The projected growth in resource consumption and emissions generation in response to global population growth (on the short-term horizon) and especially improving standards of living (on the long-term horizon), point toward an unsustainable future within the next 75 years.

The trends are analyzed in the form of so-called “exponentialoids” as introduced by García Bacca (1989) to differentiate it from an exponential. An exponential is an algorithm with limited variables, whereas an exponentialoid is the term coined by García Bacca (1989) to denote a condition when multiple complex forces conspire to create a growth with logarithmic properties. Construction has experienced a logarithmic growth that is caused by complex forces.

There are no reliable studies or system representations that predict whether the required reductions in ecological impacts can actually be realized, and if so, on what time scale.

This paper identifies and analyzes the elements that influence change in population growth to better understand the dynamics of exponentialoids. Furthermore, sustainability is defined as the force that tames an exponentialoid