Science works in trajectories. Whether we look from an individual, institutional, or international perspective, we focus our efforts on certain scientific pursuits and omit others. In an ideal world, of course, our efforts would be omnific in nature, pursuing every conceivable scientific trajectory to understand the world with near-perfect precision. At some point, however, we are forced to make a choice to pursue path A or path B – limited by resources, attention, and time. Frustratingly, knowing which path is likely to be most fruitful is often highly unpredictable. On the bright side, this also makes the discovery of new knowledge exciting.

In 1974 the Norwegian physicist and co-author of Limits to Growth (1972) coined the phrase “a sustainable society.” It was meant to capture his vision for a viable environmental future, while also open a new endless frontier for science with the larger goal of mobilizing Christian religion and respect for the almighty. It was an ecumenical hope in the coming of the Golden Age and the Kingdom of God that framed early understandings of environmental sustainability. In Norway, Randers directed the Resource Policy Group, an influential think tank that provided policy papers to the Labor Party and beyond. The notion of a “sustainable development” was adapted from them by the Norwegian politician Gro Harlem Brundtland, who chaired the World Commission on Environment and Development leading up to the Our Common Future report from 1987.