Indicator Criteria
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The Steering Committee adopted criteria for the developement of indicators at its March 2005 meeting. Criteria will be used to evaluate and select indicators fitting within the principles and framework of sustainability indicators for this project.
- Links Essential Conditions: Individual indicators must show some aspect of human wellbeing, healthy ecosystems, or symbiotic relationships within and between each.
- Reflect community values: Community assets and concerns are reflected in the data and analyses of each indicator.
- Linkages: Indicators are linked by activities of individuals, governments, businesses, institutions, and together as a linked set frame a holistic perspective of King County
- Actionable: Measures conditions or activities that can be changed in a positive direction by local actions.
- Future Vision Oriented: Measure trends that relate to the vision of a sustainable future.
- Long term strategies & medium term action: The set of indicators must reflect a balance between long term vision for which strategies can be developed, and short term needs for which immediate action can be taken.
- Attractive to local media: The press publicizes them and uses them to monitor and analyze
- Policy relevant: Most of the indicators must relate to opportunities for policy change, in governments, businesses, non-profit organizations, institutions, and individuals.
- Measurable: The indicator uses data that can be collected and analyzed through established methods.
- Valid: The indicator data accurately represents and measures what it is designed to measure.
- Reliable: The data for the indicator are measured in a consistent manner that can be repeated from one time interval to another.
- Demographic detail: Data for the indicator are available on age, race/ethnicity, income/socioeconomic status, and education levels as appropriate.
- Geographic detail: Data for the indicator are available and/or can be gathered at a sub regional level.
- Data availability: Data are available and there is established ongoing data collection. If a selected indicator requires primary data collection, it should be cost effective and have potential for funding.
- Leading: Indicators must give information while there is still time to act.