arrows from right to left tell us. This is because as the non-optimal
paradigm price of those unsustainability markets decreases unsustainability paradigms expand,
and as their non-optimal paradigm prices continue to decrease the paradigms UNS2 and UNS3
will expand towards full unsustainability (UNS), as that is the unsustainability limit. Notice that
Figure 7 summarizes sustainability line thinking as i) it shows the limits of sustainability; ii) it
indicates the sustainability problems within those limits; iii) it tells us about where the
unsustainability paradigm zone is; iv) it suggests the sustainability problems associated with any
unsustainability paradigm found on the unsustainability paradigm zone; and v) it highlights how
sustainability paradigms and unsustainability paradigms are expected to expand once in place.
Implications:
Sustainability paradigms, once in place, should be expected to expand as the optimal
paradigm price decreases; and unsustainability paradigms, once in place, should be expected to
expand as the non-optimal paradigm price decreases, if left unattended, unsustainability
paradigms will expand towards full unsustainability and collapse.
Food for thoughts
i) Are unsustainability paradigms consistent with optimalization principles? I think No,
what do you think?; ii) Are sustainability paradigms consistent with maximization principles? I
think No, what do you think?; and iii) Can you pass an unsustainability paradigm as a
sustainability paradigm without alternative academic facts? I think No, what do you think?
Conclusions
In general, it was shown that the sustainability line idea can be used to highlight
important issues that help us understand the world of sustainability and unsustainability
paradigms and how they are expected to work and the problems associated with them.
Specifically, it was pointed out step by step the following: the limits of sustainability, the
possible expansion and contractions of unsustainability and sustainability paradigms, the
sustainability problems associated with each unsustainability paradigm, the unsustainability
paradigm zone where all unsustainability paradigms are found, and the expected way
sustainability and unsustainability paradigm will expand once in place.
References
Muñoz Lucio, 2019. Paradigm Evolution and Sustainability Thinking: Using a
Sustainability Inversegram to State Paradigm Death and Shift Expectations Under Win-
Win and No Win-Win Situations. In: Current Perspective to Economics
and Management, Vol. 1, Chapter 2, June 12, Book Publisher International, London, UK.
Muñoz, Lucio, 2021. Sustainability thoughts 127: Pareto optimality under the
sustainability eye: Is the traditional pareto efficient bundle the second most undesirable
bundle on the pareto optimality sustainability line? If yes, why?, In: International Journal
of Management studies and Social Science Research (IJMSSSR), Vol. 3, Issue 1, January-
February, Pp 180-196, ISSN: 2582-0265, India.
Smith, Adam, 1776. The Wealth of Nations, W. Strahan and T. Cadell, London, UK.
United Nations Conference on Sustainable Development (UNCSD), 2012a. Rio+20 Concludes
with Big Package of Commitments for Action and Agreement by World Leaders on Path for a
Sustainable Future, Press Release, June 20-22, New York, NY, USA.
United Nations Conference on Sustainable Development (UNCSD), 2012b. The Future We
Want June 20-22, New York, NY, USA.
World Commission on Environment and Development (WCED), 1987. Our Common Future,
Oxford University Press, London, UK.
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Citation:
Muñoz, Lucio, 2024. Sustainability thoughts 142: Expanding sustainability line theory to
point out the nature of sustainability problems and of unsustainability paradigm zones
separating sustainability and unsustainability-based paradigms, Copy rights Lucio Muñoz,
In: ISRG Journal of Economics, Business, and Management (ISRGJEBM), ISSN: 2584-0916
(Online), Volume – II Issue - IV (July – August), Pp. 167-171, India.
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