Prosperity Index: A way to measure success

Climate Emergency Prosperity Index

The IGP has joined the Wellbeing Economy Alliance (WEAll) – a collaboration of organisations, movements and citizens working to transform the economy so that it works for people and planet. This transformation calls for a different way of being within human society – shifting from “us vs. them” to “WE All.” This means delivering equitable distribution of wealth, health and wellbeing, and protecting the planet for future generations and other species. WEAll acts as the connective tissue between different parts of this movement to amplify the message, provide resources, connect individuals and organisations and advocate, from the local to the global level, for a shared vision of a wellbeing economy.

Our work at the IGP overlaps with that of WEAll - recognising the interdependence of the natural and human worlds and the urgent need to develop social, economic and political institutions that deliver pathways to sustainable prosperity.

WEAll has three levels of engagement. Firstly, to make all knowledge accessible and available to everyone and to shift the narrative on the purpose of the economy. Secondly, they have power bases, or WEAll hubs that so far include Scotland, Wales, Iceland and Costa Rica. Finally, WEAll shares the IGP’s commitment to citizen-led research and engagement through their citizen platform which has over 17,000 members connecting to the local level, globally. WEAll is also a great source of resources which include briefings, blogs, videos and books by leading academics and thinkers in a wide-range of fields on various aspects of the wellbeing economy. And some excellent anti-racist resources because ‘there cannot be a wellbeing economy without confronting systemic racism.’

WEAll’s 10 principles for building back better post-COVID include the proposal for Universal Basic Services and guaranteed livelihoods which have been central to the IGP’s past research and that going into the future.

Here at the IGP we are looking forward to contributing to this ongoing effort for prosperity, and to discussing with other WEAll members the use of our Prosperity Index (PI) as a tool for citizens, businesses, and governments alike, to monitor progress and measure success on policy and plans for a wellbeing economy. The London PI was developed over 5 years of research with citizens living and working in and around east London. We identified metrics that represent local conditions and aspirations that can be used to inform decision-making and enable communities to monitor change and evaluate impact – to measure what matters to the prosperity of local communities. The PI is a practical way to measure quality of life and wellbeing and will be a great addition to the WEAll’s set of resources and tools for change.

Image credit: Clay Banks on Unsplash