Indicator Principles: Overview | Main | Outcome

Use existing data as much as possible:
Data is expensive to collect and there is a lot of existing data available. Using existing data builds on previous work and is cost effective.

Reevaluate underlying assumptions in the data and indicator concept:
All data is gathered for a specific purpose. While there are good reasons to use existing data it must also be examined for appropriateness to the indicator for which it is intended. Check assumptions made in the collection and analysis process before applying it to an indicator.

Integrate long-term focus with short-term change:
Sustainability is a concept that incorporates long term perspective into decision making. However, short term needs and trends are important. So, it is most useful if both perspectives are incorporated when developing and indicator

Relate indicators to appropriate reference point (individual, dollar, community, population (eg 1,000)):
In order to be effective in communicating the status of our society an indicator must be presented in a way that people can relate to it easily. Thus the scale and the units used are important considerations in the data and analyses used.

Identify direction of progress:
When considering an indicator and the data think about which direction the data must move in order to show improvement. It is usually good to have some indicators that move up as well as some that move down.

Present indicators as a whole system:
Sustainability indicators are linked together and as such represent the condition of the society in which we live. If taken individually the complete picture is lost so, presenting the indicators together is part of the overall concept.

Determine linkages:
As much as possible develop descriptions of how indicators link together. Not all links are yet known, but some are and can be named; others can be suggested.

CRITERIA FOR INDICATOR SELECTION
Reflect Community Values:
The crucial role of indicators is communication. Perhaps more important than providing data, indicators illustrate community values and elicit reactions. Good indicators are expressed in imaginable, not eye-glazing numbers, and resonate with the intended audience.

Valid:
The indicator accurately measures what it is designed to measure. There is established, understandable rationale for using the indicator and drawing conclusions from it.

Data Availability:
Data are available and there are established methods for ongoing data collection. If a selected indicator requires primary data collection, it should be cost effective and have potential for funding.

Measurable:
The data must be or must be able to be collected through established methods.

Reliable:
The data for the indicator are measured in a consistent manner that can be repeated from one time interval to another.

Linked and Related:
Indicators of sustainability are linked to more than one topic, thus together providing a networked perspective on progress that cannot be obtained from a single, isolated indicator. Each indicator needs to link to other topics and categories by direct or indirect connections; by data or logic.

Systematic/Whole System:
The set as a whole provides a picture of the health and social well-being of indicviduals and communities, grounded in citizen values and expert opinion. Selected indicators have importance across multiple areas of concern.

Understandable:
The indicator can be understood by the general public in terms of the data presented, the category containing the indicator, and links to other topics, indicators, or categories

Representative:
The indicator represents the status of the topic and category under which it is listed. The set of indicators in a category sufficiently represents the topics listed in that category

Compelling:
The indicator communicates information that resonates with people by connecting with their values, in this case the topics within each category.

Credible:
Even a valid indicator may strike the public as "incredible," for example, if the data source has a particular reputation in the community. Test questions: Is the indicator believable in the eyes of the community participants who selected it, as well as to the community at large? Does the data source for each indicator help reinforce credibility or detract from it?

Leading:
Indicators must give you information while there is still time to act.

Attractive to local media:
The press publicizes them and uses them to monitor and analyze community trends.