Abstract

The sustainability challenge is to match cultural and natural change. Instead of a political or institutional approach, this implies a cultural revolution in the domain of individual ethics. I defend this ethical priority in sustainability through an a posteriori argument concerning institutional failure and through a conceptual analysis of sustainability as self-reliance and its consequences. Sustainability is not a challenge for our institutions directly. It is a challenge for our lifestyle, our personal lifestyle and our social lifestyle (institutional, economical and political). Our lifestyles are not 'sustainable' in the full sense of the word. They will not last, and they do not meet the requirements of human dignity (ethical and ecological dignity).