The word "sustainable" comes from the Latin word "sustinere" meaning "to hold up" or "to support." It was first used in the English language in the late 17th century to mean "capable of being sustained" or "able to be maintained at a certain rate or level." In the 1980s, it was adopted in the field of environmental science and ecology to refer to the capacity of human societies to meet their needs without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs. The word has evolved in the modern world to refer to the practice of preserving natural resources through the use of renewable resources and conservation methods.