Version 6, 10 May 2006
JRC/OECD Workshop Series
Measuring Well-Being and Societal Progress
DRAFT PROGRAMME
Date:19-21 June 2006
Venue: Università Cattolica, Milan
1 - lg. Agostino Gemelli, 20123 Milan (MI)
See:
Objective: The objective of the workshop is to produce recommendations for a framework of indicators that can guide policy in the pursuit of well-being.
Outcomes: A series of recommendations that help to frame the research agenda for the JRC, OECD and other agencies in the coming years in the area of measuring well-being.
Day 1 – Monday 19 June9:00Opening session U. Cattolica, JRC, OECD
9:30 – 10:00 Alternative approaches to measuring societal progress and wellbeing: a review Enrico Giovannini (Chief Statistician, OECD)
Part A: Using the System of National Accounts to measure elements of well-being
Chair: Tony Atkinson
10:00-12:30Measuring the wealth of nations
Wealth estimation provides a conceptually sound approximation to a measure of welfare. Correspondingly, changes in wealth tell us about sustainability. How can estimates of produced, natural and human capital stocks and their changes be incorporated into an accounting framework? How can policy benefit from the use of asset accounts?
Main paper (30’): Giovanni Ruta (World Bank)
Discussion paper (15’): François Lequiller (OECD)
Coffee break (15’)
General discussion
12:30 – 14:00 Lunch break
14:00-15:30Valuing government output in GDP: The case of education and health
In several countries government services enter GDP at their cost. Can we improve the measurement of education and health services’ contribution to economic well-being using outcome indicators?
Main paper (20’): Joe Grice (Office for National Statistics, UK)
Discussion paper: Dennis Trewin (Australian Bureau of Statistics)
General discussion
15:30 - 16:30 Culture and well-being: is there any relation?
How to measure the contribution of culture and art-related activities to GDP? Is there any empirical relation between culture and well-being?
Main paper (20’): John Gordon (OECD)
Discussion paper: Simon Ellis (UNESCO Institute for Statistics)
16:30 - 17:30SNA and measurement of well-being: what have we learnt?
Summary of the chair and general discussion
Day 2 – Tuesday 20 June
9:30 The challenge of constructing comprehensive indicators of well-being
Introductory Speech
10:00 - 10:30Structuring the well-being framework
Are there better alternatives to a classical economy/society/environment/institutions model?
Robert Prescott-Allen
Part B: The four pillars of the well-being framework
10:30 - 11:30 The economic pillar of well-being: growth, jobs, competitiveness
Chair: Luigi Spaventa (U. Rome La Sapienza)
How can we construct a meaningful set of key indicators of economic performance that looks convincing to mainstream economists? Which are the right indicators for guiding structural policies in a globalised world and for providing economic justice and equity to citizens?
Main paper: To be confirmed
Discussion paper: DG Economic and Financial Affairs
General Discussion
Chair: Sylvie Ribaille (DG Eurostat)
11.30 – 12:30 The social pillar of well-being: caring for citizens’ needs
How can we construct a meaningful set of key indicators of social performance that relates to social policies and convinces mainstream social scientists? Which are the right indicators for judging success or failure in health-care and education, taking account of specific problems of families and citizens?
Main paper: Heinz-Herbert Noll (ZUMA)
Discussion paper I: Julia S. O’Connor (U. Ulster)
Discussion paper II: Isabelle Engsted (DG EMPL)
General discussion
12:30 – 14:00 Lunch break
14:00 - 15:00 Environment and well-being: taking the future into account
How should we shape an index, or set of indicators, of environmental policy performance that gives a balanced picture of the environmental situation in developed countries, as well as their impact on the rest of the world and on future generations?
Main paper: Marc Levy (Columbia University)
Discussion paper: Marco Bagliani (IRES Piemonte)
General discussion
15:00 – 16:30 “Political culture” and well-being: beyond government services
How can we measure “policy performance” for those elements of well-being that are essential for our societies but do not fit neatly into the category “government services,” such as social cohesion, gender equity, democracy, active citizenship, minority rights, freedom of religion, active and passive access to culture, trust in institutions, and justice in our relations with poorer countries?
Paper I: Alex Michalos (University of Northern British Columbia)
Paper II: Luigino Bruni/Pier Luigi Porta (U. Milano-Bicocca)
Discussion Paper: Carlo Malaguerra (ex-Director Swiss Statistical Office)
General discussion
16:30 - 17:00 Rounding up
General discussion
17:00-18:00Practical steps vs. theoretical challenges
What are the strengths and weakness of key indicator sets versus one number approaches to measuring wellbeing. What are the scientific and politic obstacles in constructing an overall “Policy Performance Index” aimed at analysing the efforts of countries to increase Well-Being of their citizens? How can we address the valid arguments against “mixing apples and oranges”?
Pascal Wolff (DG Eurostat)
Paola Dubini (U. Bocconi)
Jochen Jesinghaus (JRC)
Giuseppe Munda (JRC)
Day 3 – Wednesday 21 JunePart C: The specific contribution of education to well-being
9.00 Chair: Stefano Zamagni (U. Bologna)
Education and training
Paper I: Marc Lachance (Canadian Council on Learning)
Paper II: Anders Hingel (DG Education and Culture) (TBC)
Education and productivity
Paper I: Alison Wolf (King’s College London)
Paper II Albert Tuijnman (European Investment Bank)
The economic benefits of education
Paper I: Harry Patrinos (World Bank)
Paper II Stephen Leman (Department for Education and Skills, UK)
Coffee break
Education and social inclusion /equity
Paper I: Marc Demeuse (U. Mons-Hainaut)
Discussion paper: To be confirmed
12:00 Round Table: Conclusions and final discussion
What have we learned?
What should be the research priorities in the coming five years?
Anders Hingel (DG EAC) (TBC)
Andrea Saltelli (JRC)
Enrico Giovannini (OECD)
Brian Pink (Statistics New Zealand)
Aileen Simkins (UK Department of Health)
13:00 End of conference