The latest Human Development Report has just been released by the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP). The report is an independent publication commissioned by the UNDP with the aim of putting people at the centre of development, going beyond income to assess people’s long-term well-being. The report also contains the latest Human Development Index, a way of measuring development by combining indicators of life expectancy, educational attainment and income.

The 2011 Human Development Report argues that the urgent global challenges of sustainability and equity must be addressed together – and identifies policies on the national and global level that could spur mutually reinforcing progress towards these interlinked goals.

The Report shows further how the world’s most disadvantaged people suffer the most from environmental degradation, including in their immediate personal environment, and disproportionately lack political power, making it all the harder for the world community to reach agreement on needed global policy changes. The Report also outlines great potential for positive synergies in the quest for greater equality and sustainability, especially at the national level. The Report further emphasizes the human right to a healthy environment, the importance of integrating social equity into environmental policies, and the critical importance of public participation and official accountability. The 2011 Report concludes with a call for bold new approaches to global development financing and environmental controls, arguing that these measures are both essential and feasible.

 For free downloads of the report in a variety of languages, please click here.

Source: http://hdr.undp.org/en/reports/global/hdr2011/

Posted by Marna Motteram
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