Sustainable Development as a Single Measure: Case Study of Some Developing Asian Countries
Venkatesh G.
Researcher at the Norwegian University of Science and Technology, Trondheim (Norway)
Abstract
The Rio Earth Summit of 1992 had emphasized on the development of suitable indicators for the measurement of sustainable development, as aids for decision-making at all levels. In this paper, the authors demonstrate how a Holistic National Sustainability Index can be constructed, by taking into consideration four dimensions of sustainability – Social, Economic, Environmental and Infrastructural. The methodology is applied to 12 developing Asian countries, where sustainable development is vital in the years to come. Comparison among countries using their respective Indices would be meaningless; it is not the states the countries are at a given point in time, but the paths which they follow over time, on the sustainability curve, which are comparable. Limitations and subjectivity notwithstanding, such an Index when used on its merit (with complete understanding of its deficiencies), can be a good planning tool for decision-makers at all levels of government.
Keywords:
sustainability, economic, environmental, social, infrastructural, low-income, lower middle income, upper middle income, trade, agriculture, services, export-import ratio, life-expectancyReferences
CABRERA E., 2008, Benchmarking in the water industry: a mature practice? in: Water Utility Management International, vol. 3, no 3, p. 5-7.
Google Scholar
CAMERON, R. & NEAL L., 2003, A concise economic history of the world, Oxford University Press, UK.
Google Scholar
ECONOMIST INTELLIGENCE UNIT (LONDON), 2009, European Green City Index – assessing the environmental impact of Europe’s greatest cities, Siemens AG, Munich.
Google Scholar
EHRENFELD J., 2009, Understanding of complexity expands the reach of industrial ecology in: Journal of Industrial Ecology, vol. 13, no 2, p. 165-167.
Google Scholar
EUROSTAT, 2007, Measuring progress towards a more sustainable Europe: 2007 monitoring report of the EU sustainable development strategy, Eurostat Statistical Books.
Google Scholar
GUHA R., 1992, Prehistory of Indian Environmentalism – Intellectual Traditions in: Economic and Political Weekly, vol. 27, no I,3, p. 57-64.
Google Scholar
HAJKOWICZ S. and COLLINS K., 2007, A review of multiple criteria analysis for water resources planning and management in: Water Resources Management, vol. 21, p. 1553-1566.
Google Scholar
INDEXMUNDI, http://www.indexmundi.com, Accessed many times in October 2013.
Google Scholar
IYER R R., 2010, Water – What must we do? Part of the book – Water: Culture, Politics and Management, Dorling Kinderseley (India) Private Limited, India, 2010.
Google Scholar
KALLIO T. J., NORDBERG P. & AHONEN A., 2007, Rationalising Sustainable Development – a critical treatise in: Sustainable Development, vol. 15, p. 41-51.
Google Scholar
KEIRSTEAD J. & LEACH M., 2008, Bridging the gaps between theory and practice: a service niche approach to urban sustainability indicators in: Sustainable Development, vol. 16, p. 329-340.
Google Scholar
MITCHELL G., 1996, Problems and fundamentals of sustainable development indicators in: Sustainable Development, vol. 4, p.1-11.
Google Scholar
PAWLOWSKI A., 2008, How many dimensions does sustainable development have in: Sustainable Development, vol. 16, p. 81-90.
Google Scholar
QUENTAL N., LOURENCO J. M. & DA SILVA F. N., 2011, Sustainable development policy: goals, targets and political cycles in: Sustainable Development, vol. 19, no 1, p. 15-29.
Google Scholar
SAVE THE CHILDREN, 2013, State of the World’s Mothers 2013 in: http://www.savethechildrenweb.org/SOWM-2013/#/1/zoomed (8.05.2013).
Google Scholar
SINGHIRUNNUSORN W & STENSTROM M K., 2009, Appropriate wastewater treatment systems for developing countries: criteria and indicator assessment in Thailand in: Water Science and Technology, vol. 59, no. 9, p. 1873-1884.
Google Scholar
THE ECONOMIST, 2013A, Poverty: The Decathlon Deprivation, The Economist Newspaper Limited, UK, March 23-29.
Google Scholar
THE ECONOMIST, 2013B, Infrastructure – The road to hell: Grounded – Special report on Brazil, The Economist Newspaper Limited, UK, September.
Google Scholar
THE ECONOMIST, 2013C. India’s informal economy – Hidden value, The Economist Newspaper Limited, UK, September.
Google Scholar
UNDP (United Nations Development Programme), 2011, Human Development Report 2011 – Sustainable and Equity: A better future for all, http://hdr.undp.org/en/media/HDR_2011_EN_Complete.pdf (31.03.2013).
Google Scholar
VENKATESH G., 2011, Global Logistics Hubs in: Logistics Insight Asia, Contineo Media, Singapore, April-May, p. 8-15,
Google Scholar
VENKATESH G., 2012, A critique of the European Green City Index in: Journal of Environmental Planning and Management, vol. 57, no 3, p. 317-328.
Google Scholar
VENKATESH G and BRATTEBO H., 2013, Typifying cities to streamline the selection of relevant environmental sustainability indicators for urban water supply and sewage handling systems, in: Environment, Development and Sustainability, vol. 15, p. 765-782.
Google Scholar
Authors
Venkatesh G.Researcher at the Norwegian University of Science and Technology, Trondheim Norway
Statistics
Abstract views: 15PDF downloads: 6
License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.
