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Sustainability and Indicators
Prof Madya Dr Sharifah Norazizan Syed Abd Rashid APPM
Jabatan Sains Kemasyarakatan dan Pembangunan
Fakulti Ekologi Manusia, UPM
Content
• Concepts and Basic Principles of Sustainability : An Introduction
• The Different Meanings of Sustainability in the Various Disciplines
• Introduction to Indicators• Chapter 40 of Agenda 21 – Indicator Building• Roles of Indicators• Types of Indicators• A Summary• Discussion
Since 1987: What is Sustainability /Sustainable Development?
• There may be as many definitions of sustainability and sustainable development as there are groups trying to define it. More than 500 definitions in the literature.
• Most widely accepted is that in the Brundtland Report [1987]. All the definitions have to do with:
Living within the limits Understanding the interconnections among economy, society,
and environment Equitable distribution of resources and opportunities
Sustainability
• “A condition where economic, political, cultural and ecological practices operate to enable succeeding generations to receive stock of equitably distributed natural capitals to meet their needs that is no less per capita in quantity and quality than that utilized by preceeding generations to meet their own needs….” McManus 1996 pg 67
• In other words… “Leaving as much (and as good) natural resources to the next generation as was enjoyed by us the earlier generations..”
Sustainability is also …
….. the condition under which the patterns of interaction and the resulting satisfaction of human needs and wants can endure from generation to generation. In other words, sustainability is the condition achieved when our economic, environmental and social systems are operating in a manner that yields constant or increasing human well being over the long run.
Viederman/Steve Hackett EcologicalEconomics: Five Capitals
Sustainability … a community's preservation and prudent use of natural, human-made, human, social and cultural capital in order to generate a sustained flow of benefits that support the "3 pillars" of economic vitality, ecological integrity and democratic process.
However, different ways of defining sustainability are useful for different situations and different purposes. For this reason, various groups have created definitions of:
• Sustainability and sustainable development • Sustainable community and society • Sustainable business and production • Sustainable agriculture
etc
The 3 E’s and the 3 P’s
Three E’s (also ~ Triple Bottom Line)• Economic• Environmental• Equity (Social)
Three P’s [EPA’s P3]• People• Prosperity• Planet
Millennium Development Goals (UN Goals for 2015)
• Eradicate Extreme Hunger and Poverty (economics)
• Achieve Universal Primary Education (equity)• Promote Gender Equality and Empower Women• Reduce Child Mortality• Improve Maternal Health• Combat HIV/AIDS, malaria, and other diseases
(equity)• Ensure Environmental Sustainability
(environment)• Develop a Global Partnership for Development
Sustainability Definitions in 33 US Cities
(Warner 2002)
In a survey of cities (who at the city?), 93 percent regarded a healthy economy and 79 percent regarded a healthy environment as extremely and very important, while 63 percent mentioned equity as
important.
Monitoring Progress on Sustainable Development: Sustainable Development
Indicators
Chapter 40 of Agenda 21 calls for the development of indicators for sustainable development. In particular, it requests countries at the national level, and international governmental and non-governmental organizations at the international level to develop the concept of indicators of sustainable development in order to identify such indicators.
• Indicators have been used for a long time as a tool with which more information can be obtained about issues as varied as people’s health, weather, and economic welfare.
• The Rio Conference on Environment and Development in 1992, recognized the need for better and more knowledge and information about the environmental conditions, trends, and impacts, hence the need for environmental and sustainable development indicators.
• A frequently heard justification for developing indicators is that they will be used by “decision makers,” yielding better decisions, decisions that are more effective at promoting sustainability.
• The importance of sustainability indicators is greater than is suggested by the mere hope that they will better inform high-level decision making.
• Sustainability indicators are an important way to promote sustainability through the actions of well-informed citizens as they participate in our democracy and the economy.
• The United Nations Conference on Environment and Development (UNCED) in 1992, brought to fore the importance of sustainable development indicators (SDIs) as a tool to assess progress towards sustainability.
• Since this formal recognition, academics, nations, cities, corporations, nongovernmental organizations and international organizations, have developed their own local, national and global-level sustainability indicators
What is an indicator of sustainability?
• An indicator is something that helps you understand where you are, which way you are going and how far you are from where you want to be.
• A good indicator alerts you to a problem before it gets too bad and helps you recognize what needs to be done to fix the problem.
• Indicators of a sustainable community point to areas where the links between the economy, environment and society are weak. They allow you to see where the problem areas are and help show the way to fix those problems.
• Indicators of sustainability are different from traditional indicators of economic, social, and environmental progress.
Traditional vs Sustainability Indicators
• Traditional indicators -- such as stockholder profits, asthma rates, and water quality -- measure changes in one part of a community as if they were entirely independent of the other parts.
• Sustainability indicators reflect the reality that the three different segments are very tightly interconnected, as shown in the figure below:
Web of Interactions
Communities are a web of interactions among the environment, the economy and society.
Sustainability indicators reflect the reality that the three different segments are very tightly interconnected, as shown in the figure below:
Multi dimensional Indicators
• Sustainability requires this type of integrated view of the world -- it requires multidimensional indicators that show the links among a community's economy, environment, and society.
• Eg : Gross Domestic Product (GDP), measures the amount of money spent in a country and is a measure of the country's economic well-being: the more money being spent, the higher the GDP and the better the overall economic well-being is assumed to be.
GDP reflects only the amount of economic activity, regardless of the effect of that activity on the community's social and environmental health, GDP can go up when overall community health goes down. For example, when there is a ten-car pileup on the highway, the GDP goes up because of the money spent on medical fees and repair costs. On the other hand, if ten people decide not to buy cars and instead walk to work, their health and wealth may increase but the GDP goes down.
Characteristics of an Indicator?
An indicator is something that points to an issue or condition. Its purpose is to show you how well a system is working. If there is a problem, an indicator can help you determine what direction to take to address the issue. Indicators are as varied as the types of systems they monitor.
However, there are certain characteristics that effective indicators have in common:
• Effective indicators are relevant; they show you something about the system that you need to know.
• Effective indicators are easy to understand, even by people who are not experts.
• Effective indicators are reliable; you can trust the information that the indicator is providing.
• Lastly, effective indicators are based on accessible data; the information is available or can be gathered while there is still time to act.
• Traditional vs.docx
Agenda 21 and Indicators
• After Agenda 21 was adopted at the Rio Earth Summit in 1992, the UN Commission on Sustainable Development (CSD) took on the challenge of developing sustainablity indicators. A first compilation of 134 indicators in 1996 was tested by over 20 countries, and a revised set of 58 core indicators was published in 2001 and recommended for national application.
Definitions of Terms
In working with indicators, there are several terms that need further clarification.
•Data is the most basic component of indicator work. As such, it is the basis for indicators, indices and information.•Indicators, which are derived from data, are commonly the first, most basic, tools for analyzing change in society. Indicators are superior data as an analytical tool for several reasons.
i.they can work as a basis for assessment by providing information on conditions and trends of sustainable development.
ii. As a basis of such assessments, indicators can provide input to policy formulation processes.
iii. By presenting several data in one number that commonly is more simple to interpret than complex statistics, they can facilitate communication between different groups.
From Data to Information
Indicators Information
Data Indices
Indicators as Means to an End
• Indicators, or indices, are not the end in themselves—they are the means to an end, consisting of improved decision-making. To get a step closer to that end, analyses based on indicators, indices, and, some times, data need to be carried out. These analyses result in information, which is the basis for sound decision-making.
• 40.1 of Agenda 21…. In sustainable development, everyone is a user and provider of information considered in the broad sense. That includes data, information, appropriately packaged experience and knowledge.
• The need for information arises at all levels, from that of senior decision makers at the national and international levels to the grass-roots and individual levels.
The following two program areas need to be implemented to ensure that decisions are based increasingly on sound information:
(a) Bridging the data gap;
(b) Improving information availability.
However, different commentators and organisations have used the terms ‘sustainability’ and ‘indicators’ in different ways. Although indicators, in a simple way, can be defined as surrogates or proxy measures of some abstract, multi-dimensional concepts, the concept of sustainability is more difficult to pin down. Its interpretation is dependent on philosophical considerations that are influenced by political, ethical, religious and cultural factors
• Sustainability indicators can be classified according to their functions and roles in the decision-making process. Some sustainability indicators aim to provide a simple description of the current state of development (state indicators), others are used to diagnose and gauge the process that will influence the state of progress towards sustainability (pressure, process or control indicators), or to assess the impact brought by policy changes (target or performance indicators).
• The indicators in the core set are presented in a Driving Force - State - Response (DSR) - widely agreed framework for environmental indicators, the Pressure - State - Response framework.
The concept of "pressure" has been replaced by that of "Driving Forces", in order to accommodate more accurately the addition of economic, social and institutional indicators. "Driving force" indicators indicate human activities, processes and patterns that impact on sustainable development, "state" indicators indicate the "state" of sustainable development and "response" indicators indicate policy options and other responses to the changes in the "state" of sustainable development.
Table 1: Core Set of Indicators for Sustainable Development Indicators of Sustainable Development, Adam Mannis, University of Ulster
Indicators of Sustainable Development.mht
"Indicators are signals. They are tools to simplify, measure and communicate success". Indicators need to be both appropriate and measurable. To be appropriate they must accurately reflect the objectives of the program. So whilst there are a number of standard indicators such as GDP and unemployment, the choice of which is most appropriate will depend on what form of problem the aim of the intervention seeks to address. For instance a form of intervention which aimed to transfer resources to the poorest or most deprived people within a region may require different indicators to a program which sought to maximize the economic development potential of a region.
The Case with Malaysia
• Malaysia’s national policy on sustainable development is based on a balanced approach whereby environment and development complement each other.
• The principles of sustainable development were introduced in the Third Malaysia Plan (1976-80) and have been reiterated in subsequent development plans. The Eighth Malaysia Plan (2001-5) states that “emphasis will be placed on addressing environmental and resource issues in an integrated and holistic manner. Steps will be taken to identify prudent, cost-effective, and appropriate management approaches that yield multiple benefits in order to ensure that development is sustainable and resilient.
• Concerted efforts are made to strengthen the database for environmental decision making by introducing the use of sustainable development indicators (SDIs) to better ascertain impacts and plan remedial action”. Hence, national development and sector strategies explicitly address environmental protection and management issues.
• When embarking upon an initiative to develop SDIs, the quality of indicators is a critical aspect to consider. Among the cited criteria include being simple, easily understood to policy makers and public, widely credible, scientifically valid, transparent to non-experts, quantifiable, independent, robust, linkable, sensitive etc.
• In Malaysia, elements of sustainability have been incorporated in federal policy documents such as the 20-year Outline Perspective Plan and the five-year Malaysia Plans since the 1970s. The quest then was to balance man’s activities with his environment, in the effort to eradicate poverty and correct social and economic disparity.
• Environmental considerations have become increasingly important over the past two decades. For example, the recent Eight Malaysia Plan (2001-2005) reinforced the need for environmentally sustainable development, in addition to economic, social and cultural progress, for long-term advancement of the country.
• The need for developing SDIs to assist decision making, particularly with respect to natural resources and sustainability of the environment was also articulated.
• The government also identified ten key strategies to be implemented for the duration of the Plan (GoM 2001). Of these, five were predominantly economic in nature, four related to social sustainability and only one related to natural resources and sustainability of the environment.
Initiatives on SDIs in Malaysia can be broadly categorized into government, non-government and research initiatives (Pereira and Nordin 2004). Three major government driven initiatives include the Malaysian Quality of Life Index (MQLI), Malaysian Urban Quality of Life Index and the Compendium of Environment Statistics (CES). These have been developed for the purpose of periodic reporting and have already been institutionalized, where the Department of Statistics acts as the central information depository agency in Malaysia (DoS 2001).
References
• Bell, S. and Morse, S. 2001. Sustainability Indicators. Measuring the immensurable. London: Earthscan.
• Lisa Segnestam, (2002) Indicators of Environment and Sustainable Development Theories and Practical Experience, World Bank Environment Department.
• Pereira, J.J. and Mohd Nordin Hasan 2004. Sustainable Development Indicators: An Overview of Ongoing Initiatives in Malaysia. In: A. Latiff, Pereira, J.J., A. Hezri Adnan & A.A.Aldrie (Eds.) Indicators of Sustainable Development: Assessing Changes in Environmental Conditions. Institute for Environment and Development (LESTARI), Bangi, 3-13.
A Summary
• In Malaysia, several SDI initiatives have been embarked upon over the past decade and these are generally for reporting purposes. These tend to be preliminary in nature but are being continuously improved. The initiative is part of an ongoing programme to present environmental statistics to planners, policy makers and other users and information is obtained from various government agencies.
“We and our communities exist within natural ecosystems that provide a wide range of essential life services…”
Terima Kasih
