Emerging Issues

An emerging issue is an issue that is not generally recognized but that may have a considerable impact on environmental (social, economic and ecological) well-being in the future. Emerging issues may have positive or negative impacts. The field of understanding and predicting these possible future impacts is called futures research or foresight.

Environmental policies are often a reaction to the current state of the environment, in order to cure already occurring damages or to remedy environmental problems when they are already in place. But environmental policies need to be able to anticipate future evolutions and apply the precautionary approach in managing them in the light of the uncertainty associated with them. This is particularly important in managing the environment sustainably for future generations.