The concept and principles of sustainable development have been accepted for several decades as being central to societal progress. Yet, we are still trying to shift to a truly sustainable development model. This chapter illustrates sustainable development in action through the story of an integrated watershed management project in Ethiopia in which the authors were involved. The project has regenerated and enhanced natural resources, improved incomes and food security, and provided a range of social benefits. It has also improved people’s resilience in the face of climate change, while contributing to carbon sequestration. The success of this approach to watershed management lies in the fact that it is not solely a technical approach. Full participation of local resource users has been fundamental, as has social capital and a supportive institutional environment. The project’s approach has now been scaled up to the national level, influencing key areas of national policy, including the Productive Safety Net Programme and Ethiopia’s Green Economy Strategy. Too many sustainable development approaches never go beyond the pilot project. An important lesson from this experience is that while a successful local approach can and should be applied at the national level, doing so requires institutional and policy commitment from governments and from civil society, as well as the investment of enough funds to enable scaling-up. As the initial project was inspired by similar work in India, it also demonstrates the value of sharing experiences.