What this lesson teaches
I can measure how sustainable a city is and judge which aspects and indicators to use.
Syllabus 9173, Topic 3.1, 1. Sustainable Urban Development. How can sustainable urban development be measured?
Make a guess
A city ranks first for average income per person. Does that make it the most sustainable city?
- No. One number misses environment and inequality.
- No, because rich cities are not sustainable.
- Yes, because a rich city can afford anything.
- Yes, because income measures the three dimensions.
Show the answer
No. One number misses environment and inequality.
Average income tracks only part of economic vitality. It says nothing about pollution or about groups left out, so it cannot judge all three dimensions.
A good urban indicator measures one relevant part of economic vitality, environmental integrity or social well-being.
Economic vitality is a city's ability to support work and livelihoods. Environmental integrity is the health of its environment. Social well-being covers people's health, safety, inclusion and opportunities. They are linked, but no single number captures all three.
First decide which aspect matters. For economic vitality, is it the number of jobs, job security or income? Then pick an indicator that fits. Unemployment, median pay and the share of secure jobs answer different questions. Choosing the aspect and choosing the indicator are separate decisions.
Other indicators might be access to affordable transport for well-being, or air pollution and waste recycling for the environment. Check units, boundaries and dates. A clean city centre can sit beside polluted industrial edges.
Averages can hide groups that are left out. Combined scores depend on how each part is weighted. A city may do well for business but badly for affordable housing. A ranking comes from a method; it is not a full verdict.
- Economic vitality
- Supporting work and livelihoods.
- Environmental integrity
- The health of the city's environment.
- Social well-being
- Health, safety, inclusion and opportunity.
Step by step
Choose the aspect
Which part of which dimension?
Match an indicator
Explain why it measures that aspect.
Test the limits
Boundaries, inequality, weighting and data quality.
Real examples to use
ISO 37120 city indicators
ISO 37120, first published in 2014, is an international standard set of city indicators, such as air quality, waste recycled and transport use. The World Council on City Data certifies cities that report against it, so their figures can be compared.
EIU Global Liveability Index 2025
The Economist Intelligence Unit scores 173 cities on 30 indicators in five groups: stability, health care, culture and environment, education and infrastructure. In 2025 Copenhagen came first and Vienna fell to joint second with Zurich, after a lower stability score.
Worked example: A jobs measure that misses insecurity
In a made-up city, unemployment is low, but many people work unpredictable hours for low pay. Unemployment shows access to jobs. Pay and contract security are needed to judge job quality.
Watch out for this
A high overall score means every group is doing well.
An average can hide weak areas and unequal conditions.
Check your understanding
A city uses only average GDP per person to judge sustainability. What is the strongest criticism?
- It leaves out environmental and social aspects of a city.
- Adding a second economic figure, such as jobs, would fix it.
- Economic activity does not matter for sustainability.
Show the answer
It leaves out environmental and social aspects of a city.
Yes. One economic average cannot cover all three dimensions.