Building cultural indicators as tools for inclusive sustainable development
Maxime JAFFRÉ, Elena RAEVSKIKH
Abstract. This study examines the growing role of cultural indicators as tools for inclusive and sustainable development. Moving beyond traditional economic measures such as GDP, it explores how cultural participation, heritage practices, and value-based policymaking can contribute to well-being, social cohesion, and sustainability agendas aligned with the SDGs. Drawing on international frameworks and a qualitative case study from Abu Dhabi, the paper combines conceptual analysis with empirical insights from interviews with heritage practitioners and policy stakeholders conducted between 2023 and 2024. The findings highlight the importance of emotional, community, and ecosystem-level values in shaping effective cultural indicators. The study contributes a pragmatic framework for bridging global comparability and local specificity, offering guidance for policymakers and cultural institutions seeking to integrate culture more effectively into sustainable development strategies.
Keywords
Cultural Indicators, Sustainable Development, Heritage Practices, Value-Based Policymaking, International Comparability, Local Specificity, Intangible Value, SDGs
Published online 6/20/2026, 8 pages
Copyright © 2026 by the author(s)
Published under license by Materials Research Forum LLC., Millersville PA, USA
Citation: Maxime JAFFRÉ, Elena RAEVSKIKH, Building cultural indicators as tools for inclusive sustainable development, Materials Research Proceedings, Vol. 67, pp 914-921, 2026
DOI: https://doi.org/10.21741/9781644904176-124
The article was published as article 124 of the book Climate Action and Sustainability
Content from this work may be used under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 license. Any further distribution of this work must maintain attribution to the author(s) and the title of the work, journal citation and DOI.
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