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In a changing world, this paper asks the question: "how does one devise strategies for society that will allow a peaceful, equitable, fulfilled human future: a humane future for a diverse earth?" It considers what the environmental movement can do to help make this happen.

The authors call for a transition to sustainability by identifying global trends, which include: inequality has increased over the past decade; there are shortfalls in sustainable human wellbeing; and the era of cheap hydrocarbons is coming to an end. A shift to a low-carbon economy is essential but ideas about how to achieve sustainability are fragmented.

There is no magic bullet, but solutions recommended by the authors include:

• create an economy that can fit on a single planet: the way people think about growth and prosperity must be changed to achieve more with less
• rejuvenate the global environmental movement: the movement must help link together communities and organisations working out practical solutions to sustainability challenges, and ways to live with more happiness and lower energy and material consumption
• build an institutional architecture to bring about change: transition to sustainability depends on the collaborative and coherent actions of political and business leaders, governments (from local to national), and an effective international environmental regime.

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