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Various Measuring Progress initiatives are happening in OECD Countries
Australia
The Measures of Australia's Progress (MAP)
Over the past 10 years there have been many different initiatives at the national, regional, and community level. The government, non-government and university sectors have all been involved. Australian Bureau of Statistics released the 4th edition of Measures of Australia's Progress (MAP) in May 2006 and worked to move towards a "capital" approach that would allow the assessment of sustainability as well as progress. The 2nd edition of `Summary Indicators 2007` (August 2007) provides a national summary of the most important areas of progress and presents them in a way which can be quickly understood by all Australians. This release focuses on 14 headline dimensions of progress and their headline indicators. The purpose of is to inform and stimulate public debate and encourage all Australians to make own assessments when contemplating progress. Australia ABS Declaration
Canada
The Canada's Perfomance Report 2006-07
Statistics Canada (Canada`s National Statistical Agency) does play an effective role in collecting, developing and analyzing data that are instrumental in the work of research institutes on producing composite indicators of wellbeing and societal progress; it produces reports and publication that shine a light on important social, environmental and socio-economic issues.
The Treasury Board of Canada produces and submits an annual Report to Parliament entitled Canada’s Performance. This report provides a whole-of-government perspective from which to view the results and resources of individual federal departments and agencies. The 2006-2007 Report is the seventh report tabled in Parliament.
The Canada Project Progress Report 2007: The Roads Not Travelled
The Conference Board of Canada, a not-for-profit Canadian organization, produced until 2006 an annual Report, entitled Performance and Potential, which compares Canada to other countries in the OECD on the basis of 110 indicators. It evaluates its progress since the mid-1990s and examines the global trends. One of the last and updated publications on measuring progress is “The Canada Project Progress Report 2007: The Roads Not Travelled” in April 2008.
The Government of Canada asked the National Roundtable on the Environment and the Economy (NRTEE) to develop recommendations for a set of environmental sustainable development indicators. The first Report was released in the Statistics Canada Daily December 14, 2005.
The Canadian Index of Well-being (CIW)
One of the most well-known national indicator program outside the Government is the Canadian Index of Well-being (CIW) which was initiated by the Atkinson Charitable Foundation and the GPI Atlantic to develop measures, to monitor Canadian well-being on an ongoing basis and assess the sustainability of societal well-being. The CIW covers 7 domains: living standards, healthy population, time allocation/balance, eco-systems health, educated populace, community vitality, civic engagement/governance. Its first release was in the Fall of 2006. The new index integrates Canada’s economic reality with information on the social, health and environmental conditions.
Reality Check: The Canadian Review of Well-being
It is a newsletter co-produced by the Atkinson Charitable Foundation and GPI Atlantic. GPI Atlantic is a non-profit research and education organization that is creating a Genuine Progress Index for the small Canadian province of Nova Scotia. Eleven issues have been released since 2001, each covering a theme relating to well-being and sustainable development.
The Canadian Sustainability Indicators Network (CSIN)
It is a network based on the “communities of practice” approach—where new and experienced practitioners can share lessons learned on sustainability measurements and tools by discuss relevant issues of theoretical, strategic, technical and practical importance. Since the inception of the network in 2003, CSIN has grown to over 800 practitioners working in a variety of academic, government, private sector and non-governmental organizations.CSIN is helping to facilitate greater collaboration and inform experts by linking people at the national, provincial, regional and local levels in Canada and around the world.
France
French President Sarkozy’s announcement in January 2008, to establish a commission to investigate alternative measures of economic performance and social progress for France, is particularly important because it demonstrates that interest in this work has now reached the very highest levels of government. Chaired by Joseph Stiglitz, the commission includes several Nobel laureates and is being advised by Amartya Sen. Commission on the Measurement of Economic Performance and Social Progress is based on increasing concerns about the adequacy of current measures of economic performance. There are broader concerns about the relevance of these figures as measures of societal well-being, as well as measures of economic, environmental, and social sustainability. The OECD is happy to be taking part in this commission.
The current financial crises emphasizes the need for new indicators. Please read the article from the [FAIR group] http://www.idies.org/index.php?category/FAIR
Ireland
The report Measuring Ireland's Progress, Measuring Ireland's Progress 2007 published by the CSO shows the progress made in Ireland in important economic, social and environmental areas. As well as showing developments over time, the report benchmarks the situation in Ireland against the other EU Member States.
Italy
Monitoring Italy 2009: Measuring the Progress of Italian Society.
Institute for Studies and Economic Analyses (ISAE) and OECD will host a Conference on “Measuring the Progress of Italian Society” on June 3rd and 4th, 2009 at the ISAE premises in Rome.
UK
The nef's Centre for well-being
The centre for well-being at the New Economics foundation (nef) aims to enhance individual and collective well-being in ways that are environmentally sustainable and socially just. Its aim is to promote the concept of well-being as legitimate and useful aim of policy and to provide individuals, communities and organisations with the understanding and tools to redefine wealth in terms of well-being
While sustainable development policy and indicators have long been established in the UK, in 2005 a growing interest in looking at well-being and happiness began. In fact, in the sustainable development strategy of 2005 there was a commitment by the Government to support research on how policies might change with a well-being focus.
Regional sustainable development indicators for the English regions Regional versions of the UK Government’s indicators of sustainable development were first published in December of 2005 to help in providing a perspective of sustainable development in each region. They have been updating yearly and the last one has been published on 31st January 2008.
Sustainable Development in Government
With regards to measuring progress, the development of a well-being set measures began with a publication in 2007. A survey will also be commissioned in autumn including questions on life satisfaction. So to support the new UK Government Sustainable Development Strategy there is a suite of 68 national sustainable development indicators. Some of these indicators highlight issues within the priority areas of Sustainable Consumption and Production, Natural Resources.
USA
Interest in a common approach to measuring national progress has been mounting in the United States over the past years. Hundreds of communities, cities and regions across America have already developed key indicator systems.
The State of the USA (SUSA) is both a growing organization and the name of a planned website. It is assembling a set of key indicators that measure specific conditions or trends. The SUSA’s website completed will display data from a range of public and private sources.
The purpose is to introduce audiences to State of the USA SUSA’s organization and its initiatives, which will assemble high-quality measures and data that can be used by Americans to educate themselves about the progress of the United States, to encourage an enriched civic dialogue and to support more informed public decision making. SUSA’s mission is to unite all the actors of the society (nonprofits, the media, government decision makers, business leaders, scientists, educators and citizens) around the same goal to deepen their understanding of the country’s most pressing issues. SUSA will offer Americans a new tool to help them in assessing where the nation is moving forward.
Switzerland
The Swiss Federal Statistical Office has been working on a set of indicators called Quality of Life which includes indicators on social and economic aspects of life. The set measures life satisfaction, work burden, economic situation, social participation and leisure. The long-term objective is to provide a comprehensive system of indicators covering both societal and individual well-being.
In order to monitor sustainable development, the Swiss Federal Statistical Office (SFSO), the Federal Office for Spatial Development (ARE) and the Federal Office for the Environment (FOEN) developed the indicator system MONET . It aims at providing international comparisons on the social, economic and environmental situations and trends. The simplified form of this system consists of 17 indicators. Drawing on more than 100 indicators, this monitoring tool permits regular reporting on the status and progress of sustainable development in Switzerland. The Swiss Federal Council and the Swiss Parliament are using this system of indicators as guidance in the political decision making process.
Human Development Reports
OECD countries HDR (in Excel Format)
List of Measuring Progress contributions by the OECD
Contributions to Measuring Progress reviewed (in pdf format)
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