Triple Bottom Line
Sustainability is usually measured according to Environmental, Financial and Social factors. The success of businesses is normally measured on the ‘Bottom Line’, or financial profit & loss. The success of sustainable systems is therefore measured on the Triple Bottom Line, including social and environmental profit & loss alongside financial.
Sustainability requires that the system does not make a loss in any of the three areas. However, in reality this means that the system must aim to make a profit, in order that inevitable occassional losses balance out and do not result in the degradation and collapse of the system.