The Index of Sustainable Economic Welfare for the EU27 and beyond: methodology, data and results

This report presents the data and methodology used to compile two variants of the ISEW for the EU27, its Member States, the UK and the US. The compilation of these ISEWs is done for the period 1995-2020. This is the first standardized compilation of ISEWs for such a large group of countries. 

The methodology and the distinction between the two variants of the ISEW follow from Van der Slycken and Bleys (2023)(1) . 

The ISEW_BCE focuses on the Benefits and Costs Experienced, hence accounts for the benefits and costs of past and present activities that are experienced in the present and in a given country. 

The ISEW_BCPA focuses on the Benefits and Costs of Present economic Activities, hence accounts for the benefits and costs of present activities experienced both in the present and in the future as well as both in a given country and abroad. 

The trends in the values of the two ISEWs and some of their components are analysed in this report. The analysis of the ISEW values presents first results about the difference in trends between GDP and these welfare measures. The analysis of the components (and subcomponents) of the ISEWs allows to see which components influenced the changes in the ISEWs.

(1) Van der Slycken, J. and Bleys, B. (2023). Towards ISEW and GPI 2.0: Dealing with Cross-Time and Cross-Boundary Issues in a Case Study for Belgium. Social Indicators Research, 168(1):557-583.