Ethics & governance
Future Generations
Definition
Future generations are the people not yet born whose ability to meet their own needs the present generation must not compromise — the moral core of the Brundtland definition of sustainable development. The concept was given new institutional form in 2024 when UN member states adopted the Pact for the Future (Resolution A/RES/79/1, 22 September 2024), which includes a Declaration on Future Generations as an annex.
References
2024 institutionalisation
resolution details
Overview
What it means
Treating future generations as stakeholders converts sustainability from a preference into a duty: discounting the future less heavily, protecting irreversible assets such as biodiversity and a stable climate, and building institutions — ombudspersons, guardians, future-proofing laws — that represent the unborn in today's decisions.
How it is used
The concept anchors intergenerational-equity arguments in climate litigation, constitutional environmental rights, long-term infrastructure appraisal, and UN processes from the SDGs to the Pact for the Future.
Why it matters
Most environmental damage is temporally asymmetric: costs fall on people with no voice today. Future generations is the concept that makes that asymmetry visible and actionable.