29/09/2018 Indicators of Sustainability | Sustainable Measures
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We are what we measure. It's time to measure what we want to be.
ABOUT US SUSTAINABILITY INDICATORS 101 RECOMMENDATIONS
Indicators of Sustainability
This web site is about indicators of sustainable community: ways to measure
how well a community is meeting the needs and expectations of its present
and future members. One of the primary goals of our site is to explain what
indicators are, how indicators relate to sustainability, how to identify good
indicators of sustainability, and how indicators can be used to measure
progress toward building a sustainable community. Starting up an indicators
project can be a bewildering task. From our experience in working with
communities, we have found that everyone has the same set of basic
questions. To help you develop and use indicators of sustainability, we have
prepared clear, practical answers to these questions:
What is an indicator of sustainability?
What are the characteristics of effective sustainability indicators?
Is there a checklist that a community can use to evaluate
sustainability indicators?
How can you organize indicators; how many and what kind do you
need?
What data sources are available for indicators?
Can you show me examples of good sustainability indicators?
Are there any training materials that explain indicators and
sustainability?
Sustainable Measures provides consulting services to communities and
organizations working on sustainability, but we cannot give you a quick
solution. There isn't one. We also cannot do all the work for you.
Sustainability cannot be developed and imposed on a community by someone
outside that community. It needs to be developed and implemented by the
community itself or it will not work. Outside experts can provide assistance at
crucial points, or help to move the process along, but ultimately people in the
community are the experts on their community. Community members need to
be the driving force behind becoming a community with a sustainable quality
of life for all members, now and for future generations.
So, we cannot provide you with a complete set of ready-made indicators for
your community, but we can provide some basic information that is useful in
developing indicators. Here is some basic information to help you get started:
Free training materials,
A searchable database of indicators,
Explanations of indicators, and sustainability
A list of online and print resources, and
Answers to frequently asked questions about indicators and
sustainability.
Sustainable Measures is committed to the development and growth of
sustainable communities. We want this web site to provide a focal point for
dissemination, evaluation and discussion of indicators of sustainable
communities. Unlike sites whose subject is "sustainability" in general, this
site focuses on how communities can use indicators of sustainability in a
practical way to determine their direction and measure their progress
Our goal is to educate and inspire comm.unity members from diverse
backgrounds, and provide them with a forum for discussion. This site is not
meant to be a forum for "experts" to talk among themselves, though experts
who wish to contribute are certainly welcome. Instead, this site is dedicated
to volunteers: the members of a community who give their time and effort to
serve on committees, support community government, and organize at a
grassroots level. By providing community members with information in a
clear, easy-to-use format, we hope to make this information available to a
much broader spectrum of people than would otherwise be possible.
We also encourage feedback about indicators. We welcome your comments
about the site and the information it contains. Contact us with your
comments, experiences and suggestions.
What is an indicator of sustainability?
Traditional vs. sustainability indicators
Characteristics of effective indicators
A checklist for evaluating indicators
Organizing indicators
Indicator data sources
Indicator Spotlight
What is an indicator of sustainability? ›
Sustainable Measures P.O. Box 370502 West Hartford, CT 06137-0502
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