The Canadian Index of Wellbeing

Introduction from the Canadian Index of Wellbeing website

Canada will soon have at its fingertips a definitive tool to tell us how we are doing as a country.

The new Canadian Index of Wellbeing (CIW) is now under construction using powerful indicators that count and measure the extent to which we are realizing our values and goals as a society and whether we are leaving the world a better place for our children.

The CIW is the result of a pan Canadian and innovative partnership that brings together an unprecedented roster of indicator experts including senior partnership from Statistics Canada, and national champions like the Honourable Roy J. Romanow.

Based on measures that are clear, valid, and regularly reported, the new index will round out our understanding of Canada’s economic reality and longer-term prosperity by integrating it with information on the social, health and environmental conditions that shape our communities – health prevention initiatives, clear air and water, genuine progress by our Aboriginal peoples, early childhood education, and other determinants of a healthy nation. In other words, the Canadian Index of Wellbeing is a tool that will redefine what it means to have a truly prosperous economy, in a way that captures the public imagination and stimulates the everyday ‘water cooler chat’.

This initiative is led by such visionaries as Dr. Ron Colman, Executive Director of GPI Atlantic, a world recognized expert in measures of sustainability, wellbeing and quality of life, Mr. Romanow, and the country’s foremost indicator practitioners, policy and voluntary sector leaders, and communications experts.

The CIW is one of the most ambitious projects in this field and is linked to international experts and parallel projects world-wide to ensure a global context and comparable international measures.

Through the CIW, we seek to help foster a common vision for the future of Canada, one that can be used as a basis for improving the health and wellbeing outcomes that matter to Canadians.

For more on the CIW visit www.atkinsonfoundation.ca/ciw