Introduction to Week 2

This week, we’ll explore different ways of measuring progress in society. We learnt last week that only measuring the material and the economic simply is not good enough. GDP was also never intended to be a measure of general progress, but because of the historical context of its emergence, it eventually reigned supreme.

If GDP isn’t working, we need to measure something else. There have been efforts to develop alternatives that would inform policymakers differently, and make real progress in improving the quality of people’s lives. To prioritise something other than GDP, we need to change what we measure, and put these new measurements front and center of policymaking.

One of the new measures pioneering the case for alternative measurement is the Social Progress Index, but there are others. This week, we hear more from Michael Green, the founder of the Social Progress Imperative which produces the Social Progress Index.

We’ll also delve into the IGP’s approach to measuring prosperity, and our latest research on building prosperous lives in our three sites of exemplification.