What is Progress How to Measure It

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What is Progress How to Measure It?

• Jon Hall, OECD
• Statistics, Knowledge, Policy World Forum

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What is Progress?

• Many views

Is life getting better?
Sustainability... Wellbeing ... Quality of Life
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What is Progress?

• Many views .
• But what is clear (to me) is
• A. Progress is multidimensional

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What is Progress?
economy
society
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What is environmental Progress?
air
biodiversity
land
water
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What is Progress?

• Many views
• But what is clear to me is
• A. Progress is multidimensional
• B. Progress means different things to different
  people

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What is Progress?
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What is Progress?
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What is Progress?
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How to Measure it?

• If progress is multi dimensional and means
  different things to different people then one
  must
• Provide a set of measures
• And allow readers to apply their own weights to
  form their own view

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How to Measure it?

• Measures should be unambiguous" that is have a
  clear good/bad direction of movement
• Important to focus on the big picture
• Important to discuss trade-offs and reinforcements

Life expectancy v
X Numbers of patients treated X
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Trade-offs
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Reinforcements
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How to Measure it?

• Also important to paint the distributional picture

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Distribution of Progress
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Some Examples

• Australia

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Some Examples

• Ireland

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Some Examples

• Alcoa - Spain

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Some Examples

• Millenium Development Goals

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Thank you