The world today faces interconnected planetary crises – from climate change to the dramatic loss of biodiversity. Although sustainable development globally recognized vision, its The current implementation often encounters limits. According to the latest scientific findings published in magazine Nature Portfolio The current market-oriented system maximizes the flow of materials from nature through the economy to society, paradoxically deepening trends away from sustainability.

Crisis of values and theoretical limits

The prevailing global economic system is built on a worldview that separates man from nature. The neoliberal capitalist model prioritizes instrumental values, short-term material gains, private property, and constant economic growth. This approach has led to environmental degradation, which we now recognize as an interconnected crisis.

The very concept of sustainable development, defined in 1987 as meeting the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs, is suffering. insufficient and fragmented theoretical foundations. Many frameworks, including the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), were born in a Western market environment and do not adequately reflect the plurality of worldviews, especially those that recognize the intrinsic value of nature and relational values such as care and reciprocity. By 2024, only 17 of the 13 SDGs were on track to be achieved, suggesting that the system needs a fundamental „reset.“.

A new system model: Nature as the foundation

The proposed new sustainability model (Figure 3 in Resources) perceives nature as a base layer, which includes human society, and this in turn includes the economy. In this understanding, nature, society and the economy are not three separate pillars, but interconnected and hierarchically arranged layers.

1. Nature: It represents basic capital, including biodiversity, water and the elements of the Earth system that make life possible.
2. Company: It includes all people and communities, their values, cultures and rules of conduct that determine the indirect driving forces of the economy.
3. Economy: It acts as mediator between nature and society. Its task is the management (oikonomia) of needs, drawing material contributions from nature and transforming them into social benefit.

In this system, the economy is a subset of society and serves its purposes, with the entire system having to remain in balance to be sustainable in the long term.

From market failure to value failure

Sources suggest that environmental crises should not be seen simply as market failures, but rather as value failures. Markets are very efficient at delivering what they value – currently, maximizing production and profit. The problem is that markets do not operate with a sufficiently broad range of values to ensure holistic outcomes for nature and society.

The model emphasizes the need to move from the framework of „living from nature“ (exploitation) to the frameworks of „living in nature“, „living with nature“ or even „living like nature“, which emphasize reciprocity and intrinsic values. If the values driving markets were aligned with sustainability, markets could deliver sustainable outcomes.

Transformation in Practice: From Farms to Corporations

The model can be applied at different levels, from global to local. An example is the transformation of a farm with monoculture production to nature-based farm. In an unsustainable model, biodiversity is lost in the interest of maximizing profit, leading to the degradation of natural capital.

In a sustainable model, the farm invests in restoration (e.g., leaving at least 25 % of land in a natural state), which may reduce direct crop production but will strengthen natural and social capital. The result is a healthier ecosystem, better community resilience and, in the long term, more stable economic viability. Similarly, companies in other sectors, such as fertilizer manufacturers, must adopt a sustainability approach, replacing vicious cycles of degradation with virtuous cycles that deliver positive outcomes for society and the environment.

Conclusion and the post-2030 agenda

The aim of this system reset is not to reject sustainable development, but redefine it through a deeper sustainability paradigm. This approach opens up space for inclusive coexistence of people with different worldviews on one planet. By mechanically connecting people's needs with the dynamics and limits of nature, the model provides a robust foundation not only for achieving the SDGs, but also for shaping the post-2030 agenda. JRi