Project manager: Darya V. Chernikova, PhD (Social Philosophy), Deputy Director, Center for Urban Studies and Regional Development (CUr)
Main executives:
- Artem Yu. Rykun, Doctor of sociology, professor, vice-rector for international affairs National Research Tomsk State University, Head of the Department of Social Work of TSU
- Elena V. Sukhushina, PhD (Philosophy), Associate professor at the Department of Social Work of TSU
- Maria O. Аbramova, sociologist, Russia, Governor’s College of Social and Culture Technologies and Innovations
Abstract:
The research project is focused on the problem of measuring the quality of life, the level of comfort and sustainability of the urban environment. The commitment to understanding what determines the changes in society is the fundamental principle of the social sciences. Today, we are facing the situation when science and society are building strategies based on data that at least does not fully reflect the changing reality: economic growth, including GDP, is insufficient and not quite adequate indicator of the social and economic progress. GDP does not reflect recent changes in the structure of the economy, including, those connected with the globalization processes, does not reflect the growing inequality in the distribution of income and the impact on the environment.
As a key methodology for analyzing the well-being of Tomsk, the City Prosperity Index (CPI), developed by the United Nations Human Settlements Program, UN-Habitat, is used. The City Prosperity Initiative is both a system of indicators and a political dialogue. The research methodology combines the use of sociological surveys and statistical data for a comprehensive analysis of the social, economic, political and environmental well-being of the city. The resulting integral indicators contribute to a holistic understanding of the quality of life in the city. The viability of the methodology is also confirmed by the fact that it lies within the concept of sustainable development, reflecting how much the current level of well-being can be preserved in future periods of time.
The measurements based on the methodology of the City Prosperity Index (CPI) for Tomsk allows to identify deficiencies and weaknesses, as well as sustainable benefits that affect the capacity building, which will provide a basis for empirically based development of long-term political, social and economic solutions, including those affecting the quality of life improvement.