Indicators of “Societal Progress”

This paper looks at different experiences in the development and use of societal progress indicator sets – at the European, national and sub-national level – with the aim of identifying useful lessons from these experiences. Five case studies are presented: the indicators used to support the EU ?Lisbon Strategy?; the UK Sustainable Development indicators; Measures of Australia?s Progress; Measuring Ireland?s Progress; and an example of a local community indicator initiative – the Santa Cruz Community Assessment Programme, in California. The paper concludes that for societal progress indicators to be used and applied in decision-making processes, then three conditions need to be met. First, the indicators should be seen as legitimate by the intended users. Second, the indicators should be set within a wider system that provides =fit-for-purpose‘ information. Third, an appropriate incentive structure must be in place for stakeholders to act on that information.