• Introduction
• What is this book about?
• Challenging the GDP
• Abstract
• Introduction
• Currently used indicators
• The chosen components
• The Index of Sustainability
• Challenging the GDP - Conclusion
• Waste management - an important issue of modern life
• Abstract
• Waste Management - An Introduction
• Waste Management and Sustainable Development
• Waste Management Policies - Developed and developing countries
• Electronic Waste
• Conclusion on waste management governance & policies
• TheCityFarm - Prototype of a real green and sustainable business
• Abstract
• Company Creation
• History of Aquaponics
• Product Description
• Green Product Portfolio
• Marketing of CityFarm
• CityFarm Complex
• Human Resources
• Distribution Channels
• Suppliers
• Conclusion
• Freiburg and Dontang - Eco-city approaches
• Abstract
• Introduction
• Example of Dongtan, China
• Example of Freiburg, Germany
• Creating ecological cities vs. adapting existing ones
• Ecological Cities Conclusion
• Course Description
• Short Course Description
• Schedule
• Assessment
• Participants
• References
• Book Glossary
• Video-clip references
• Authors

Abstract

Challenging GDP

The aim of our research was to look into the GDP and how it reflects the development of nations in a world where there has been more focus on green issues. Where briefly discussed the GDP and alternative indicators coming to a conclusion that a more comprehensive and greener indicator is needed to compare the sustainable development of nations.

We devised a new indicator that would incorporate all the components we believe are relevant. It was noticed that even though there is plenty of information on the economic development, less information was available for social and environmental aspects. We concluded this was because of three reasons:

1. Some of the social aspects are qualitative that are difficult to put into numbers.
2. Most of the environmental issues, such air pollution, can be regional or even local so national averages might be deceiving.
3. Standardization is needed in measuring the environmental issues.

However, we were able to produce an indicator that gives a better view on a nation's development in sustainability. We call this indicator the Index of Sustainability. To illustrate the Index of Sustainability, we applied it to three example countries: USA, France and Mexico.

Authors:

Antoine, Marion (France), Debrah, Dennis (Ghana), Gélébart, Anaëlle (France), Hyppölä, Maija-Leena (Finland), Leppä, Rosmarie (Finland), Marchand, Charlotte (France), Quesada, Adolfo (Spain).