The barriers and possible solution to achieve sustainable development

The increasing spectrum of environmental and social challenges instigated by the failure of development strategies, the continuous proliferation of unsustainable patterns of production and consumption coupled with the anticipated level of population stimulated the pursuit of a new path. Sustainable development has emerged as a possible remedy. Despite increasing efforts to marry the social and environmental challenges with economic growth, progress remains remote. Against this background, the paper aims to investigate the root cause of the current poor progress in terms of the practical application of the concept. The paper reinforces the drawbacks of the current societal conflict resolution mechanism: market and political arenas. As a possible solution, it suggest the urgent need for a shift to the third arena, which facilitates integration of public debates, scientific evidence and policy, and extensive use of innovative tools such as precautionary principle to ensure a high-quality decision-making process.