New Newsletter: Measuring the Progress of Nations

I just received the first issue of the Newsletter on Measuring the Progress of Societies – March 2008. You can see the newsletter at: http://www.oecd.org/dataoecd/30/19/40288553.pdf?contentId=40288554. You really need to read/subscribe to this newsletter to keep up with what's been happening after the Istanbul conference.

Here's a short selection from the newsletter:

Dear Reader,

I’m very pleased to welcome you to this first issue of our new "Measuring the Progress of Societies" Newsletter.

We have been producing short newsletters every few months for the past two years, and these bulletins will continue. But for the most part we have focused on just providing information about what was happening within the OECD or about the World Forum. As the network of those we are working with grows every day, we are impressed at the enormous amount of interesting work happening around the world on measuring different aspects of societal progress. We think this work needs to be shared as widely as possible.

Indeed, the diversity of measuring progress work is reflected here, with articles about initiatives based in four continents. 2008 got off to a busy start for the team working at the OECD on this theme.

For example, we are:

• Working within the OECD and with other organisations to design the Global Project and its deliverables, to establish its governance structure, etc.;

• Beginning to plan the 3rd World Forum which will be held in South Korea in late 2009;

• Developing a stream of research and training material to assist people involved in this field around the globe;

• Working to establish regional groups those will be the foundations of this "network of networks" that we call the Global Project.

Also in the newsletter:

• Oxford Poverty & Human Development Initiative;
• On the Right Track Canadian Index of Wellbeing;
• Measuring and Fostering the Progress of African Societies;
• Conference on Gross National Happiness.
• Highlights; Knowledge Base and Wikigender.
• OECD Factbook 2008 Special Discount offer for Newsletter readers http://www.oecd.org/dataoecd/9/8/40350365.pdf?contentId=40350371