Wellbeing for future generations

Our children and young people are our best expression of the need for wellbeing to be considered over time and in a sustainable way – not just from their personal point of view but so that the environmental, social and economic systems that support the community are themselves sustained.

An established Wellbeing Framework should help drive progress across the community over time. However, we need to be sure that improvements in our wellbeing today don’t lead to poorer wellbeing over time or for future generations. Considering the issues of sustainability and longevity will help our Indicators to be forward-focussed and relevant beyond today.

Across the twelve domains, indicators were selected based on their potential to highlight vulnerabilities over time. One area of particular importance for future sustainability is the Environment and climate domain. Indicators that measure environmental and community resilience will help us to better understand the effects of climate change on the environment itself, and on our people, infrastructure and services. These indicators will show our community’s ability to adapt to changes in our natural environment.

There are a number of international examples where sustainability is being explored as a dimension of Wellbeing Frameworks. The OECD’s Better Life Index and the New Zealand Living Standards Framework embed the concept of natural, social, physical and human capital stocks in their approaches. The United Nation’s Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) are being considered internationally as an adjunct to wellbeing frameworks to provide a test of sustainability.

The ACT will continue to review the merit of formally adopting the SDGs where appropriate. Striking the balance between embedding global sustainability movements in our Framework and ensuring that our indicators remain relevant for the ACT and the wellbeing priorities of Canberrans is a key challenge and one we will continue to progress.