Feb 26 Lesson

Big Book: 225-252

Review Questions 266

Nature, Practice, and Study of Development and Sustainability#

Common tools:

  • GDP
    • Reflection of economy, but may not be everything
  • HDI - Human development index
    • used by UN to cite development, to check if SDG are helping out a country
    • life expectancy, education, and standard of living
      • education: Literacy rates – at a global scale, it is at a basic bare bones level
      • standard of living – basic human rights met by state (UNHDR). If majority has access, then considered good standard of living. Again, bare bones
  • SDGs
  • HPI - Happy planet index
    • Idea of state providing happy, sustainable lives.
    • committed to SDGs, reducing plastic air water pollution, so planet as a whole is happy
      • helping with SDG and healthy planet will inherently have higher lifespan, linked to wellbeing
    • only focusing on economy, often label some as doing better, but can have less wellbeing
    • like the opposite of GDP measure
    • how happy planet is, and what countries are doing
  • Gross National Happiness (GNH)
    • community & individual measures
    • might look at how many taking mental health services, cultural diversity, substandard

 

The blue zones: longest life expectancies in the world, few health issues, report high wellbeing