Guidance document on measuring demand-based material flows (material footprints)

摘要: 1. Natural resources are fundamental for societal and human wellbeing and economic production and consumption. They provide the material basis for production-consumption systems, are an important source of income and jobs, and supply food, energy and other commodities to households. At the same time, the extensive use of natural resources in our economy drives the destruction of ecosystems and climate change, which calls for a transition towards a resource efficient and sustainable economy.2. Policies that promote the transition towards a low-carbon, resource efficient and circular economy need to be based on sound scientific knowledge. Comprehensive datasets and indicators are a prerequisite for the policy and business community, as they assist in monitoring progress and evaluating the effectiveness of policy programmes and business decisions that aim to achieve sustainable levels of natural resource use. To fulfil this role, data and indicators need to be of high quality and internationally comparable. The OECD has supported the process of developing datasets and indicators that are conceptually sound, policy relevant and easy to establish. Indicators need to be selected according to well-specified criteria, as they need to be able to clearly address the information needs of policy makers and the public (OECD, 2011).