Sustainable Development Indicators...Selected Sources

[ Back to Hot Topics ]

Sustainable Development Indicators...Selected Sources
Concept:
Sustainable development indicators measure sustainability or sustainable development performance. As most environmental indicators have a sustainable development framework in which environmental, economic and social indicators are linked they have been included. Measurement of sustainable development should be based on indicators which signal:

1. the pressure that society puts on the environment (In the form of pollution and resource depletion)
2. the resulting state of the envirnment (especially the incurred changes) compared to desirable (sustainable) states and
3. the response by human activity mainly in the form of political and societal decision, measures and policies
Preliminary agreement has been reached by the UN Commission on Sustainable Development, the UN Department for Policy Coordination and Sustainable Development, UNSTAT and the Scientific Committee on Problems of the Environment from ICSU to use such pressure-state-response framework for the presentation of indicators. A similar framework is being considered by OECD and the World Bank.
Note: From Models and methods of measuring sustainble development preformance, revised draft discussion paper prepared for the Sustainable Development Coordination Unit, Executive Council, Government of Manitoba, by Peter Hardi and Laszlo Pinter. Winnipeg: IISD, 1995.

Books and Articles
Abaza, H., ed. Appraisal methodology for sustainable development projects. Environmental Economics paper no.2. Nairobi: United Nations Environment Programme, 1992.
Abstract: Provides a framework for the comprehensive evaluation of complex projects. Seven analysis areas are identified which should be applied during project design and implementation. Included are information, technical, social, financial, institutional, environmental and economic analyses. Paper takes a process-oriented approach implying the emergence of appropriate indicators if assessment procedures are appropriately designed and executed.

Adger, N. Sustainability: concept and measurement. Centre for Social and Economic Research on the Global Environment, 1992.
Notes: Paper presented at World Resources Institute Workshop on Global Sustainability Indicators, Washington D.C., December 1992.

Adriaanse, Albert. Environmental policy performance indicators : a study on the development of indicators for environmental policy in The Netherlands. The Hague: Netherlands Ministry of Housing, Spatial Planning and the Environment, 1993. 175 p.

Alberta Round Table on Environment and Economy and the Environment Council of Alberta. Creating Alberta's sustainable development indicators. Edmonton: Alberta Round Table on Environment and Economy, 1994. 35 p.

Alberta Round Table on Environment and Economy. Steps to realizing sustainable development : report. Edmonton: Alberta Round Table on Environment and Economy, 1993. 32 p.
Contents: Introduction to recommendations; Improving decision making, Legislative change; Using market-based approaches; Orienting education to sustainable development; Government operations; What are we and where are we going: the case for indicators; Indicators of progress toward sustainable development.

Alberti, Marina and Jonathan D. Parker. "Indices of environmental quality : the search for credible measures." Environmental Impact Assessment Review 11 (June 1991): 95-101.

Alfsen, Knut H. and Hans Viggo Saebo. "Environmental quality indicators: background, principles and examples from Norway". Environmental and Resource Economics 3 (1993): 415-435.
Abstract: Explores the concept of environmental quality indicators. Expectations and difficulties associated with indicator selection and measurement are discussed. Includes: selecting indicators that are representative; motivations for selecting indicators (utilitarian or ontological); target groups who indicators are prepared for; the dilemma of indicating causes or effects. Outlines requirements that indicators should meet including using a manageable set of indices, need for international comparabiilty and standards, separation of anthropogenic and natural variations, easy interpretation, easy and cost-effective data access. Presents overview of indicator approaches of various national and international organizations. The set of indicators selected in Norway for the general public as target group is presented. Stress indicators and environmental quality (stress-response) indicators are differentiated for eight environmental issues.

Anderson, Victor. Alternative economic indicators. London: Routledge, 1991. 106 p.
Notes: Provides data (using proposed priority indicators) as a means of asssessing current state of 14 major countries
Contents (selected): The growth debate; Origins of national income accounting; The good indicator; Social indicators; Environmental indicators

Azzone, Giovanni and Raffaella Manzini. "Measuring strategic environmental performance". Business Strategy and the Environment 3 (Spring 1994): 1-14.
Abstract: Conceptual requirements of environmental performance indicators (EPI) are reviewed in the context of corporate management. These criteria have to comply with the specific requirements of environmental reporting, but also the basic requirements of any performance measurement system. Measurability of parameters and the cost of measuring are critical factors. EPIs reviewed include prevention costs and investment, operating environmental costs, contingent environmental liabilities, physical indicators, and compliance. The approach recommended integrates some or most of these components. Integration should reflect the different requirements indicators have to meet for internal use or external communication purposes. Measures for external communication include indicators related to waste water, air emissions, solid wastes, and energy. EPIs for internal use should reflect the relationships between corporate environmental performance and competitive goals, as well as impacts on shareholder value. Internal use indicators include environmental costs, a steady state index, and a worst case index. Components of these indices include environmental operating costs, external environmental costs, environmental sales, and conversion costs.

Bakkes, J.A. and others. An overview of environmental indicators: state of the art and perspectives. Environment assessment technical reports. New York: United Nations Environment Programme, 1994. 72 p.
Abstract: Information on international indicators development by UN agencies, governments, institutes and organizations, up to mid 1993

Berger, A.R. and others. Local responses to regional and global changes: the scientific background to TERRAMON. TERRAMON report series no.1. St. John's, NF: Centre for Earth Resources Research, 1992. 78 p.
Contents: (Selected): Protected areas of Newfoundland and Labrador; Environmental indicators; Linkages and spin-offs. Appendices contain Environmental datasets for Newfoundland and Labrador, Organizations/programs carrying out research and monitoring in or relevant to Newfoundland and Labrador, Proposed environmental indicators for Norway

Berkes, F. and C. Folke. "A systems perspective on the interrelationship between natural, human-made and cultural capital". Ecological Economics 5 (1992): 1-8.
Besides natural and human-made capital, the consideration of sustainability is suggested to include a third dimension, cultural capital. It is defined as "factors that provide human societies with the means of adaptations to deal with the natural environment and to actively modify it". These factors are identified as cosmology, environmental philosophy and ethics including religion, traditional ecological knowledge, and social-political institutions. The implicit suggestion of the article is that indicators pointing out the self-organizing capacity or cultural capital are organic parts of sustainable or successful outcomes.

Bringezu, S. and F.Schmidt-Bleek. "Proposal for a standard method of ecobalancing procedures : compulsory categories of ecological indicators". Fresenius Environment Bulletin 1 (1992):488-493. Basel, CH: Birkhauser Verlag, 1992. [5 p.]
Abstract: Environmental as well as economic policy decisions may be supported effectively by means of ecobalancing procedures which compare products, processes, systems or services comprehensively to find alternatives with less environmental burden. Ecological indicator categories to be considered in a future standard procedure of ecobalancing are described and examples are given.

Brown, Lester R. and others. Vital Signs: the trends that are shaping our future. Washington, D.C.: Worldwatch Institute. v; annual.
Abstract: Contains key indicators of trends for which historical global data are available (food, agriculture resources, energy, atmosphere, economy, transportation and social trends);

Canada. Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada Environmental Indicator Working Group. Agri-environmental indicator project Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada : description and implementation plan. draft. Ottawa: Agriculture and Agrifood Canada, 1995. 47 p.

Canada. Environment Canada State of the Environment Reporting Indicators Task Force. A report on Canada's progress towards a national set of environmental indicators. State of the Environment report no.91-1. Ottawa: Supply & Services, 1991. 98 p.
Abstract: Documents current systematic efforts to develop a national set of environmental indicators as laid out by Canada's Green Plan

Canadian Council of Ministers of the Environment Water Quality Guidelines Task Group. A framework for developing goals, objectives and indicators of ecosystem health: tools for ecosystem-based management. Winnipeg: Canadian Council of Ministers of the Environment, 1994. 34 p.

Canadian Environmental Advisory Council. Indicators of ecologically sustainable development. Ottawa: Supply and Services Canada, 1991. 3 v.
Contents: [v.1] Economic, ecological and decision theories, by Peter A. Victor, James J. Kay, and H. Jack Ruitenbeek. [v.2] Synthesized workshop proceedings, by Joseph R. Potvin. [v.3] Towards new fundamentals, by H. Jack Ruitenbeek

Chesapeake Bay Program. Environmental indicators : measuring our progress. Annapolis, MD: Chesapeake Bay Program, 1994. 2 v.
Abstract: Organization of the Bay project is introduced and annotated on reprints of slides. Indicators are identified in four classes: nutrient enrichment indicators, living resource indicators, toxic indicators and cross-cutting indicators. Individual indicators are placed in a hierarchy based on the level of the system they are used in - - eg. indicating responses of the regulated community or changes in assimilation. The application of indicators as management tools is described schematically.

Canada. Canadian Forest Service. Technical report [from] Seminar of Experts... September 27 to October 1, 1993, Montreal, Quebec, Canada. Ottawa: Supply & Services Canada, 1994. 2 v.
Conference: Seminar of Experts on Sustainable Development of Boreal and Temperate Forests (1993 : Montreal)
Abstract: Seminar convened to promote exchange on measurable criteria and indicators to achieve sustainable forestry (as identified at United Nations Conference on Environment and Development in both the Forest principles and Chapter 11 of Agenda 21), and to examine the state of related data collection and monitoring activies

Corson, Walter H. "Changing course : an outline of strategies for a sustainable future. " Futures 26 (March 1994): 206-223.
Abstract: Unsustainable trends are documented, sustainability is defined, and changes needed to make human activity more sustainable are listed. More than a hundred indicators are identified for assess progress towards sustainability

Costanza, Robert and Lisa Wainger. "Ecological economics". Business Economics 26 (October 1991): 45-48.
Abstract: Suggests that the economic system is a subsystem of a larger ecological life-support system. Two indexes of sustainable economic welfare are compared with conventional measures of GNP, and an example using coastal wetlands in Louisiana calculates the value of ecosystems. The authors urge the development of better methods of modeling ecological goods and services and the development of policies to translate those values into appropriate incentives.

Council of Great Lakes Research Managers and International Joint Commission (United States and Canada). A proposed framework for developing indicators of ecosystem health for the Great Lakes Region. Ottawa: International Joint Commission, 1991. 47 p.

Council of Great Lake Research Managers and International Joint Commission (United States and Canada). Indicators of ecosystem health for the Great Lakes Region. Ottawa: International Joint Commission, 1991. 47 p.

Duinker, Peter N. and Ronald M. Plinte. Measuring up : indicators of forest sustainability. Thunder Bay, ON: Lakehead University School of Forestry, 1994. 2 v. in 1
Abstract: Reviews recent progress in developing indicators for forest sustainability, and summarizes a first-approximation set of indicators designed for the boreal forests of Northern Ontario

Earth Council. Sustainable development indicators (SDI). San Jose: Earth Council, 1993. 3 p.
Conference: Meeting of the Organizing Committee (San Jose: 1993)

Edmonton Board of Health. Assessing the health of communities. Edmonton: Edmonton Board of Health, 1993. 8 p.
Conference: Community Health Indicators Workshop (1993: Edmonton)

Ekins, Paul. "An indicator framework for economic progress". Development 3-4 (1990): 92-98.
Abstract: An indicator framework providing an alternative way to measure economic justice is developed on the premise that current, gross national product-based practice is simplistic and reductionist and fails to reflect critical components of production and welfare. The framework suggested provides for environmental and resource accounts, an adjusted national product or sustainable income figure that has been adjusted for depreciation of human-made and natural capital and for costs (benefits) from damages (improvements) clearly related to economic activity, measurements of the nonmonetary sector and health and social status indicators.

European Green Table. Environmental performance indicators in industry : report 3. draft. Oslo, NO: European Green Table, 1993. 77 p.
Abstract: Develops a reference framework as the basis of a systematic approach to measuring corporate environmental performance. Identifies management environmental performance indicators (EPIs) which apply across all industry sectors, and facilities and operations EPIs that are industry specific.

Eyles, John. Social indicators, social justice and social well-being. Centre for Health Economics and Policy Analysis working paper series no.94-1. Hamilton, ON: McMaster University, 1994. 108 p.

Feather, Joan and Brijesh Mathur, eds. Indicators for healthy communities : proceedings of an invitational workshop [held] Winnipeg, Manitoba February 16, 1990. Saskatoon: University of Saskatchewan Health Status Research Unit, 1990. 48 p.

Frankenberger, T.R. and D.M. Goldstein. "Food security, coping strategies and environmental degradation". Arid Lands Newsletter 30 (1990): 21-27.
Abstract: Describes coping strategy based indicators in relation to rural agricultural producers and changes in coping behaviour. Identifies three classes of indicators; leading indicators which involve changes in management practices prior to the onset of decreased food access, concurrent indicators which occur at the time of the shortage and may involve the sale of liquid or productive assets and trailing indicators which pertain to changes that are consequences of coping behaviours in the system. The authors point out that monitoring changing conditions bottom-up, from the farmer's perspective, as a strength of this approach and one which would allow interventions on the level of existing technologies at a time of crisis.

Friend, Anthony M. Sustainable development indicators: an exploration of the objective function...the Third Biennial Meeting of the International Society for Ecological Economics "Down to Earth : Practical Applications of Ecological Economics" October 24-28, 1994, San Jose, Costa Rica. rev. draft. Ottawa: The Author, 1994. 14 p.

Friends of the Earth Netherlands. Towards a sustainable society : action plan summary. Amsterdam: Friends of the Earth Netherlands,
Abstract: Outlines the environment space concept as an operational tool of sustainability and what it means in terms of energy consumption, water, non-renewable resources, agricultural commodities, as well as timber and paper. Limits of available environmental space for every citizen of Earth are identified and measures necessary to stay within the limits given by available environmental space are identified. A case study for the Netherlands is outlined in terms of household and home, agriculture and food, recreation and leisure, as well as on the levels of government, business and industry, the consumer, political parties and international organizations. The plan provides a program of very radical changes in consumption patterns and defines the concept of product in terms of service provided and not in terms of physical mass.

Frumkin, Norman. Guide to economic indicators. 2nd ed. Armonk, NY: M.E. Sharpe, 1994. 316 p.
Contents: Maintaining the integrity of economic indicators; Interpreting business cycles with economic indicators; Evaluating the accuracy of economic indicators; Presentation of economic data; Distinctions among "Goods," "Services," and "Structures"
Abstract: Describes more than sixty indicators of the US economy grouped under forty-eight generic categories under the common topics of: Economic growth, Consumer spending, Investment, Labor, Prices, Production, Housing, Finance, Government, International, Cyclical indicators, and Economic well being.

Ghai, Dharam, Michael Hopkins, and Donald McGranahan. Some reflections on human and social indicators for development. UNRISD discussion paper no.6. Geneva: United Nations Research Institute for Social Development, 1988. 33 p.

Gosselin, Pierre and others. "Indicators for a sustainable society." Canadian Journal of Public Health 84 (May-June 1993): 197-200.
Abstract: Results of a feasibility study to identify indicators for a sustainable society. Indicators were identified through an iterative process with attention given to the scientific basis of the given indicator, the frequency of reporting, availability of time series data, geographic coverage, feasibility and costs, symbolic value and synthetic value. Indicators are classified into four groups: environment, equity, economy as well as human health.

Hajer, Maarten A. "The politics of environment performance review: choices in design." In Achieving environmental goals: the concept and performance of environmental performance review , edited by Erik Lykke. London: Belhaven Press, 1992.
Abstract: Discusses the strategic choices that the application of environmental performance reviews brings to the political process of ecological modernization. The discussion of these choices is preceded by exploring the political realities that brought about the popularity of the sustainable development concept, providing the broader context for the application of environmental performance reviews. Sustainable development is viewed as a story line without a clearly defined set of instructions that allows decision makers to interpret its meaning context-specifically. The sustainable development concept relies on several assumptions such as the belief in technological fixes and the traditional interpretation of economic growth as well as export base development being able to produce sustainable outcomes. Environmental performance reviews should be designed to monitor not only changes in the physical environment (compartment indicators or quality of environment indicators), but also structural change in the political economy (sectoral indicators). The concept is comparable to the indicator classification as symptoms of environmental degradation on one hand and root causes on the other.

Hall, Bob. Gold and green: can we have good jobs and a healthy environment. Durham, NC: Institute for Southern Studies, 1994. 23 p.
Contents: Includes Economic and environmental health indicators
Abstract: Study shows that states with the best environmental records also offer the best job opportunities and climate for long-term economic development. Two separate lists of indicators to evaluate each state's economic performance and the stresses on its natural environment were used. States were ranked on each indicator and the sum of the ranks produced a state's final score.

Hall, Jeremy and Moire Wadleigh, eds. The scientific challenge of our changing environment : proceedings of a conference addressing environmental change in Newfoundland and Labrador and similar regions, held at the Memorial University of Newfoundland, St. John's, 3-5 March 1993. Canadian Global Change Program incidental report series no. IR93-2. Ottawa: Canadian Global Change Program Secretariat, 1993. 89 p.
Contents: (Selected): International Toxic Monitoring Program (Groves); Are we managing the environment yet?(Doran); State of the environment reporting and anticipating environmental change (Rutherford); Towards geological indicators of environmental change (Berger); Aquatic insects as environmental indicators (Colbo); Birds as bio-indicators in marine and terrestrial ecosystems (Montevecchi)
Abstract: Principal objective of conference was to encourage interdisciplinary interactions by crossing traditional scientific boundaries so that geologists could learn from foresters

Hardi, Peter and Laszlo Pinter. Measuring sustainable development performance : Canadian initiatives : first survey. Winnipeg: International Institute for Sustainable Development, 1994. 35 p.
Abstract: Survey identifying recent Canadian work on defining sustainable development related indicators (federal, provincial/territorial, municipal and multilateral initiatives, and initiatives of academic institutions, business and professional organizations, non-governmental organizations, and international organizations in Canada)

Hardi, Peter and Laszlo Pinter. Models and methods of measuring sustainable development performance: revised draft discussion report prepared for the Sustainable Development Coordination Unit, Executive Council, Government of Manitoba. Winnipeg: International Institute for Sustainable Development, 1995. 35 p.
Contents: (Selected): Model initiatives on the provincial/state level; Alberta's sustainable development indicators; Oregon benchmarks; Choices for Colorado's future; The sustainable Seattle; Life in Jacksonville: quality indicators for progress; Common weaknesses of the presented models; Suggestions for indicator selection methodology and application
Abstract: Identifies operative models presenting measurable dimensions of social, economic and biophysical conditions at the state/provincial/municipal levels

Henderson, Hazel. " Beyond economics : new indicators for culturally specific, sustainable development". Development 3/4 (1990): 60-68.
Abstract: Examines the potential for the UN fourth development decade to produce more realistic indicators of development. She suggests that the already important work by socially concerned economists, statisticians and sociologists of the past years should be used to ensure greater government accountability and to improve the overall quality of life of its citizens.

Henderson, Hazel. Paradigms in progress: life beyond economics. Indianapolis, IN: Knowledge Systems Inc., 1991.
Abstract: Chapter on indicators provides a broad based view of the indicator problem and discusses several alternative indicator approaches as well as the author's own set of Country Futures Indicators. Major shortfalls of neoclassical approaches are indentified. Some of the other viewpoints presented are: dangers of manipulating indicators to justify ends, money unit should be backed by a basket of real commodities, local indicators developed for local goals, changing development goals necessitates new ways of measuring progress, friction between the obvious failure of economic indicators and the continuing reliance of international/national institutions on them, need for transparency and undistorted representation in the media.

Hodge, R.A. Reporting on sustainable and equitable development. Ottawa: International Development Research Centre, 1993. 37 p.
Abstract: Identifies a system which includes people, the enveloping ecosystem, and the interaction between the two. It provides the necessary subject to which the normative label "sustainability" can apply. Value base motivating the work is described as parallel care and respect for the ecoystem and people within it.

Horne, Jocelyn. "Criteria of external sustainability." European Economic Review 35 (December 1991): 1559-74.
Abstract: Examines the problem of assessing external sustainability, that is, determining whether present paths of external imbalance can continue indefinately, conditional on present policies being maintained. The main contribution of the analysis is to show how conditional forecasts of external imbalance may be generated in a consistent way that explicitly incorporates a mechanism for achieving sustainability. Index of external unsustainability is derived that reflects the probability of future changes in policy expected by private agents over time.

International Development Research Centre. Report of the Workshop on Grassroots Indicators for Sustainable and Equitable Development [held] 18-19 October 1993, IDRC, Ottawa. Ottawa: International Development Research Cetnre, 1994. 29 p.

International Union for Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources and others. Caring for the earth : a strategy for sustainable living. Gland, CH: IUCN-World Conservation Union, 1991. 228 p.
Contents (selected): Part 1: Principles for sustainable living; Part 2: Additional actions for sustainable living; Part 3: Implementation and follow-up; Annex 6: indicators of sustainability.

International Union of Geological Sciences. Assessing rapid environmental change : the Gros Morne declaration. St. John's, NF: Terramon, 1994. 3 p.
Conference: International Workshop on Geological Indicators of Rapid Environmental Change (1994 : Corner Brook, Newfoundland)

Jacksonville Community Council Inc. Life in Jacksonville: quality indicators for progress. Jacksonville, FL: The Council, 1993. 115 p.

Kerr, Anne. Canada's National Environmental Indicators Project. Ottawa: Environment Canada, 1992. 9 p.
Notes: Prepared for World Resources Institute Workshop on Global Environmental Indicators (Washington, D.C.: 1992).
Abstract: Report on project undertaken by the federal government, under the Green Plan, to develop a preliminary national set of environmental indicators by mid-1991 and initiate stakeholder conusltations on it

Kerr, Anne. National environmental indicators: summary status report. Ottawa: Environment Canada Indicators Branch, 1994. 4 p.
Abstract: Update on State of the Environment Reporting's indicator reporting and development work including the extension of environmental indicator sets to include indicators and linkages between economic as well as social dimensions relevant for sustainability.

Krotscheck, Christian and Michael Narodoslawsky. "The sustainable process index : a new dimension in ecological evaluation." Submitted for publication in Ecological Engineering (June 1994): 22 p.
Abstract: Reviews the theoretical basis that supports the concept of an index based on only two limiting criteria of sustainability: solar energy and availability of land. Terrestrial assimilative capacity is directly related to land area available for this purpose and the authors argue that this supports the idea of expressing sustainability in area units. Area requirements are calculated around a new definition of process that is leading to the provision of certain services. Major calculable components of this general process includes raw material input area, energy supply area input, are requirements of process installation and area for sustainable dissipation of products. Paper describes the rationale and methodology for calculating component values.

Kuik, Onno and Harmen Verbruggen ,eds. In search of indicators of sustainable development. Boston: Kluwer Academic Publishers, 1991. 126 p.

Liverman, Diana M. and Altha J. Cravey. A study of regional trends and patterns in social indicators and sustainable development in Mexico. Global Sustainability Project working paper no.7. Madison, WI: University of Wisconsin-Madison Institute for Environmental Studies. 1988. 46 p.

Maclaren, Virginia and others. Municipal state of the environment reporting in Canada : current status and future needs. Ottawa: Environment Canada State of the Environment Reporting, 1994. 3 v.
Contents: v.1 Review of the literature. v.2 Case studies and indicator analysis. v.3. Survey of selected municipalities
Abstract: Technical background reports for the municipal State of the Environment Reporting Resource Manual, prepared for State of the Environment Reporting, Environment Canada

McRae, Terence and Nadia Lombardi. Report of the consultation workshop on environmental indicators for Canadian agriculture. Ottawa: Environment Bureau Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada, 1994. 79 p.

Moran, Emilio F. The comparative analysis of human societies: toward common standards for data collection and reporting. Boulder, CO: Lynne Rienner Publishers, 1995. 202 p.
Contents: Norms for ethnographic reporting; Minimum climate data for comparative analysis in agriculture; Soil indices for comparative analysis of agrarian systems; Social organization of agrarian labor; Minimum data sets in the study of exchange and distribution; Minimum data sets for the description of diet and measurement of food intake and nutritional analysis; Micro-ethnodemographic techniques for field workers studying small groups; Health status indicators for rural societies in transition: estimating morbidiy and mortality using national and community data; Agrarian data sets: the comparativist's view.

Morita, Tsuneyuki and others. "Sustainable development: its definitions and goals." Mita Gakkai Zasshi (Mita Journal of Economics) 85 (1993 ).
Notes: English translation

Murray, Christopher J.L. Development data constraints and the human development index. Geneva: United Nations Research Institute for Social Development, 1991. 27 p.
Abstract: Discusses three questions considered crucial to the development and interpretation of indices and the Human Development Index (HDI) in particular. Answers are given in three major questions: 1. what components should be included in the HDI 2. what is the best way of measuring each component without taking into consideration empirical data deficiencies and 3. how should real world data limitations alter our indicators. Each question is discussed in relation to the three component values of HDI - mortality data, education, and income effects. Although HDI is not called a sustainability index per se, the pragmatic approach and critical analysis of HDI may be applied to indices that are explicity termed "sustainable".

National Round Table on the Environment and Economy. Toward reporting progress on sustainable development in Canada : report to the Prime Minister. Ottawa, ON: National Round Table on the Environment and Economy, 1993. 52 p.
Contents: Blueprint for reporting: Ecosystem indicators: building on State of Environment (SOE) reporting; Interaction indicators: building on economic and state of environment reporting; People indicators (Well being): an interdisciplinary morass; Integration and synthesis; Toward a short list of key indicators; Decision makers: Individuals and households; Communities; Corporations and corporate groupings; the Federal Government

New Economics Foundation and Touche Ross. The sustainability indicators research project : local Agenda 21 : final report. London: New Economics Foundation, 1995.

New Economics Foundation and World Widelife Fund. Environmental measures : indicators for the UK environment. London: New Economics Foundation, 1994.

Noss, Reed. Maintaining ecological integrity in representative reserve networks. Toronto: World Wildlife Fund Canada, 1995. 77 p.
Contents: (Selected): Land conservation process; Indicators and correlates of ecological integrity; Landscape design; Management of reserve networks for ecological integrity
Abstract: Discusses how to ensure ecosystem representation, how to conserve viable populations and how to sustain ecological processes in the Endangered Spaces Campaign of WWF Canada. Program goal is to conserve Canada's biological diversity by protecting a representative sample of each of the country's natural regions by the year 2000. Nature reserves will be selected in 400 natural regions of Canada to represent the "enduring features" of the Canadian landscape

OECD. Enviornmental indicators. Paris: OECD, 1991. 77 p.

OECD. Environmental indicators : a preliminary set. Paris: OECD, 1991. 77 p.

OECD. OECD core set of indicators for environmental performance reviews. Environment Monographs no.83. Paris: OECD, 1993. 35 p.

OECD. OECD Environment indicators : basic concepts. Paris: OECD, 1992.

Ozdemiroglu, Ece. Measuring natural resource scarcity : a study of the price indicator. CSERGE working paper GEC no.93-14. London: Centre for Social and Economic Research on the Global Environment, 1993. 32 p.

Parker, Jonathan and Chris Hope. "The state of the environment: a survey of reports from around the world." Environment (January/February 1992): 18-44.
Abstract: This is a preliminary list of the current state of the environment reports around the world. The authors can be contacted at European Enviornment Agency Task Force, Directorate-General Xi Environment, Nuclear Security, and Civil Protection, Commission of the European Communities, Brussels, Belgium.

Parris, Kevin. Agriculture and the environment : developing a set of indicators for use in agricultural policy analysis. Paris: OECD, 1994. 15 p.

Pelt, Michiel J.F van. "Ecologically sustainable development and project appraisal in developing countries." Ecological Economics 7(February1993) 19-42.
Abstract: Examines how the concept of ecological sustainability may affect project appraisal for developing countries. It is argued that three criteria should be applied, viz. efficiency, equity and ecological sustainability. Operationalization of the sustainability criterion requires that policy-makers set targets for natural resource use. Moreover, they need to address new trade-offs, for instance between short-tem income objectives (efficiency) and long-term environmental objectives (sustainability). The new issues raised by the sustainability criterion require a review of the applicability of project appraisal methods. Cost-benefit analysis (CBA) has been used most frequently, but its usefulness in sustainability-oriented project appraisal is shown to be limited. Despite some methodological problems, multi-criteria analysis (MCA) should be regarded as an appropriate alternative ot complementary appraisal tool. MCA does not require monetarization of effects, nor does it exclusively focus on efficiency measurement. These advantages apply particularly to developing countries where the data base is weak, economic activities are directly dependent on natural resources, and distribution concerns are strong. MCA may be applied to, inter alia, the estimation of scores on the sustainability criterion, and to the integrated evaluation of scores on the three key criteria.

Pinter, Laszlo. Measuring sustainability : bibliography and indicator matrices. Winnipeg: International Institute for Sustainable Development, 1994. 76 p.

Redefining wealth and progress: new ways to measure economic, social and environmental change : the Caracas report on alternative development indicators [Jul 31-Aug 3 1989). TOES books. NY: Bootstrap Press, 1990. 99 p.
Notes: First published 1989 in bilingual Spanish-English ed. under title: Towards a new way to measure development/Hacia una nueva forma de medir el desarrollo.
Conference: International Meeting on More Effective Development Indicators (1989 : Caracas, Venezuela)

Rapport, David J. "Ecosystem health: exploring the territory." Dimensions (December 5, 1995):1- 22.
Abstract: Discusses the evolution and conceptual components of the ecosystem health paradigm. The need for ecosystem health concepts to consider more than ecological criteria alone is pointed out and the four dimensions that should be assessed in an environmental health framework are identified as the following: biophysical integrity, socio-economic health, human health, and public policy/ethics dimension. Assessment of ecosystem health relies on indicators selected in these dimensions and used for general screening, diagnosis, risk assessment, etc.

Reiss, Ilze. Draft menu of environmental indicators. Ottawa: Environment Canada States of the Environment Reporting, 1993. 31 p.

Salsberg, Lisa and others. Modelling quality of life indicators in Canada : a pilot test of quality of life indicators in Toronto. Toronto: Toronto Health City Office, 1993. [60 p.]

Seattle. Sustainable Seattle 1993: indicators of sustainable community. Seattle, WA: Sustainable Seattle. 36p.

Slocombe, D. Scott and Caroline Van Bers. "Ecological design criteria for a sustainable Canadian society." The Environmentalist 12 (1992): 243-254.

Toronto. Healthy City Office. A strategy for developing healthy city indicators. Toronto: Healthy City Office, 1994. 101 p.
Contents: Appendix has Catalogue of selected indicators (encompassing sustainaibility, equity and empowerment) on: Transportation, Housing, Production, Work and employment, Consumption, Family and social organization, Education andliteracy, Medical and health services, Public safety
Abstract: Uses the healthy city parameters (incorporating views of scholars and the City's urban planners) of sustainability, equity and empowerment as the objects of measurement for the indicators

Tschirley, J.B. The use of indicators for sustainable agriculture and rural development. Rome: Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, 1992. 9 p.
Conference: World Resources Institute Wookshop on Global Environmental Indicators (1992: Washington, D.C.)

Tunstall, Dan. Developing environmental indicators : definitions, frameworks, and issues. draft. Washington, D.C.: World Resources Institute, 12 p.
Conference: World Resources Institute Workshop on Global Environmental Indicators (Washington, D.C.: 1992)

United Kingdom Department of the Environment. Partnerships in practice : [case studies and proceedings of the three-day international conference] Partnerships for Change, Manchester, UK, in September 1993. London: UK Department of the Environment, 1994. 192 p.
Contents: (Selected): Case studies: Sustainable Seattle, USA; Curitiba City, Brazil; Tague Initiative, Ecuador; CAMPFIRE, Zimbabwe; INBio-Merck Collaborative Biodiversity Research Agreement, Costa Rica; Greenfreeze, the world's first completely ozone-safe fridge, Germany; Metro Manila Women's Garbage Recycling Programme, the Philippines; Landcare Programme, Australia; Sustainable communities, UK; Sustainable citizenship, Scottish Environmental Forum. Workshops: Sustainable resource management; Environment and health; Sustainable urban communities; Sustainable rural communities; Sustainable development policies for business; Sustainable development and employment; Appropriate technology; National sustainability strategies and plans; Local sustainability strategies and plans; Participation in decision making. Workshops: Business partnerships for sustainable development; Sustainable agriculture; Sustainability indicators. Statements: A change in partnerships for Africa; United Nations Commission on Sustainable Development; Earth Council; From Rio to the workplace: summary of ICFTU meeting; Global Forum '94
Abstract: Conference designed to bring people together around a programme which would not be dominated by the interests of one national government but would draw upon a great variety of views and experiences related to both successes and failures of post-UNCED activites

United Kingdom Local Government Management Board and Touche Ross Management Consultants. Local Agenda 21 sustainability indicators research project: report of phase one. Luton, UK: The Local Government Management Board, 1994. 85 p.
Notes: Prepared for the Local Agenda 21 Steering Group by the consultants and steering group of the Sustainability Indicators project. Includes bibliography
Contents: Scoping report; Methodology; Menu of indicators; Guidance to pilot authorities

United States Interagency Working Group on Sustainable Development Indicators. Interim report of the Interagency Working Group.... Washington, D.C.: The Interagency Working Group, 1994. 29 p.

Victor, Peter A. "Indicators of sustainable development: some lessons from capital theory." Ecological Economics 4 (December 1991): 191-213.

Victor, Peter A. and others. Economic, ecological and decision theories: indicators of ecologically sustainable development. Ottawa: Canadian Environmental Advisory Council, 1991. 90 p.

Walter, G.R. Information, indicators and accounts: a regional sustainable perspective. Sustainable Communities Initiative working paper no.2. Victoria: University of Victoria Centre for Sustainable Regional Development, 1992. 25pp.
Abstract: This paper addresses developing information to meet the challenge of Brundtland sustainability in a regional context. The specific focus of this paper is the role of information systems, including accounting frameworks and indicators, in achieving sustainability.

Westendorf, David G. and Dharam Ghai ,eds. Monitoring social progress in the 1990s: data contraints, concerns and priorities. Avebury, GB: United Nations Research Institute for Social Development, 1993. 348 p.
Abstract: Combines the findings of a 1991 expert meeting on social indicators development and the 1988-1990 in-depth case studies on national experiences with social indicators in India, Ivory Coast, Kenya and Morocco. Focusses on data collection and analysis as well as on indicators of social welfare.

Wilkerson, Orland. Biophysical sustainability indicators for the Cowichan Valley Regional District: a review. Sustainable Communities Initiative working paper no.8. Victoria: University of Victoria Centre for Sustainable Regional Development, 1993. 50p.
Abstract: This report describes the progress that has been thus far in developing a set of biophysical sustainability indicators for the Cowichan Valley Regional District.

World Bank. Social indicators of development. Washington, DC: World Bank, 1993. v. ; annual

World Bank and United Nations Development Programme. African development indicators. New York: World Bank, 1992. 377 p.
Notes: Builds upon the work undertaken in preparing "African economic and fiinancial data", pub. 1986. Extends coverage of basic national accounts information, and includes social statistics and statistics on environment, natural resources, and labour markets

York University Centre for Health Studies. Selected healthy city indicators : a research agenda : final report to the Healthy City Office, City of Toronto. Toronto: York University, 1990. 72 p.

Zadek, Simon and Richard Evans. Auditing the market: a practical approach to social auditing. London: New Economics Foundation, 1993. 55p.
Contents (selected): Chapter 4 analyzes the choice and use of performance measure indicators in the field of social audits, distinguishing normative, comparative and subjective indicators. Appendix offers practical examples of audit indicators.

Newsletters and Periodicals
Canada. Canadian Forest Service Criteria and Indicators Secretariat. CI newsletter : Canadian Criteria and Indicators Initiative for sustainable forest management. Hull: CI Secretariat, 1994-.
Canada. Environment Canada. State of the Environment Reporting Organization. Environmental indicator bulletin; SOE bulletin. Ottawa: Minister of Supply and Services, 1992. 1 v.

Internet
Sustainable Development Indicators conference on the Web at iisd.indicators

Date Posted: April 1, 1995
Compiled by Marlene Roy, Project Officer, International Institute for Sustainable Development. email: mroy@iisdpost.iisd.ca
[return to IISDnet home page]