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VII > Indicators
D. Developing sustainable development indicators
Sustainable Development indicators
Sustainable development is a long term dynamic and interactive process.
It is characterized by integrated conservation and development efforts. It
requires various inputs from regional to global level perspective such as
strategic planning, holistic approach, stakeholder participation,
sustained financial backing, and decentralized good governance. The
process of sustainable development is influenced by changes in
socio-cultural, economic and environmental condition of a country.
Different countries of a region share some common features and some
differences. This highlight need of variation in modality of
implementation and monitoring of sustainable development to suit given
socio-economic and environmental conditions of a given country. The
process of sustainable development should be monitored by verifiable key
indicators. Indicators should cover information on different environmental
aspects such as biological, physical, socio-cultural and economic aspects.
Supplementary information on institutional capability and project
management efficiency on mitigation of adverse impacts and enhancement of
beneficial impacts also hold importance.
Sustainable development indicators vary spatially and temporally with
respect to variation in environmental conditions, socio-economic and
political changes. There has been effort by different institutions to
standardize it so as to compare environmental problems and on sustainable
development progress at global, regional and national level. Integrated
conservation and development planning from collaborative and holistic
approach are needed and institutional frameworks should be conducive to
sustainable resource management. Sustainable development indicators lie at
policy, planning and implementation level. Some relevant indicators can be
outlined as follows:
- Formulation of environment friendly policy, plan, management
strategy at national to regional level with supportive legal and
institutional frameworks.
- Allocation of adequate funding to ensure adoption of sustainable
development approaches.
- Availability of skilled, trained manpower in the field of
sustainable environmental management
- Dissemination of information on ways of sustainable resource
management
Conservation of rare, endangered, and protected plant/ animal species
and their fragile habitats.
- Cost effective, environment friendly and locally manageable best
practices on conservation of air, water, soil and biodiversity
- Conservation of watershed of national , regional level having
critical significance
- Supply of alternative energy sources to replace pollution prone
conventional sources of energy.
- Facility of safe drinking water in necessary quality and quantity
- Provision of financial incentive for conservation and punishment for
pollution
- Mechanism of fair sharing of benefit among stakeholders.
- Mechanism of monitoring and evaluation to ensure adoption of
environment friendly practices and feedbacks for timely improvements.
Some common examples of time bound sustainable development indicators
reported by international organizations such as United Nations, World bank
can be cited as follows:
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Johannesburg Summit 2002 (Rio+10)
The World summit on sustainable Development also called as Rio+10 and
Johannesburg conference, critically reviewed performance of past 10 years
on the implementation of Agenda 21, Convention on Biological diversity and
Convention on Global climate change; outcomes of United Nations Conference
on Environment and development held at Rio on 1992.
Johannesburg Plan of Implementation indicates various commitments and
targets towards sustainable development objectives, many of them
reaffirming the commitments of Millennium Development Goals. (read
more...)
Earth summit Agenda 21
Agenda 21 represents a comprehensive action plan and program of actions
for sustainable development in world wide basis to support Rio
declarations on Environment and Development including convention on
biological diversity, climate change. It was signed by 178 governments. (read more...)
Millennium Development Goals:
United Nations member states have pledged to meet various targets contributing to a sustainable world development
by year 2015. These
goals have to be met by the joint effort of government and people of each
country along with background support of the United Nations. Major
instruments to achieve the goals include implementation, monitoring,
research and advocacy. ( read more...)
World Development Indicators:
Selected world development indicators provide a core set of standard
indicators drawn form World Bank’s development database. Its main five
main sections recognize the contribution of a wide range of factors: human
capital development, environmental sustainability, macroeconomic
performance, private sector development and the global links that
influence the external environment for development. (read more...)
more examples of indicators
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