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Problems And Fundamentals Of Sustainable Development Indicators

Author

Listed:
  • Gordon Mitchell

    (The Environment Centre, University of Leeds, Leeds, UK)

Abstract

Measurement issues are of current concern to organizations faced with the task of promoting sustainability. Single figure aggregate indices of sustainable development (SD), primarily designed for use at the national scale, are not readily applicable locally and are a poor guide for decision-makers and citizens wishing to promote local sustainability. This has led to an abundance of sustainable development indicator (SDI) sets, each comprising a broad range of specific indicators. Existing indicator sets are not obviously compatible and there is a danger that, without the application of a clear method, indicators will be produced in an ad hoc fashion without full consideration of key SD principles or indicator characteristics. Such SDIs may be ineffective in promoting SD and possibly detrimental to the process. This paper examines the background to SDIs, including problems with their construction, and outlines fundamental steps that should be followed to produce any list of SDIs.

Suggested Citation

  • Gordon Mitchell, 1996. "Problems And Fundamentals Of Sustainable Development Indicators," Sustainable Development, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., vol. 4(1), pages 1-11.
    • Handle: RePEc:wly:sustdv:v:4:y:1996:i:1:p:1-11
    DOI: 10.1002/(SICI)1099-1719(199603)4:1<1::AID-SD24>3.0.CO;2-N
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    Cited by:

    1. Anna Martyka & Dorota Jopek & Izabela Skrzypczak, 2022. "Analysis of the Sustainable Development Index in the Communes of the Podkarpackie Voivodeship: A Polish Case Study," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 14(16), pages 1-23, August.
    2. Tara Vanli, 2024. "Can systemic governance of smart cities catalyse urban sustainability?," Environment, Development and Sustainability: A Multidisciplinary Approach to the Theory and Practice of Sustainable Development, Springer, vol. 26(9), pages 23327-23384, September.
    3. Giannarakis Grigoris, 2016. "The Challenges of Corporate Social Responsibility Assessment Methodologies," International Journal of Economics & Business Administration (IJEBA), International Journal of Economics & Business Administration (IJEBA), vol. 0(1), pages 39-55.
    4. Sajida Perveen & Md. Kamruzzaman & Tan Yigitcanlar, 2017. "Developing Policy Scenarios for Sustainable Urban Growth Management: A Delphi Approach," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 9(10), pages 1-27, October.
    5. Simona Cafieri, 2022. "The sustainability challenges of islands in a European perspective between marginality and development," RIEDS - Rivista Italiana di Economia, Demografia e Statistica - The Italian Journal of Economic, Demographic and Statistical Studies, SIEDS Societa' Italiana di Economia Demografia e Statistica, vol. 76(4), pages 4-12, October-D.
    6. Tuncay Kuleli & Seyma Bayazıt, 2023. "Development of a method to measure the sustainability of coastal uses," Environment, Development and Sustainability: A Multidisciplinary Approach to the Theory and Practice of Sustainable Development, Springer, vol. 25(6), pages 5141-5161, June.
    7. Umberto Berardi, 2013. "Sustainability assessment of urban communities through rating systems," Environment, Development and Sustainability: A Multidisciplinary Approach to the Theory and Practice of Sustainable Development, Springer, vol. 15(6), pages 1573-1591, December.
    8. M. J. Knapen & L. de Bruin & J. P. R. Meijer & M. W. H. Thörig & B. J. van de Laar & A. M. J. Ragas, 1997. "Measuring the sustainability of a paper mill with indicators based on environmental utility space," Sustainable Development, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., vol. 5(3), pages 149-156.
    9. Joanna Becker, 2004. "Making sustainable development evaluations work," Sustainable Development, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., vol. 12(4), pages 200-211.
    10. Michener, Gregory, 2015. "Policy Evaluation via Composite Indexes: Qualitative Lessons from International Transparency Policy Indexes," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 74(C), pages 184-196.
    11. Milkana Mochurova & Stoyan Totev, 2022. "Inclusive Development – Nature, Aspects, Measurement," Economic Studies journal, Bulgarian Academy of Sciences - Economic Research Institute, issue 3, pages 3-16.
    12. Ashma Vaidya & Audrey L. Mayer, 2016. "Critical Review of the Millennium Project in Nepal," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 8(10), pages 1-23, October.
    13. Johansson, Tim & Olofsson, Thomas & Mangold, Mikael, 2017. "Development of an energy atlas for renovation of the multifamily building stock in Sweden," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 203(C), pages 723-736.
    14. Truyens, Jasper & De Bosscher, Veerle & Sotiriadou, Popi & Heyndels, Bruno & Westerbeek, Hans, 2016. "A method to evaluate countries’ organisational capacity: A four country comparison in athletics," Sport Management Review, Elsevier, vol. 19(3), pages 279-292.
    15. Ruy de Castro Sobrosa Neto & Carlos Rogério Montenegro de Lima & Daniel Goulart Bazil & Manoela de Oliveira Veras & José Baltazar Salgueirinho Osório de Andrade Guerra, 2020. "Sustainable development and corporate financial performance: A study based on the Brazilian Corporate Sustainability Index (ISE)," Sustainable Development, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., vol. 28(4), pages 960-977, July.
    16. Mohammad Aminur Rahman Shah & Anisur Rahman & Sanaul Huq Chowdhury, 2020. "Assessing sustainable development of flood mitigation projects using an innovative sustainability assessment framework," Sustainable Development, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., vol. 28(5), pages 1404-1417, September.
    17. Roula Aad & Nabil Nemer, 2023. "Developing a Tool for Landscape Sustainability Assessment—Using a New Conceptual Approach in Lebanon," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 15(20), pages 1-16, October.
    18. 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.
    19. Blancas, Francisco J. & Caballero, Rafael & González, Mercedes & Lozano-Oyola, Macarena & Pérez, Fátima, 2010. "Goal programming synthetic indicators: An application for sustainable tourism in Andalusian coastal counties," Ecological Economics, Elsevier, vol. 69(11), pages 2158-2172, September.

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