|
|
Community and Economic Development – Blog by UNC School of Government https://ced.sog.unc.edu A New Tool for Assessing the Triple Bottom Line in Economic DevelopmentBy Jonathan MorganPublished June 4, 2013The so called triple bottom line (TBL) in economic development calls for promoting growth in ways that are environmentally sustainable and that yield positive social returns. (See Portland State University’s Initiative on Triple Bottom Line Development.) The TBL framework takes into account the economic, environmental, and social aspects of growth and development efforts and recognizes the connections among them. Recruiting a manufacturing plant to town will boost the local economy, but how will it affect the natural environment? To what extent will the new plant be good for the community as a whole in terms of its effects on the quality of life, local culture, civic infrastructure, and the like? This is a much more holistic and comprehensive way of thinking about economic development and is quite challenging to measure as a result. The U.S. Economic Development Administration has funded the design of a new web-based tool for examining TBL impacts at the local level. The tool is expected to help local decision makers optimize their economic development investments by explicitly examining TBL effects and enabling users to rank and prioritize projects and explain how they advance community goals. A beta version of the Triple Bottom Line Tool is now available. The tool’s creators are seeking user feedback regarding possible improvements. The TBL Tool includes measures related to the three broad TBL goals of economic vitality, natural resource stewardship, and community well-being. Detailed information about the tool’s background and data elements can be found in the user’s guide. |
Published June 4, 2013 By Jonathan Morgan
The so called triple bottom line (TBL) in economic development calls for promoting growth in ways that are environmentally sustainable and that yield positive social returns. (See Portland State University’s Initiative on Triple Bottom Line Development.) The TBL framework takes into account the economic, environmental, and social aspects of growth and development efforts and recognizes the connections among them. Recruiting a manufacturing plant to town will boost the local economy, but how will it affect the natural environment? To what extent will the new plant be good for the community as a whole in terms of its effects on the quality of life, local culture, civic infrastructure, and the like? This is a much more holistic and comprehensive way of thinking about economic development and is quite challenging to measure as a result.
The U.S. Economic Development Administration has funded the design of a new web-based tool for examining TBL impacts at the local level. The tool is expected to help local decision makers optimize their economic development investments by explicitly examining TBL effects and enabling users to rank and prioritize projects and explain how they advance community goals. A beta version of the Triple Bottom Line Tool is now available. The tool’s creators are seeking user feedback regarding possible improvements. The TBL Tool includes measures related to the three broad TBL goals of economic vitality, natural resource stewardship, and community well-being. Detailed information about the tool’s background and data elements can be found in the user’s guide.
Author(s)
Tagged Under
This blog post is published and posted online by the School of Government to address issues of interest to government officials. This blog post is for educational and informational Copyright ©️ 2009 to present School of Government at the University of North Carolina. All rights reserved. use and may be used for those purposes without permission by providing acknowledgment of its source. Use of this blog post for commercial purposes is prohibited. To browse a complete catalog of School of Government publications, please visit the School’s website at www.sog.unc.edu or contact the Bookstore, School of Government, CB# 3330 Knapp-Sanders Building, UNC Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, NC 27599-3330; e-mail sales@sog.unc.edu; telephone 919.966.4119; or fax 919.962.2707.