This publication offers a general introduction to sustainability impact assessment, which is an approach for exploring the combined economic, environmental and social impacts of a range of proposed policies, programmes, strategies and action plans. Such assessments can also assist decision-making and strategic planning throughout the entire policy cycles. It is not an in-depth or detailed user manual, but rather outlines basic principles and process steps of sustainability impact assessments, drawing on examples from Switzerland, Belgium and the European Commission, among others. This publication is a valuable source of information for policy makers on sustainability impact assessments.
Fostering sustainable industries and industrial development requires the use of effective indicators. Though a multitude of indicators exist, their applicability to sustainable industries remains largely unaddressed to date. In the RISI project, Ecologic Institute reviewed the available scientific knowledge in order to evaluate existing indicators and propose recommendations concerning their usability and the potential need for further indicator development. Ecologic Institute has now published a shorter version of the project results as a Ecologic Brief with forewords by Heinz Leuenberger, Director of UNIDO’s Environmental Management Branch (EMB), and R. Andreas Kraemer, Director of Ecologic Institute.
The Ecologic Brief is tailored specifically to the information needs of political decision-makers and experts in industrial resource efficiency.
This report contains the first publication of data and indicators that can serve as a basis to analyse and address important policy issues such as resource scarcity and resource security and the design of resource-efficient (industrial) development policies. As the applied methods are consistent with, and fulfil international standards of material flow accounting, the results presented allow comparisons between countries and provide the basis for developing policy targets of all Asian countries.
This pilot study presents comparative data for the following 19 Asian countries: Bahrain, Bangladesh, China, India, Indonesia, Israel, Japan, Jordan, Malaysia, Oman, Pakistan, Philippines, Qatar, Rep. of Korea, Saudi Arabia, Singapore, Sri Lanka, Thailand and Turkey. These countries together represent more than 20% of world GDP and more than 90% of GDP in Asia (excluding Russia and other former countries of the Soviet Union).
This guide provides a core set of enterprise level resource productivity and pollution intensity indicators. It has been developed specifically to promote and support the implementation of Resource Efficient and Cleaner Production (RECP) practices and technologies in small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in developing and transition countries. For National Cleaner Production Centers (NCPCs) and other RECP service providers, this guide provides a basis for quantifying the results of their RECP services to companies. The guide may also serve as a basis for the development or enhancement of NCPC services that are offered to companies and can contribute to the promotion of RECP services.
The Life Beyond Growth publication by AtKisson for the Institute for Studies in Happiness, Economy and Society, explores, as a basis, alternatives and complements to GDP-measured growth as a framing concept for social progress. The report begins by analysing the history of the economic growth paradigm, summarising the key factors that have supported the dominance of growth in global history, and then continues to provide insight on some of the contemporary political factors and technical initiatives that have led to new thinking on green growth and human well-being as indicators for social progress.
The document aims to provide a summation of the current state of the art in relation to rethinking economic growth in favour of alternative models such as green growth. It concludes with a section on the ethics of growth and happiness and a vision for the future.
This summary was prepared by UNDESA.