The measurement of what we call a city’s ‘sustainability’ has also changed greatly over time. We might say that sustainability used to be about measuring the level of pollution and the amount of parkland. In the 1990s, many cities began to take a new approach to balancing their environmental, social and economic impact, using metrics not only to measure factors such as energy, water use and pollution but also to address concerns such as crime, employment and health. With the exploding amount of urban data, the metrics have become more complex, and their uses have expanded, particularly as the government addresses a wider range of environmental and social needs. When we measure cities now, we are seeking to understand them in order to manage them better and to provide evidence of performance. Increasingly, we measure cities to understand their sustainability and to make decisions that will allow those who live in them to be happier and healthier in the future. \n
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