International Workshop on CSD Indicators of Sustainable Development

REPORT OF THE MEETING

BRIDGETOWN, BARBADOS
7 - 9 DECEMBER 1999
Hosted by the Government of Barbados and sponsored by the Government of Germany

I.  INTRODUCTION

The International Workshop on CSD Indicators of Sustainable Development was convened in the context of Phase III of the Implementation Plan for the Commission on Sustainable Development's (CSD) 5-year Work Programme on Indicators of Sustainable Development (ISD), adopted by the CSD at its third session in 1995. The goal of the Work Programme is to make available to the ninth session of the CSD in 2001 a core set of indicators for sustainable development and related methodologies as a supporting tool for national decision-making.

In order to assess the appropriateness and validity of a working list of 134 indicators and related methodologies, countries from all regions of the world volunteered to test the indicators over a three-year period beginning in November 1996. The indicators are being tested according to countries own priorities and goals for sustainable development, and implemented on the basis of common guidelines for national testing as developed by the Division for Sustainable Development (DSD) in consultation with its indicator expert group.

Since the launching of the testing at the Second International Workshop in Ghent, Belgium from 20-22 November 1996, three regional meetings were convened for Asia and the Pacific, Latin America and the Caribbean, and Africa in order to promote and train government planners in the CSD indicator approach and use. In January 1998, an International Workshop was convened in Prague, the Czech Republic, in order to evaluate the progress in national testing and discuss challenges, experiences and interim results. On this occasion, it was agreed that a meeting of testing countries should be convened upon finalization of the testing process, to exchange experiences, best practices and ensure the integration of results into the revised indicator framework and methodologies. The Barbados International Workshop was convened in response to this request.

The Government of Barbados as an active participant in the indicator testing process generously offered to host the meeting in Barbados. The Government of Germany sponsored the travel of many participants from developing countries, thereby securing their participation in the workshop.

Key participants in the meeting were the national focal points from countries participating in the testing of the CSD ISD programme, as well as representatives of countries affiliated with the process. These are representatives from national planning, environmental or statistical offices charged with the development of tools for monitoring implementation of policy goals and priorities related to sustainable development at the national level. In addition, members of the CSD Expert Group on Indicators of Sustainable Development were invited to participate.

II. OBJECTIVES OF THE WORKSHOP

The objectives of the workshop were: 1) To assess the national testing of CSD indicators of sustainable development, their applicability and usefulness in supporting national decision-making, 2) To discuss and exchange information at the national, regional and global level on sustainability indicators and their practical use, and 3) To agree on a revised organizational structure of themes and related core indicators that will provide the format for the revised set of CSD indicators to be presented to the CSD in 2001.

III. ORGANIZATION AND CONDUCT OF THE WORKSHOP

Opening Session

In addition to the workshop participants, the opening session included a large audience from the Barbados national administration, institutions and others involved in the national programme on developing indicators of sustainable development. This session was chaired by Ms. Atheline Haynes, Permanent Secretary, Ministry of the Environment, Energy and Natural Resources in Barbados. A welcoming address was provided by the Honorable Rawle Eastmond, Minister of Environment, Energy and Natural Resources, Government of Barbados.

Senior Lecturer Dennis Pantin, Coordinator of the Sustainable Economic Development Unit for Small Island Developing States, University of the West Indies, gave the key note presentation on the subject of sustainable development - setting indicators in perspective. Following Mr. Pantin, Mr. Uwe Taeger, Focal Point for the national testing of indicators of sustainable development in Germany, spoke to the audience on the role of indicators in monitoring Government policies on sustainable development, the experience gained and results achieved in Germany from participating in the CSD testing programme. The German testing report was released during the workshop and will be made available to all interested countries.

In conclusion, Mr. Lowell Flanders, Assistant Director, United Nations Division for Sustainable Development, thanked the Government of Barbados for its dedicated effort in organizing the workshop and that participants looked forward the three days of deliberations.

Opening of the Workshop

The Workshop on CSD Indicators of Sustainable Development was chaired by Ms. Nadine Gouzee, Coordinator of the Task Force "Sustainable Development," Government of Belgium, and Co-chaired by Mr. Lowell Flanders, United Nations Division for Sustainable Development. The workshop followed a part plenary - part working group format with the following acting as working group facilitators: Ms. Anne Kerr, Manager, Indicator and Assessment Office, Environment Canada, Mr. Tim Stuart, Senior Advisor, United States Environment Protection Agency and, Mr. Tom Crowards, Research Economist, Caribbean Development Bank.

The main discussion and exchange of views took place in the parallel working group sessions. All working group sessions were followed by plenary feedback to allow for arriving at consensus on key issues of the meeting. The results of these discussions are included in the conclusions and recommendations of the meeting at the end of this report, and agreed by participants by consensus in plenary.

The Programme is attached to this report in Annex 1, and the List of Participants in Annex 2.

IV. EVALUATION OF THE CSD INDICATOR TESTING PROGRAMME

UN DSD reiterated the purpose and characteristics of the CSD indicators programme, after which participants were brought up to date on the status of implementation and lessons learned from the testing process. This information was based on national reports received from testing countries to date, acknowledging that not all countries had yet submitted their reports and their results would therefore not necessarily be reflected in the presentation. A few countries brought completed reports to the meeting while others mentioned that reports were in the final stages of preparation and would be submitted to the UN DSD shortly. Participants were informed that all reports submitted in time would be analyzed and considered in the process of revising the indicator framework and indicators in preparation for 2001.

Lessons learned from the testing phase included the fact that there seemed to be a lack of financial and human resources available to expedite national programmes in several countries and that the extent of resources needed had come as a surprise to many participating countries. The testing had shown that the formation of an indicator network helped integrate all relevant institutions and ministries in the process and provided an excellent platform for both administrative and substantive discussions. The participation in the CSD testing programme had helped build national and governmental awareness of sustainable development issues and the importance of tracking policies and goals. Twinning had provided an excellent platform for information exchange and sharing of expertise creating a win-win situation for the involved parties. On the methodological aspects of testing, the lessons learned included the fact that there still is some uncertainty regarding the focus of the CSD indicator set, whether it was for national use only or also for international comparison. It was clarified that while there are indicators that can be used for international comparison, the focus of the programme is to develop a core set for use at the national level. Some countries had in their reporting reflected the fact that there was a weak link between the national strategies and the indicators to monitor achievements. It is hoped that this will change as more countries develop integrated sustainable development strategies and the use of sustainability indicators gains momentum as a national planning tool. Finally, many countries stressed the need to improve data collection activities in the area of environment in particular, which still lags behind experience with socio-economic data.

V.  EXPERIENCE WITH NATIONAL IMPLEMENTATION

This plenary session opened with the sharing of experiences and results between national participants. Ms. Nadine Gouzee of Belgium, Ms. Leisa Perch and Mr. Derrick Oderson of Barbados, Mr. Thomas Hak of the Czech Republic and Ms. Joyce Onyango of Kenya, presented to the plenary their countries’ testing approaches, results and work in progress. General conclusions are reflected in section XII of the report.

Belgium has completed testing including a technically oriented phase on environmental indicators and an analytical phase on the four components of sustainable development. The process has been closely linked to preparations of the Belgian Federal Report on Sustainable Development, which was published in the autumn of 1999. While Belgium has opted not to use the format for reporting on sustainability indicators suggested by the DSD, results can be viewed in the Federal Report available from the internet website http://www.plan.be. Belgium has used DPSIR indicator framework utilizing more than 100 indicators linked to sustainable development policy analysis, including 33 CSD indicators. Work will continue on social, institutional and economic indicators as well as on linkages and aggregation.

Barbados national indicators programme is focused on the development of ten primary highly aggregated sustainable development indicators and 100 secondary indicators for policy analysis. This work is one of several activities undertaken at the national level, including the establishment of a National Commission on Sustainable Development, with the objective to address the management of Barbados’ fragile resource base. Problems that seem common to many small island development states include issues of limited groundwater supply, threats of natural disasters, coastal zone management, solid waste disposal, urbanization and energy efficiency. Currently, a composite list has been compiled and information sheets on each indicator are being analyzed. In addition, a twinning arrangement with Maldives and Costa Rica is under development.

The Czech Republic has used the CSD indicator testing programme, as well as other international indicators programmes to focus attention on sustainable development in the country with very positive results. The complete list of CSD indicators was tested for the national level and a small set of indicators were chosen for the State Environmental Policy which attempts to integrate environmental concerns into sectoral policies, such as for energy, transport, agriculture and tourism. A substantive testing report was submitted to DSD in 1999. Some priority areas were not covered sufficiently in the current indicator set, for example land use, and more research and work would be needed to develop indicators for these areas.  In order to strengthen national capacities, the Charles University Environment Center has connected with the UNDP-funded project: Towards Sustainability - Building National Capacities for Sustainable Development in the Czech Republic. One element in the project is concerned with the development of a local Agenda 21 at the municipal level, and it is anticipated that when implementation is completed a draft national core set of sustainable development indicators will be derived. Results of the CSD indicator testing programme can be accessed through the internet website: www.ceu.cz/svis/indik/mainpage.htm.

Kenya reported that the process of implementation focused on the development of a national policy framework on environment and development as a basis for developing and testing indicators. Implementation has been slow due to financial and technical constraints. However, several steps have been taken to implement the testing, including the establishment of a focal point and coordinating mechanism, a data assessment and distribution of methodology to stakeholders for evaluation. The actual testing and linkages with related ongoing initiatives is pending implementation. It is anticipated that the testing will be done in relation to the priority areas of sustainable development in Kenya, namely ensuring an equitable standard of living, poverty, unemployment, natural resources based economy with a growing informal sector, HIV/AIDS epidemic, foreign debt servicing and the introduction of environmental management tools at all levels of administration. Indicators of sustainable development will also be developed in the context of the CDM of the Kyoto Protocol, and for the national initiative on criteria and indicators for sustainable forest management for Dry-Zone Africa. Kenya has explicitly requested assistance to further the national testing and is seeking twinning partners among other testing countries.

VI. SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT INDICATOR THEME SELECTION

Mr. Fernando Casado, UN DSD Consultant in Indicators for Sustainable Development from PricewaterhouseCoopers, introduced to participants the results of primarily the analysis of 14 national substantive testing reports received in advance of the meeting. The analysis resulted in a theme-oriented approach to the organization of the CSD indicators, an approach in accordance with recommendations made by the Fifth Expert Group Meeting in April 1999. The proposal suggests a framework focusing on key themes of sustainable development, with underlying sub-themes and core indicators referenced. Goals of the major international conferences related to sustainable development were referenced in addition to the appearance of the proposed indicators in other major international initiatives, for comparison and ease of reference. Areas which still require more work were highlighted for further discussion. The theme-oriented proposal was discussed in parallel working groups and conclusions and recommendations included in section XII of this report.  A series of parallel working groups had been planned for the final day of the meeting to discuss some of these areas, such as tourism, biodiversity and energy.   However, these had to be cancelled due to the need for additional time for discussions in working groups.

VII. EXPERIENCE WITH INTERNATIONAL COOPERATION

This session was dedicated to an exchange of experiences and reports on results achieved by countries that have worked in different forms of twinning partnerships. Ms. Ulla Rosentrom, Finnish Environment Institute and Mr. Samir Meddeb, Tunisian Environment Protection Agency, presented experiences from working with partner testing countries. Mr. Herman Verheij, Global Environmental Policy Division, The Netherlands and Mr. Detlef van Vuuren, Project Manager RIVM, presented their work on the Sustainable Development Contracts between Bhutan, Benin, Costa Rica and The Netherlands, which include work on sustainable development indicators. General conclusions of this session are reflected in section XII of the report.

Finland completed the testing of CSD indicators in 1997 following which a national set of sustainability indicators was identified in the Government Programme on Sustainable Development. The Finnish substantive testing report was submitted to the DSD and distributed to all testing countries in 1998. The national testing in Finland was supported by a task force consisting of members from key ministries and institutions, however consultations have been broad involving a number of actors outside the government. The testing was found to have a positive impact nationally in creating an increased capacity to develop indicators. The testing period was seen as a valuable exercise in preparation for developing Finland's national indicator set, which is anticipated to be used by the Finnish National Commission on Sustainable Development. The national set is problem oriented focused on the sustainable development objectives as defined in Finland, which seeks to promote ecological sustainability and economic, social and cultural preconditions for achieving this end. The set will consist of 85 indicators. A smaller headline indicator set is also being discussed. An important part of the testing programme included the twinning arrangement with the Republic of South Africa, which lead to close cooperation, three meetings and continuous electronic exchange of experiences. South Africa submitted its first substantive testing report to DSD in 1999. This arrangement was found to have many positive aspects for both partners and was highly encouraged for other countries as well.

In Tunisia, testing was delegated to the Tunisian Sustainable Development Observatory, which is mandated to track the state of the national environment and monitor sustainable development. In this process a trilateral twinning partnership was created among the French Institute for the Environment (IFEN), the Blue Plan for the Mediterranean and Tunisia. Tunisia submitted its results of the testing to the DSD at the end of 1999. To support the national testing, Tunisia established a scientific advisory committee including representatives from France and the Blue Plan, which contributed greatly with their knowledge and experience from similar projects. It was found that 121 of the 134 CSD indicators were pertinent to the Tunisian context. A few areas needed additional coverage beyond the current CSD indicator set including issues of relevance for Mediterranean waters, tourism and literacy. It was found that while the testing had been a large coordination exercise involving more than 30 organizations and agencies, it was beneficial to the development of the Tunisian national indicator set as well as provided coherence between the work of the two partners IFEN and the Blue Plan. The report of the Tunisian testing experience is available from the website of the Tunisian Environment Protection Agency.

The sustainable development agreements between the Netherlands, Benin, Bhutan and Costa Rica seeks to explore new forms of development focusing on awareness building and sustainable development monitoring at the national level. It also supports discussions at the international level by supplying information from the respective countries using a common reference framework. It was indicated early on in the process that sustainable development indicators would be a priority issue under the agreements. Even though the agreements are not an official part of the CSD testing exercise they do share some common features, including the consideration of CSD indicators and methodology sheets, the continuous exchange of experiences between testing countries and the fact that Costa Rica is also a participant in the CSD ISD testing programme. Observations from using the CSD indicators included the positive experience with using the blue book "Indicators of Sustainable Development: Framework and Methodologies, 1996 " as a reference document, and the fact that data for the CSD indicators in many cases were readily available though varying in quantity and quality between countries. On the other hand, some indicators appeared to be redundant and some important indicators needed to be added. In all, the coverage of integration and linkages needs to be improved. An example of an indicator proposed was the Ecological Footprint, which was calculated for the participating countries. The overall cooperation under the agreements has been beneficial in enhancing the understanding of sustainable development using available experiences of institutions and building up a network. Difficulties included overcoming cultural differences, communication issues and differences in sustainable development priorities proving to be a resource intensive exercise.

VIII. INSTITUTIONAL INDICATORS FOR SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT

Mr. Joachim Spangenberg, Project Coordinator, Wuppertal Institute, introduced a project to develop institutional indicators in the framework of the CSD sustainable development indicators approach. It was recognized from the beginning that the CSD attempts to propose a wide range of indicators compared by conceptual standards regarding sustainability in a systems-dynamics view, institutions in a political science view as well as quality criteria for indicators. Agenda 21was analyzed regarding its institutional contents focusing on organizations, mechanisms and orientations. On this basis, cardinal performance indicators were suggested. In the process, a number of existing CSD indicators were shown to be institutionally meaningful although specific for one or two of the sustainability dimensions. The large number of institutional indicators proposed in the project can be characterized as either core indicators or interlinkage indicators.  The next step in the project, funds permitting, will be to create linkages to other actors such as the World Bank, the Caribbean Development Bank and OECD for creating an integrated sustainable development reporting system.

The work undertaken by the Institute, as commissioned by the German Federal Environment Protection Agency, was seen by participants as the first major contribution to improving the current CSD set of institutional indicators after the initiation of the programme.  It was, however, recognized that much more work was needed in order to focus and refine the selection of indicators for use in the CSD context.

IX. CORE INDICATORS OF SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT

Mr. Fernando Casado introduced the proposal for core indicators to be included in the revised CSD indicator framework. The selection was divided into core indicators and related CSD indicators. Core indicators were proposed based on the indicators that most testing countries had found to be useful either using the same or similar methodologies in the reports received in advance of the meeting. Additional criteria included coherence with other major international initiatives to develop indicators of sustainable development, as well as the taking into account the original selection criteria for CSD indicators established in the Work Programme. Related indicators were referenced to illustrate alternative CSD indicators available for consideration by the meeting. In some cases, where areas were proposed for consideration that do not appear in the working list, indicators were proposed based on their use and implementation in other major initiatives or by testing countries. The proposal was discussed in parallel working groups and the conclusions and recommendations are included in the final section of this report.

This session focused on exchange of experiences from countries that have paid particular attention to the communication and involvement of civil society in the development of their respective national sustainable development indicator sets. Mr. John Custance presented the experience of the United Kingdom, and Mr. Tim Stuart and Mr. Theodore Heintz addressed the approach taken by the United States. General conclusions from the session are reflected in section XII of the report.

The United Kingdom developed its first set of sustainability indicators in 1996. Since then a second set has been developed, based on the CSD working list, the 1996 UK set and other available indicators and was due for publishing in December 1999. The national process has benefited from government wide involvement linking the indicator development directly to a new national strategy for sustainable development. The elaboration process has included broad consultations with local governments, NGOs and other actors to ensure a wide sense of ownership of the process. The second round has resulted in a set of 15 headline indicators designed, to focus public attention on sustainable development issues, raise awareness and encourage changes in behavior. Underlying the headline indicator set is a national set of 150 core indicators linked to the 5 broad sustainable development themes set out in the Strategy, and also other indicators for local authorities, regions, sectors, businesses and individuals. The national process has had very good experiences with the broad consultations undertaken, though this had been both time and resource consuming. It was noted that there is a need for a strong link to the policy development side and that the process had illustrated the importance for addressing the communication of results to both policy makers and the general public. While the United Kingdom did not submit substantive reports to the DSD following the proposed reporting format, the Government's report of the national indicator set "Quality of Life Counts" is available and will be forwarded to all testing countries. In addition, the report is posted on the internet at Http://www.environment.detr.gov.uk/sustainable/quality99/index/htm.

In the United States, work on indicators of sustainable development is proceeding at the national, state, community and business levels. Working with the President's Council on Sustainable Development, the Interagency Working Group on Sustainable Development Indicators (SDI Group) has developed an experimental national set of indicators (a report is available both in hard copy and on the www at www.sdi.gov). Forty experimental indicators were selected to support assessment of the extent to which Endowments of capital assets, environmental resources and social capacities are being maintained for future generations and the extent to which the needs of the current generation are being met. Over time, this national indicator set will likely be expanded to include management indicators for use in tracking management of social, economic and environmental endowments by agencies. A special effort is also underway by the SDI Group, working with the White House Task Force on Livable Communities, to develop national indicators of community livability and sustainability. While emphasis is on national indicators for national assessments, a menu of indicators for possible use at the local level will be identified and made available to communities who wish to pursue sustainable development initiatives. The community indicators can be used to report progress, as warning signals and to pinpoint challenges. A collaborative effort at the local level is encouraged to select community indicators, which will help build understanding of different viewpoints and thus promote consensus on community concerns and ideas. This work will build upon the indicator work currently underway in more than 200 communities nationwide. In addition to work underway in communities and the public sector, a number of private firms in the US has been very active in developing measures of sustainability as needed to track implementation of sustainability measures designed to increase their competiveness, e.g., by lowering energy and raw material costs. The United States did not participate as an official testing country in the CSD indicator testing programe. However, the selection of did take into account the CSD indicators among other available lists. More information is available through the following website: Http://www.livablecommunities.gov.

XI.  DATA AND OTHER INFORMATION SYSTEMS

The session was divided in two segments focusing partly on national experiences with data and information systems and their use in the development of sustainability indicators, and partly work by institutions and international organizations in the area. Ms. Liberty Guinto from the Philippines, Mr. Rolando Rios and Mr. Roberto Lopez from Mexico and Ms. Anne Kerr from Canada all presented their national experiences to the plenary. Ms. Maria Elena Barron from Carnegie Mellon Univeristy, Ms. Reena Shah from the United Nations Statistics Division and Ms. Christine Zumkeller from the United Nations Secretariat for the Framework Convention on Climate Change presented work by their institutions.

In the Philippines, data sources for the CSD ISD testing programme were analyzed in great detail. It was found that while most data was available in the economic and social areas, environmental data was not readily available and in many cases required use of proxy data in the compilation. The testing programme focused on the statistical testing of data using the driving force - state - response approach. In this process, every indicator was matched with a corresponding indicator in the DSR framework, which proved to be highly complicated as no causality is implied in the CSD proposal. In the final phase, indicators were chosen based on data availability and causality between the indicators using the DSR framework. This resulted in a compilation of 18 indicators as a first selection. The Philippines, will in the next phase of their work, focus on the development of an aggregated index of sustainable development as well as explore long-term targets of sustainable development and linkage indicators to support this process. A substantive testing report is expected to be submitted to DSD in early 2000 and will be available from the national focal point.

Mexico has succeeded in elaborating 114 of the 134 indicators proposed in the CSD working list. A comprehensive testing report produced by Mexico elaborates on the nature and characteristics of the basic information required to construct each indicator including the availability, data compilation method, updating frequency and geographical coverage. It is noted that the largest part of the information is publicly accessible mainly through environmental information programmes and almost all basic social, economic and institutional information is available in either printed form or via the internet. Some recommendations derived from the process include the need for refinement of the current methodology sheets to clarify data availability, coverage and gaps. It was also emphasized that linkages and aggregation should be explored with respect to national priority setting. Finally, it was recommended that the CSD indicators be supplemented with other information tools such as spatially referenced data and maps to support decision-making processes. The Mexican national programme will focus on these aspects in the coming years. The report of the Mexican testing project was submitted to DSD in the last part of 1999 and is available upon request from the national focal points from the National Institute of Statistics, Geography and Informatics and the National Institute of Ecology.

Environment Canada has a longstanding tradition of making environment information and indicators available on the internet. Indicator bulletins are regularly released to keep the general public and interested stakeholders informed of the latest trends in key areas of concern. It is only recently that this work has been expanded to include and further refine sustainable development indicators, which are expected to be included as they become available. In addition, a software product has been developed to assist with local level indicator development. The interactive software and websites were demonstrated to participants and more information can be obtained through the internet at: http://www.ec.gc.ca or by contacting Ms. Kerr.

Carnegie Mellon University presented to the plenary a searchable database currently under development for DSD. The database will store information accessible from the testing countries on comments and recommendations made in their national testing exercises according to the reporting format provided by DSD. It will provide a tool for analyzing the results of the testing phase and support the revision of the CSD framework and indicators for CSD9. While the database is originally developed for use by the DSD it is easily transformed into a tool for national use by countries in the process of gathering information and developing indicators of sustainable development. The database allows for storing comments and information on specific indicators and topics including the methodological descriptions as provided by the CSD set, is web compatible and can be made accessible for multiple users. A number of testing countries have shown interest in obtaining the database for their own use, and it is therefore anticipated that DSD will develop the database to serve countries needs as part of the Division's technical assistance programme. The database is scheduled for completion in May 2000. More information on the database can be obtained form the DSD focal point for indicators.

United Nations Statistics Division (UNSD) is working on several areas of relevance to the CSD indicator programme by developing methodologies in the fields of environment and sustainable development statistics and indicators as well as integrated environmental and economic accounting. UNSD has released a Framework for the Development of Environment Statistics (FDES) which consists of "statistical topics", those aspects of environmental concerns that can be subjected to statistical description and analysis. In order to specify data collection methods, classifications, etc., two technical reports have been prepared by UNSD entitled Concepts and Methods of Environment Statistics, one covering human settlements and the other covering the natural environment, and the Glossary of Environment Statistics. Currently, a Manual of Environmental Statistics and Indicators is under preparation. The first volume covering general issues and selected thematic fields of environment statistics is scheduled for release in late 2000. Additionally, a Compendium of Environmental Indicators will be released in the year 2000 and will contain a subset of the sustainable development indicators proposed in the CSD list. In the area of integrated environmental and economic accounting, an operations manual developed by UNSD in collaboration with UNEP and the Nairobi Group is expected to be released shortly. As part of UNSD technical cooperation activities, regional workshops have been convened in the areas of environmental statistics, indicators, and integrated environmental and economic accounting. The Division is currently supporting a project at the Caribbean Community (CARICOM) Secretariat entitled "Strengthening Capacity in the Compilation of Statistics and Indicators for Conference Follow-up in the CARICOM Region". More information on the Divisions activities is available through the internet at http://www.un.org/Depts/unsd.

The importance of accurate information and indicators to support monitoring and decision-making processes has also gained increasing interest in the context of the Climate Change negotiations. The representative from UNFCCC informed participants of the latest status of work in the convention and how activities in this context may be of relevance for countries participating in the Barbados workshop. Future plans for developing indicators to monitor climate change related issues were highlighted, including the importance of measuring vulnerability. More information is available on the internet at Http://www.unfccc.org.

XII. MAIN CONCLUSIONS AND RECOMMENDATIONS

1. Participants expressed their profound thanks and gratitude to the Government and people of Barbados for their generous hospitality as hosts of the meeting and to the Government of Germany for providing support for the travel of many of the participants.

2. Participants expressed appreciation for the ongoing work and progress achieved on indicators of sustainable development by testing and affiliated countries, national governments, the CSD secretariat and other international organizations. This work has enriched and strengthened international cooperation and understanding of the importance of indicators.

3. Participants found indicators very useful for measuring progress towards sustainable development and recommended that all countries, as appropriate, use a core set of indicators, adapted to their own country specific conditions and requirements, as an instrument for monitoring the implementation of national policies for sustainable development.

4. Participants, encouraged by the reports on national experience in the testing of indicators, profited from the lively dialogue and exchange of experience that took place during the workshop, particularly in terms of insights gained and lessons learned during the testing phase. These included, inter alia,

1. Countries showed a great deal of enthusiasm and commitment in initiating and carrying through the testing process.
   
2. Participation in the indicator development process helped to build national and governmental awareness of sustainable development issues in general and to initiate a national dialogue on priorities for sustainable development.
   
3. When high level policy makers or politicians have been involved and committed to sustainable development, the work on indicators has progressed more rapidly.
   
4. The CSD indicators have provided an important and useful starting point in countries where indicators are in less frequent use and the methodology sheets have helped countries to measure sustainable development needs and focus national attention on improving the availability of data.
   
5. Even where countries were not formally involved in the testing process cooperation, dialogue and exchange of information among them on indicator development proved beneficial and helped to shed light on differences in priorities and values. Some also benefited from the methodological work done on the CSD indicators and from experience gained by interaction with testing countries.
   
6. Formation of an indicator network helped to integrate ministries and research institutions in the indicator process.
   
7. While Government departments were generally more involved in the testing process than other stakeholders groups it has required considerable effort to ensure broad-based and cross-sectoral exchange and cooperation in the indicator development process.
   
8. Twinning facilitated information exchange between the countries involved and helped both countries to advance their work more rapidly. Further efforts of cooperation and twinning should be encouraged.
   
9. Indicators have to be adapted to country specific conditions and requirements due to different priorities and circumstances in each country. A process of experimentation and iteration is often necessary to arrive at the most suitable list of indicators for a specific country.
   
10. There was a lack of necessary financial and human resources available to expedite the national process of testing and implementation in several countries. In this regard, there is need to strengthen the capacity of countries to coordinate and manage the national level process for indicator development, including support for coordinating and focal point mechanisms.
    
11. In some cases, the testing programme could have achieved better results if the UN or other donors had been able to devote financial and technical resources at an early stage. The lack of adequate resources and funding remains a problem for some countries in completing the testing exercise and carrying the process forward.

    5. Participants recognized that while this was the final meeting of countries during the formal testing phase, work on the CSD indicators would continue both at the national and international level in preparation for the 9^th session of the CSD in 2001, and any additional insights, comments and suggestions from countries would be helpful to the process.

6. Participants welcomed the progress made in clarifying the concepts related to institutional indicators and in identifying possible additional indicators in this area.

7. Participants had before them and considered in detail a proposal for further organizing and developing the CSD indicators and the related framework. This proposal which covers the major areas or dimensions of sustainable development as well as themes and sub-themes was based on a recommendation made the by Fifth Meeting of the Expert Group on Indicators of Sustainable Development and the national reports from the testing process.

8. Participants reached consensus on the following main points with respect to the proposal:

1. To maintain the four areas of sustainable development indicators as used in the original framework; namely, economic, social, environmental and institutional;
2. To accept in principle a thematic organization of the framework under the four dimensions and to cross-reference the themes to the related chapters of Agenda 21, thereby maintaining continuity and linkage with the previous chapter-wise organization.

9. Participants reviewed and discussed the linkages between the sub-themes and the possible core indicators in terms of the appropriateness and relevance of the sub-themes and core indicators, and made proposals for modifications of the sub-themes and indicators. These were recommended to be taken up in the further revision of the framework and the indicators to be presented to CSD9 in 2001.

10. With regard to next steps participants recommended that:

1. Further work on the indicators draw to the fullest extent possible on the experience and on-going work of testing and affiliated countries, national and international organizations and agencies and that efforts be continued to work toward convergence with other indicator initiatives;
2. The remaining reports of the national testing process be submitted to the CSD secretariat on an urgent basis so they can be considered in the final revision of the framework and indicators;
3. The revised framework and indicators be circulated to testing and affiliated countries and the Expert Group for further comments once the current suggestions and proposals of the Workshop are fully taken into account;
4. Countries continue their collaborative work on indicators of sustainable development through twinning and other means;
5. Work continue on further improving and refining the concepts and indicators related to institutional issues;
6. Participants assist, as agreed, with the development of indicators and related methodology sheets where new or additional indicators are being proposed.

10:00 - 10:10       Welcoming Address
                            by The Hon. Rawle Eastmond, Minister of Environment, Energy and Natural
                             Resources, Government of Barbados

10:10 - 10:30     "Sustainable Development - setting indicators in perspective"
                            by Mr. Dennis Pantin, Senior Lecturer, Coordinator of the Sustainable Economic
                            Development Unit for Small Island Developing States, University of the
                            West Indies

10:30 - 10:50        "The role of indicators in monitoring Government policies on sustainable
                             development"
                             by Mr. Uwe Taeger, Focal Point for Indicators of
                             Sustainable Development in Germany

Opening of the Workshop
Chaired by Ms. Nadine Gouzee, Coordinator of the Task Force "Sustainable Development," Government of Belgium
Co-chair: Mr. Lowell Flanders, Assistant Director, United Nations Division for Sustainable Development
Facilitators: Ms. Anne Kerr, Director, Indicator Branch of Environment Canada, Mr. Tim Stuart, Senior Advisor, United States Environment Protection Agency and, Mr. Tom Crowards, Research Economist, Caribbean Development Bank

10:50 - 11:10      "Evaluation of the CSD indicator testing programme"
                            by Mr. Lowell Flanders, Assistant Director, United Nations Division for
                            Sustainable Development

11:10 - 12:30      "Experiences with national implementation"
                            Belgium
                            Barbados
                            Czech Republic
                            Kenya

12:30 - 13:40       Lunch break

13:40 - 14:00       Introduction to session: "Sustainable Development Indicator Theme Selection"
                            by Fernando Casado, Expert in Indicators for Environment and Sustainable
                            Development,
                            PricewaterhouseCoopers

14:00 - 16:15       Parallel working groups to discuss indicator themes

16:15 - 16:30       Coffee break

16:30 - 18:00       Plenary feedback and discussion

            ~ Reception, hosted by the Government of Barbados ~

Wednesday, 8 December 1999

09:00 - 11:00       Experiences with international cooperation
                            South Africa/Finland
                            Tunisia/Morocco/France

                            The Netherlands, Benin, Bhutan and Costa Rica
                            Using CSD indicators in the context of the Sustainable Development Agreements.
                            by Mr. Herman Verheij, Global Environmental Policy Division, The Netherlands
                            & Mr. Detlef van Vuuren, Project Manager, RIVM

11:00 - 12:00       Plenary discussion on Institutional indicators for sustainable development
                            by Mr. Joachim Spangenberg, Project Coordinator, Wuppertal Institute

12:00 - 13:30       Lunch break

13:30 - 13:40       Introduction to session: "Core Indicators According to Themes"
                            by Fernando Casado, Expert in Indicators for Environment and Sustainable
                            Development, PricewaterhouseCoopers

13:40 - 15:40       Parallel working groups to discuss core indicators according to themes

15:40 - 16:00       Coffee break

16:00 - 18:00       Plenary feedback and discussion

09:00 - 11:00       Parallel working groups to discuss core indicators according to themes
                            (Continued)

11:00 – 12:00      Plenary feedback and discussion

12:00 - 12:30      Experience with integration of indicators into decision-making, communication and
                            reporting
                           United Kingdom
                           United States

12:30 - 14:00      Lunch break

14:00 – 16:00      Data and other information systems
                           Philippines
                           Mexico
                           Canada

16:00 - 16:30      Adoption of conclusions and recommendations of the meeting

16:30 -                 Closing of the meeting

1. BELGIUM
   Ms. Nadine Gouzée
   Coordinator of the Task Force "Sustainable Development"
   Federal Planning Office
   47/49 Avenue de Arts, B-1000 Bruxelles, Belgium
   Tel.: (32-2) 507-7311
   Fax: (32-2) 507-7373
   
   
2. CANADA
   Ms. Anne Kerr
   Manager, Indicators and Assessment Office
   Environment Canada
   9th Floor, Place Vincent Massey
   351 St. Joseph Boulevard
   Hull, Quebec K1A 0H3, Canada
   Tel.: (819) 994-9570
   Fax: (819) 994-5738
   
   
3. COLOMBIA
   Mr. Fernando Rosero-Diaz
   Asesor Despacho del Vice-Ministro
   Ministerio del Medio Ambiente
   Santafé de Bogotá, Colombia
   Tel.: (57-1) 288-6877 ext. 112
   Fax: (57-1) 288-7639
   
   
4. CZECH REPUBLIC
   Mr. Tomas Hak
   Charles University Environment Centre
   Petrska 3, CS-110 00 Prague 1
   The Czech Republic
   Tel.: (420-2) 231-5334
   Fax: (420-2) 231-5324
   
   
5. FINLAND
   Ms. Ulla Rosenström
   Senior Scientist
   Finnish Environment Institute
   Kesakatu 6, P.O. Box 140
   00251 Helsinki, Finland
   Tel.: (358-9) 40-300-329
   Fax: (358-9) 40-300-391
   
   
6. GERMANY
   Mr. Uwe Taeger
   Deputy Head of Division
   Division G I 2 (Economic Aspects of Environmental Policy)
   Federal Ministry for the Environment, Nature Conservation and Nuclear Safety
   Alexanderplatz 6, 11055 Berlin, Germany
   Tel.: (49-30) 28550-2451
   Fax: (49-30) 28550-3339
   
   
7. KENYA
   Mrs. Joyce Onyango
   Senior Environment Officer
   Head of Environmental Economics Division
   National Environment Secretariat
   Bruce House - 13^th Floor, Standard Street
   Box 67839, Nairobi, Kenya
   Tel.: (254-2) 243-839/242-569/243-088
   Fax: (254-2) 248-851
   
   
8. MEXICO
   Lic. Rolando Rios
   Director of Environmental Information
   National Institute of Ecology
   Secretary of Environment, Natural Resources and Fisheries
   Revolución 1425, Nivel 9
   Col. Tlacopac San Angel
   México D.F. C.P. 01040, México
   Tel.: (52-5) 624-3454/624-3455
   Fax: (52-5) 624-3584
   
   
9. MEXICO
   Mr. Roberto López Pérez
   Deputy Director of Environmental Statistics
   National Institute of Statistics, Geography and Informatics
   Héroe de Nacozari 2301, puerta 11, primer nivel
   Aguascalientes, 20270 México
   Tel.: (52-49) 105-437
   Fax: (52-49) 182-650
   
10. NETHERLANDS
    Mr. Herman Th. H. Verheij
    Global Environmental Policy Division, IPC 670
    Ministry of Housing, Spatial Planning and Environment
    P.O. Box 30945
    2500 GX, The Hague, Netherlands
    Tel.: 31-70 339 4870
    Fax: 31-70 339 1306
    
    
11. NIGERIA
    Dr. Lawrence C. Anukam
    International and Public Affairs Department
    Federal Environment Protection Agency
    P.M.B. 468, Garki, Abuja, Nigeria
    Tel. and Fax: (234-9) 523-4932
    
    
12. PHILIPPINES
    Ms. Liberty Guinto
    Supervising Economic Development Specialist
    National Economic and Development Authority
    12 Amber Drive, Ortigas Center
    Pasig, Metro Manila 1600, Philippines
    Tel.: (63-2) 631-3745/631-3714
    Fax: (63-2) 633-6015
    
    
13. TUNISIA
    Mr. Samir Meddeb
    Agence Nationale de Protection de l'Environnement
    12 rue du Cameroun
    BP 52 Belevedere 1002
    Tunis, Tunisia
    Tel.: (216-1) 845-479
    Fax: (216-1) 848-069
    
    
14. UNITED KINGDOM
    Mr. John Custance
    Statistician
    Environmental Protection Statistics and Information Management Division
    Department of the Environment, Transport and the Regions
    Floor 5/H14, Ashdown House
    123 Victoria Street
    London SW1E 6DE, United Kingdom
    Tel.: (44-20) 7944 -6514
    Fax: (44-20) 7944 -6489
    
    
15. UNITED STATES
    Dr. Theodore Heintz
    Director of Economic Analysis
    Office of Policy Analysis and US Interagency Working Group on
    Sustainable Development Indicators
    US Department of Interior
    1849 C Street, N.W.
    Washington, D.C. 20240, United States
    Tel.: (202) 208-4939
    Fax: (202) 208-5602
    
    
16. UNITED STATES
    Dr. Tim Stuart
    Senior Advisor, Office of Policy
    United States Environment Protection Agency
    401 M Street, S.W., MC 2164
    Washington, D.C. 20460, United States
    Tel.: (202) 260-0725
    Fax: (202) 260-4968
    

    HOST COUNTRY: BARBADOS

    MINISTRY OF ENVIRONMENT, ENERGY AND NATURAL RESOURCES

17. Ms. Atheline Haynes
    Permanent Secretary
    Ministry of Environment, Energy and Natural Resources
    Sir Frank Walcott Building, 4th Floor
    Culloden Road, St. Michael, Barbados
    Tel.: (246) 431-7638
    Fax: (246) 437-8859
    
    
18. Mr. Derrick Oderson
    Environmental Officer, Sustainable Development
    Environment Division
    Ministry of Environment, Energy and Natural Resources
    Sir Frank Walcott Building, 4th Floor
    Culloden Road, St. Michael, Barbados
    Tel.: (246) 431-7638
    Fax: (246) 437-8859
    
    
19. Natalie Rothwell
    Environmental Research Office on Sustainable Development
    Environment Division
    Ministry of Environment, Energy and Natural Resources
    Sir Frank Walcott Building, 4th Floor
    Culloden Road, St. Michael, Barbados
    Tel.: (246) 431-7638
    Fax: (246) 437-8859
    
    
20. Ms. Amrikha D. Singh
    Ministry of Environment, Energy and Natural Resources
    Sir Frank Walcott Building, 4th Floor
    Culloden Road, St. Michael, Barbados
    Tel.: (246) 431-7638
    Fax: (246) 437-8859
    
    
21. Mr. Fabian Griffin
    Ministry of Finance and Economic Affairs
    Government Headquarters
    Bay Street, St. Michael, Barbados
    Tel.: (246) 436-6435
    Fax: (246) 426-3688
    
    
22. Mr. Raymond Lorde
    Town and Country Development Planning Office
    St. Michael, Barbados
    Tel.: (246) 426-0540
    Fax: (246) 228-4006
    
    

    ORGANIZATIONS:

23. CARIBBEAN DEVELOPMENT BANK
    Mr. Tom Crowards
    Research Economist
    Social and Economic Research Unit
    Caribbean Development Bank
    P.O. Box 408, Wildey
    St. Michael, Barbados, W.I.
    Tel.: (24-6) 431-1600/431-1953 (direct)
    Fax: (24-6) 426-7269
    
    
24. CPACC
    Ms. Leisa Perch
    Public Relations and Projects Officer
    Caribbean Planning for Adoption to Global Climate Change
    Old West Indian Commission Building
    Lazaretto Complex, Black Rock, St. Michael, Barbados
    Tel.: (246) 417-4583
    Fax: (246) 417-0461
    
    
25. CTO
    Ms. Mercedes Silva
    Sustainable Tourism Officer
    Caribbean Tourism Organization
    22^nd Floor, Sir Frank Walcott Bldg
    Culloden Farm Complex
    St. Michael, Barbados
    Tel.: (246) 427-5242
    Fax: (246) 429-3065
    
    
26. ECLAC
    Mr. Guillermo Acuña
    Legal Expert on Environmental Affairs
    Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean of the United Nations
    Av. Dag Hammarskjold s/n, Vitacura
    Santiago, Chile
    Tel.: (56-2) 210-2488
    Fax: (56-2) 208-0252/208-1946
    
    
27. FAO
    Dr. Lystra Fletcher-Paul
    Integrated Natural Resources Management Officer
    Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations
    Tom Adams Financial Centre
    Roebuck St., Bridgetown, Barbados
    Tel.: (246) 426-7110
    Fax: (246) 427-6075
    
    
28. IAEA
    Dr. Garegin Aslanian
    Energy System Analyst
    International Atomic Energy Agency
    P.O. Box 100
    A-1400 Vienna, Austria
    Tel.: (43-1) 2600-22782
    Fax: (43-1) 2600-29598
    
    
29. IAEA
    Dr. Hendrik A. Selling
    Coordinator Radioactive Waste
    Ministry of Housing, Spatial Planning and Environment
    Rijnstraat 8, P.O. Box 30945
    2500 GX, The Hague, Netherlands
    Tel.: (31-70) 339-4958
    Fax: (31-70) 339-1314
    
    
30. PRICEWATERHOUSECOOPERS L.L.P.
    Mr. Fernando Casado Caneque
    Senior Consultant
    PricewaterhouseCoopers L.L.P.
    1301 Avenue of the Americas
    New York, N.Y. 10019, United States
    Tel.: (212) 259-2726
    Fax: (212) 259-2525
    
    
31. PRICEWATERHOUSECOOPERS L.L.P.
    Ms. Joanna Moresky
    Senior Consultant, Business Ethics Advisory Services
    PricewaterhouseCoopers L.L.P.
    1301 Avenue of the Americas
    New York, N.Y. 10019, United States
    Tel.: (212) 533-1556
    Fax: (212) 259-2525
    
    
32. RIVM
    Mr. Detlef van Vuuren
    National Institute of Public Health and the Environment (RIVM)
    P.O. Box 1, 3720 BA Bilthoven, The Netherlands
    Tel.: (31-30) 274-2046
    Fax: (31-30) 274-4435
    
    
33. UNIVERSITY OF WEST INDIES
    Prof. Andrew S. Downes
    Director, Sir Arthur Lewis Institute of Social and Economic Studies
    University of the West Indies
    Cave Hill Campus, Barbados
    Tel.: (246) 417-4476
    Fax: (246) 424-7291
    
    
34. UNIVERSITY OF WEST INDIES
    Prof. Oliver Headley
    Director, Centre for Resource Management and Environmental Studies (CERMES)
    Chairman, National Council on Sustainable Development and
    PM’s Millennial Project on Renewable Energy
    University of the West Indies, Barbados
    Tel.: (246) 417-4339
    Fax: (246) 424-4204
    
    
35. UNIVERSITY OF WEST INDIES
    Mr. Dennis Pantin
    Senior Lecturer, Coordinator of the Sustainable Economic Development Unit for
    Small Island Developing States (SIDs)
    Economics Department
    University of the West Indies
    St. Augustine, Trinidad and Tobago
    Tel. and Fax: (868) 662-6555
    
    
36. UN DESA - SD
    Ms. Reena Shah
    Statistician, Environment, Energy and Industry Statistics Branch
    Statistics Division, Department of Economic and Social Affairs
    United Nations
    2 UN Plaza, Room DC2-1656
    New York, N.Y. 10017, United States
    Tel.: (212) 963-4586
    Fax: (212) 963-0623
    
    
37. UN-FCCC
    Ms. Christine Zumkeller
    Manager, Resources, Planning and Coordination Programme
    United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change
    P.O. Box 260 124
    53153 Bonn, Germany
    Tel.: (49-228) 815-1620
    Fax: (49-228) 815-1999
    
    
38. WHO
    Dr. Yasmin E.R. von Schirnding
    Director a.i.
    Office of Global and Integrated Environmental Health
    World Health Organization
    20 Avenue Appia, 1211 Geneva 27, Switzerland
    Tel.: (41-22) 791-3533
    Fax: (41-22) 791-4123
    
    
39. WUPPERTAL
    Mr. Joachim Spangenberg
    Coordinator, Sustainable Societies Program
    Department for Material Flows and Structure Change
    Wuppertal Institute for Climate, Environment and Energy
    Doeppersberg 19, D 42 103 Wuppertal, FR Germany
    Tel.: (49-202) 2492-128
    Fax: (49-202) 2492-138
    

    UNITED NATIONS DESA - DSD:

40. Mr. Lowell Flanders
    Assistant Director
    Institutions, National Information and Major Groups Branch
    Division for Sustainable Development
    Department of Economic and Social Affairs
    United Nations
    2 UN Plaza, Room DC2-2242
    New York, N.Y. 10017, United States
    Tel.: (212) 963-8809
    Fax: (212) 963-1267
    
    
41. Ms. Birgitte Alvarez-Rivero
    Focal Point for Indicators of Sustainable Development
    Institutions, National Information and Major Groups Branch
    Division for Sustainable Development
    Department of Economic and Social Affairs
    United Nations
    2 UN Plaza, Room DC2-2254
    New York, N.Y. 10017, United States
    Tel.: (212) 963-8400
    Fax: (212) 963-1267
    
    
42. Ms. Maria Elena Barrón
    Institutions, National Information and Major Groups Branch
    Division for Sustainable Development
    Department of Economic and Social Affairs
    United Nations
    2 UN Plaza, Room DC2-2250
    New York, N.Y. 10017, United States
    Tel.: (212) 963-0920
    Fax: (212) 963-1267
    After 20 December 1999:
    Carnegie Mellon University
    H. John Heinz III School of Public Policy
    Hamburg Hall, A-105, 5000 Forbes Avenue
    Pittsburgh, PA 15213, United States
    Tel.: (412) 268-8183
    Fax: (412) 268-6712