The City of Hilliard Sustainability Plan

Hilliard Sustainability PlanIndicatorsIn order to move our communities, the nation, and the world towardssustainability, we need tools that measure and communicateprogress towards the social, environmental, and economic goalsthat we aim to achieve. 14 These tools are known as indicators, andindicators of sustainability provide professionals and the public withevidence of current conditions or problems related to equity, theenvironment, and the economy. 15 Just as they can help measureprogress, they can also warn us of impending economic, social, andenvironmental problems. 16Since the Brundtland Report’s publication in 1987, organizations at theinternational, national, regional, state, and local levels have been creatingand compiling many lists and a variety of indicators to document andillustrate changes related to sustainability. There exists an entire literatureof academic, professional, and civic entries dedicated to the study ofsustainability indicators.Academics and professionals often focus their discussion of indicators oncharacteristics. For example, indicators can be qualitative or quantitativedepending on what they measure and how that measurement is recorded.Quantitative indicators measure precise quantities and variables, suchas the average human’s normal body temperature of 98.6˚ F (a sign ofhealth and the body’s ability to maintain homeostasis) and the number ofpharmaceutical compounds found in drinking water (a sign of chemicalpollution). 17 Qualitative indicators, on the other hand, do not measure anexact quantity but are indicative of conditions. Qualitative indicators wouldinclude the suffocation of a canary in a mineshaft (as evidence of increasinglevels of toxic gases) and the return of wild salmon to spawning areas incertain watersheds (as used by Sustainable Seattle to measure ecosystemhealth). 18Another perspective on indicators advances the qualitative/quantitative dichotomy and classifies indicators according totop-down and bottom-up methodologies. 19 Whereas top-downindicators are often developed by experts who are interested inquantifying the complex set of relationships that exist in dynamicsystems, bottom-up indicators are developed in a participatory,community-based manner that emphasizes local context and thecommunity’s goals, priorities, and learning. 20Neither system for classifying indicators, however, is mutuallyexclusive or exhaustive. With careful thought and planning, wecan create indicators that combine qualitative and quantitativemeasures and that integrate the best elements of top-downand the bottom-up methodologies in order to better serve allstakeholders. One such example is the “sneaker index,” which isused in Chesapeake Bay, Maryland. This index measures how deepwater has to be until white running shoes are no longer visible. 21Community groups have used it for the last two decades, and it ispart of a more comprehensive and technical watershed assessmentthat feeds into federal EPA monitoring. 22Of course, there are a number of other ways to create, classify, andcharacterize sustainability indicators. Table 1 details many of thecriteria that can be used to evaluate them:EXECUTIVE INTRO &INDICATORSSUMMARY» Old Hilliard, along MainStreet, is the commoncenter of the City.Several long-term smallbusinesses serve as ananchor for growth.Fig. 89