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Addressing Poverty Is Obvious, However If One Considers The Young Generation ...


Addressing poverty is obvious, however if one considers the young generation overall as well as those in the lower and middle income classes, the national mandate on sustainable development addresses each and every member of society. Prime Minister Tony Blair in his forward to the government document A better quality of life strategy for sustainable development for the United Kingdom 1999 stated the importance of adopting the long term view and ensuring that economic growth contributes a better quality of life for everyone, now and for generations to come (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, 2002). That statement underscores the entire initiative. One of the objectives headlined in the report specifies social objectives. It identifies the following (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, 2002):
Access, this represents considering individuals that have mobility as well as sight and or hearing problems, and incorporating their needs into design plans, along with making houses friendly for those with these types of conditions at a modest cost to either convert or add features.
Issues relating to the community as a whole, with considerations such as employment and consultation
Other social aspects represent equity in terms of gender, religion and race in making newer sustainable housing placements in all types of local authorities, regardless of their make up in these aspects.
Community issues such as safety along with security whereby upgraded housing reduces crime and increases personal safety.
In achieving these goals, developers will have to incorporate new features into individual house as well as community planning representing new designs and an investment in either research or consultation on measures to provide increased sustainable home features while making such affordable. The preceding means increased start up costs to revise present developer building plans, construction methods and procedures. Added developer and builder costs then need to be incorporated into homes to qualify for mortgages in direct competition with existing properties as well as new ones that do not have such features and benefits, thus being able to be offered for lower prices. As developers and builders are in the industry to make money, providing prospective owners with social features is a bottom line equation that represents disadvantages in that there is a risk factor involved in terms of competition for buyers with other developers and builders. Selling out individual homes and developments as quickly as possible is the prime objective. As such, competing developers and builders offering sustainable homes versus non-sustainable homes represents a considerable barrier in terms of social issues intertwined with economic considerations.
The broader sphere in the social perspective includes environmental issues.


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