For the first time in Israel, new indicators will be introduced to measure the quality of life in the country to ensure the quality of life of the residents of Israel in the future, including social solidarity, green energy and a healthy environment, education for a healthy lifestyle, cultural activities, and more this
In the last three years, the Israeli National Academy of Sciences has led a pioneering project at a world level in its scope - mapping the resources needed for the quality of life (well-being) in Israel for the purpose of adding them to the measurement of the quality of life, as defined by the Central Bureau of Statistics and international organizations. The project was led by a special committee headed by the former president of the academy Prof. Menachem Yaari.
The main question that was at the center of the committee's work dealt with the ability of the State of Israel to ensure over time - even in ten, twenty or thirty years - a good quality of life for its residents. The committee consulted about a hundred experts from various fields and compiled a comprehensive list of indicators, some of which are new even on an international scale, for the resources on which the quality of life of the country's residents is based: the economic, natural, human, social and cultural resources. The committee recommended monitoring them regularly and using them for national situation assessments, in order to prevent over-exploitation, deviation from balance and irreversible damage to future generations: from air and water quality to the strength of community identity and belonging, from the distribution of economic capital in society to education for a healthy lifestyle, these indicators should ensure that even in the future the residents of Israel will have a high quality of life.
The report was written by virtue of the academy's role to advise the government on issues of a scientific nature and at the request of the Israeli government through the Ministry of Environmental Protection, the Central Bureau of Statistics and the Bank of Israel. The implementation of his recommendations in the Central Bureau of Statistics is expected to begin in the coming year.
According to the president of the academy, Prof. Neely Cohen, this report expresses the contribution of the academy and scientific research in Israel to the decision-making processes in the country and emphasizes the importance of decision-making processes based on science and data. According to her, the academy is proud to take part in the national and global efforts for a sustainable future.
The report examines five groups of resources necessary for the quality of life in Israel:
natural capital resources - in which the committee recommends measuring, among other things, the scope of the open areas and their preservation, the biological diversity and endangered species, the water level and its quality, the air quality and greenhouse gas emissions.
The resources of economic capital - in which the committee recommends measuring the infrastructure stock in the country, the distribution of ownership of apartments (as an estimate of the level of economic inequality), the number of registered patents and the stock of "green" economic capital, which is the part of the "green" housing and the part of the capital stock Green" in the energy sector and other sectors.
בHuman capital resources The committee emphasizes the importance of maintaining health, education and employment resources and recommended measuring education for a healthy lifestyle, availability of hospital beds and appointments, the extent of private health insurance (as an estimate for inequality in the field), the quality and attrition of manpower in the teaching professions, mobility in the labor market and more. In this area, the committee warns against an increase in life expectancy that is not compatible with an increase in the quality of life and the need to deal with the extensive health and social consequences of the aging population.
בThe resources of social capital The committee recommends measuring the extent of social support networks, community belonging, voluntary activity, mutual trust and trust in state institutions, the degree of polarization in society and the extent of crime.
Finally, bThe cultural capital resources The authors of the report emphasize that culture is an integral part of the quality of life: creation and active participation in cultural activities are a tool for the expression and self-realization of the individual. However, so far little attention has been paid to the importance of cultural and identity resources in determining the indicators of the quality of life and its sustainability. Therefore, and because this is an area where the measurement is complicated and preliminary, the committee offers an initial list of indicators, among them the scope of the new cultural contents created every year, their use and their diversity, as well as the number of active artists and cultural figures, the number of faculty members in the humanities, the national expenditure for culture and more.
The report recommends that the information collected on indicators be published frequently and be accessible to decision makers and the general public. It must also be presented in periodic situation assessments and during routine decision-making processes as a tool for evaluating different policy alternatives and identifying gaps and challenges that require the attention of policy makers in Israel.
The members of the expert committee are Prof. Menachem Yaari (Chairman), Prof. Elhanan Halfman, Mr. Ariel Weiss, Prof. Natan Sussman, Prof. Uri Hefetz, Prof. Hadas Mendel, Prof. Avner Ofer, Prof. Eran Faitelson, Mr. Yoel Finkel, Prof. Orit Kedar and Prof. Eugene Kendal.
More of the topic in Hayadan:
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Quality of life in Israel is very high only for the super rich. The government is in love with you
It's a shame they didn't take into account and in the quality of life measures the source of life and your every second breath and breath. It turns out that people have a strong faith in the Torah of Israel in the people of Israel and the God of Israel. Zionists are the healthiest and happiest people and the most humane. Its balanced and full of pleasantness and pleasure and quality must rise.
"Solidarity" = one of the slogans of the communists