Sustainability is now a very common but difficult word. It can be interpreted in many different ways, and its implementation causes great controversy.
What serves as a guide?
A frequently used concept is that of the three pillars or dimensions of sustainability: ecology, economy and social affairs.
These dimensions should be balanced to enable long-term development that meets the needs of today's generation without jeopardizing the opportunities of future generations.
Environmental sustainability means protecting and preserving natural resources and ecosystems, promoting biodiversity and combating climate change.
Economic sustainability means promoting a just and stable economy that creates prosperity and quality of life for all without harming the environment.
Societal and social sustainability means respecting human rights and fundamental freedoms, promoting gender equality and the participation of all, fighting poverty and hunger and ensuring peace and security.
In order to translate these dimensions into concrete goals and measures, the United Nations adopted the 2030 Agenda in 2015.
The 2030 Agenda is a global action plan for sustainable development that includes 17 goals and 169 sub-goals - the Sustainable Development Goals, or SDGs for short.
The goals cover a variety of topics, such as health, education, energy, climate, environment, justice or partnership. They are universally valid and are aimed at all countries and actors.
The goals are to be achieved by 2030. A really ambitious goal.
The fauss group is aware of the urgency, but also of the difficulties.
The fauss group will contribute to achieving the goals set in all of its service areas, in which it is always confronted with the central dimensions of ecology, economy and social affairs.
Internet accessibility is also part of the Sustainable Development Goals. It enables everyone, regardless of their limitations or technical capabilities, to use the wide range of information and services that the Internet offers.
Internet accessibility is not only a matter of social justice and inclusion, but also a factor in the quality and usability of websites.
The fauss group has therefore developed its website to be as barrier-free as possible according to the standards of the World Wide Web Consortium (W3C).
Four basic principles for barrier-free web design are defined here: perceptibility, usability, comprehensibility and robustness. At the same time, techniques are used to permanently check and improve accessibility.
The accessibility of the Internet is enshrined in law.
In Germany, the law implementing Directive (EU) 2016/2102 on barrier-free access to the websites and mobile applications of public bodies (barrier-free websites law - BfWebG) has been in force since 2019. This law obliges all federal public bodies to make their websites and mobile applications barrier-free.