Sustainable development, defined by the United Nations as meeting the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs, is a priority on the OECD work agenda. A new web site, launched in December, aims to highlight the richness and complexity of this issue by synthesising the sustainable development work undertaken at the OECD.

It is designed to give visitors an easy, direct and central access to all relevant information that the Organisation generates. The site contains documents and insights into climate change, with reviews of the cost of meeting the Kyoto targets, for example. The role of technology is also examined. And there is an area devoted to the question of measuring sustainable development, which looks at how the present data can be combined in ways that are useful for practical policies. The site includes a news feature, a list of OECD activities and publications on sustainable development and a series of links to informative external web sites.

For more information, contact Gunter.Pauls@oecd.org.

©OECD Observer No 220, April 2000