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Macroeconomic Measures of ‘Sustainability’

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  • Nick Hanley

Abstract

This paper reviews the policy need for indicators of ‘sustainable development’, and the impetus behind recent moves to establish official indicators. The range of indicators available from current economic theory is then examined. These measures may be divided into those based on flows and those based on stocks. Flow‐based measures are essentially attempts to adjust Net National Product to transform it into an indicator of sustainability. Stock‐based measures revolve around the concept of the natural and man‐made capital stocks. We also consider the idea of Safe Minimum Standards as a sustainability indicator. The paper concludes that no currently‐available single measure of sustainability is likely to be adequate.

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  • Nick Hanley, 2000. "Macroeconomic Measures of ‘Sustainability’," Journal of Economic Surveys, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 14(1), pages 1-30, February.
    • Handle: RePEc:bla:jecsur:v:14:y:2000:i:1:p:1-30
    DOI: 10.1111/1467-6419.00102
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    Citations

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    Cited by:

    1. Bohringer, Christoph & Jochem, Patrick E.P., 2007. "Measuring the immeasurable -- A survey of sustainability indices," Ecological Economics, Elsevier, vol. 63(1), pages 1-8, June.
    2. Farhad Nili, 2002. "U-shaped Paths of Consumption and Physical Capital in Lucas-type Growth Models," Development and Comp Systems 0211002, University Library of Munich, Germany.
    3. Cristian Barra & Giovanna Bimonte & Luigi Senatore, 2019. "Cooperation, diffusion of technology and environmental protection: a new index," Quality & Quantity: International Journal of Methodology, Springer, vol. 53(4), pages 1913-1940, July.
    4. Ewa Mazur-Wierzbicka, 2022. "Measurement of Progress in the Environmental Area: Poland against the Countries of the European Union," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 20(1), pages 1-27, December.
    5. Sam, Aflaki & Syed Abul, Basher & Andrea, Masini, 2019. "Is your valley as green as it should be? Incorporating economic development into environmental performance indicators," MPRA Paper 97081, University Library of Munich, Germany.
    6. Yu Hou, 2017. "Calculating a GPI for Liaoning Province of China," Social Indicators Research: An International and Interdisciplinary Journal for Quality-of-Life Measurement, Springer, vol. 134(1), pages 263-276, October.
    7. Tobias Hahn & Frank Figge, 2011. "Beyond the Bounded Instrumentality in Current Corporate Sustainability Research: Toward an Inclusive Notion of Profitability," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 104(3), pages 325-345, December.
    8. Stijepic, Denis & Wagner, Helmut, 2017. "On cross-system interactions and the sustainability of (economic) development," MPRA Paper 86147, University Library of Munich, Germany, revised 11 Apr 2018.
    9. Felix R. FitzRoy & Ian Smith, 2002. "Welfare, Growth and Environment: A Sceptical Review of The Skeptical Environmentalist(Bjørn Lomborg, Cambridge University Press, 2001)," Discussion Paper Series, School of Economics and Finance 200204, School of Economics and Finance, University of St Andrews.
    10. Linda Ferguson & Peter Mcgregor & J. Kim Swales & Karen Turner & Ya Ping Yin, 2005. "Incorporating sustainability indicators into a computable general equilibrium model of the scottish economy," Economic Systems Research, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 17(2), pages 103-140.
    11. Nuoya Yue & Junjun Hou, 2024. "A Study of GGDP Transition Impact on the Sustainable Development by Mathematical Modelling Investigation," Mathematics, MDPI, vol. 12(19), pages 1-16, September.
    12. Alba Distaso, 2005. "Local sustainable development and well-being/quality of life. An application of the capability approach at regional level," Quaderni DSEMS 25-2005, Dipartimento di Scienze Economiche, Matematiche e Statistiche, Universita' di Foggia.
    13. Farhad Nili, "undated". "Dynamics of Output Growth, Consumption and Physical Capital in Two-Sector Models of Endogenous Growth," Discussion Papers 00/62, Department of Economics, University of York.
    14. Gébert, Judit, 2015. "Mit is kell fenntartani?. Fenntarthatóság a képességszemlélet perspektívájából [Sustaining what?. Sustainability in terms of the capability approach]," Közgazdasági Szemle (Economic Review - monthly of the Hungarian Academy of Sciences), Közgazdasági Szemle Alapítvány (Economic Review Foundation), vol. 0(9), pages 972-989.
    15. Figge, Frank & Hahn, Tobias, 2004. "Sustainable Value Added--measuring corporate contributions to sustainability beyond eco-efficiency," Ecological Economics, Elsevier, vol. 48(2), pages 173-187, February.
    16. Elżbieta Szaruga & Zuzanna Kłos-Adamkiewicz & Agnieszka Gozdek & Elżbieta Załoga, 2021. "Linkages between Energy Delivery and Economic Growth from the Point of View of Sustainable Development and Seaports," Energies, MDPI, vol. 14(14), pages 1-61, July.

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