We are incredibly grateful to our amazing team and partners who have worked relentlessly to bring forward new insights and support informed policymaking, all with the goal of advancing social progress across the globe. Thanks to their dedication, 2019 stands out as one of our most impactful years to date. The 2019 Social Progress Index offered a detailed analysis of data from 149 countries worldwide. It highlighted that while global progress continues, it remains slow and uneven in many areas. Your support is crucial in helping us expand the adoption of the index and empower decision-makers to use this valuable data to create a brighter future for all.
Below are just a few highlights of what we have achieved together over this past year.
Expanding Network
In the United States, we introduced the Social Progress Index (SPI) for California Counties, offering a deep dive into the lived experiences of individuals throughout the state. Focusing on Silicon Valley, we launched our first U.S. cities index, SPI: San Jose. This initiative, carried out in partnership with Microsoft, Wipfli, and the Silicon Valley Community Foundation, maps social progress in the city down to the census tract and zip code levels.
This fall, we unveiled Social Progress Indexes for two G20 nations: South Africa and Mexico. SPI: Provinces of South Africa—developed in collaboration with our partners at IQ Business—marks the first index ever launched on the African continent. Meanwhile, México ¿cómo vamos? and INCAE Business School, together with the Social Progress Imperative, introduced IPS México, delivering comprehensive social progress data for the world’s 10th largest country.
Additionally, we released the SPI: Provinces of Panama, in partnership with the Ministry of Economy and Finance and INCAE Business School. This groundbreaking index is the first to analyze social progress through a gender lens, providing a detailed understanding of overall quality of life and gender-specific challenges across each province.
In Iceland, we hosted the fourth annual What Works Summit, a gathering that united leaders and innovators from across the globe. The event provided a platform to exchange best practices, build new partnerships, and explore the challenges related to advancing social progress and achieving the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). Be on the lookout for the fourth annual What Works Summit, which is scheduled to take place in 2020.
Sustained Impact and Awareness
The Social Progress Index remains a widely used tool in policy and financial decision-making across the globe. It continues to gain recognition as a meaningful alternative to traditional economic measures of success. This year, INCAE Business School and Centrum received recognition in the Financial Times for their innovative application of the SPI. Additionally, the second edition of the SPI: Cantons of Costa Rica was published, fostering collaboration between government entities and financial institutions through private-public partnerships. In another milestone, Costa Rica’s Minister of Tourism unveiled the Tourist Destination Index at the OECD.
The global index results have also been prominently featured in the Financial Times and Politico, along with numerous other media platforms. Our work received further acknowledgment in an editorial by Sharon Thorne, published in The Banker. We are thrilled by the growing awareness surrounding the Social Progress Index and are eager to build on this momentum in the upcoming year.
Thriving Leadership
In July, we were delighted to welcome David Cruickshank as our new Chair of the Board of Directors. David, a former Deloitte Global Board Chair and a member of the Social Progress Imperative board since 2015, brings a wealth of experience to this role. He succeeds Brizio Biondo-Morra, who has made a transformative impact on SPI over the years and continues to serve as a valued member of the Board of Directors. Additionally, we were pleased to welcome four new board members: Sharon Thorne, Jose Viñals, Silvana Kock-Mehrin, and Rina Kupferschmid-Rojas. Under this new leadership, our global network is growing steadily, enthusiastically collaborating with new organizations and governments to advance social progress worldwide.
Moving Forward
We have an exciting and busy year ahead. Our focus will be on expanding the US cities initiative nationwide while also growing our global network to create tangible action and impact from our index. As always, we remain committed to supporting the SDGs and sustainable development. We are working to move beyond GDP and traditional economic metrics, aiming to establish a more comprehensive and meaningful measure of success.
Everything we’ve accomplished so far has been possible thanks to your dedication and support for social progress. As we prepare to build on these achievements in 2020, we ask for your continued partnership. Your gift will empower more countries and communities to rethink how they define success and allocate their resources, prioritizing both people and the planet.
Thank you for making this year truly remarkable, filled with meaningful progress and impactful, data-driven change.