What went right this week: an alternative to GDP, plus more

For decades, gross domestic product (GDP) has been the accepted yardstick for measuring a country’s prosperity, despite not placing value on activities such as childcare.

Now, a rival metric, covering “a broader range of economic activities”, has emerged in the UK to offer a more nuanced picture.

Created by the Office for National Statistics (ONS), the ‘inclusive income’ data set accounts for many things that GDP is blind to, such as housework, environmental degradation, and ecosystem services. This, says the ONS, provides a measure of a country’s “sustainable income”.

“This is the first year that we’ve got the full complete set of data together, particularly the fall in UK carbon emissions,” Richard Heys, the ONS’s deputy chief economist, told Positive News. “I think it’s quite an important milestone.”

The latest data shows that net inclusive income per person increased by 5% in 2022, compared to a 4.3% rise in GDP. It’s thanks partly to the rollout of renewables, which generate income without exacerbating climate change – a crisis that nations will ultimately have to pay for.

“We want to reflect that actually value is produced in all sorts of places, not just by producing more output,” said Heys. The hope is that the “inclusive income” metric will catch on globally and help policymakers make more informed choices.

Read more: Changing how we measure progress is key to tackling a world in crisis

Image: Nensuria/iStock

Expectations have been low for the Cop29 climate summit, which is being hosted by Azerbaijan – a petrostate with ambitions to boost fossil fuel production. Still, news that the UK, New Zealand and Colombia joined the Coalition on Phasing Out Fossil Fuel Incentives has been welcomed by climate groups. 

The coalition now has 16 members (Austria, Antigua and Barbuda, Belgium, Canada, Costa Rica, Denmark, Finland, France, Ireland, Luxemburg, the Netherlands, Spain, and Switzerland had already joined). All have pledged to arrive at Cop30 with a plan for ending oil and gas subsidies.

“The UK’s decision to join this coalition is another indication that British climate diplomacy is finally coming out of its slumber after several dormant years under the Tories,” said Rebecca Newsom, senior political advisor at Greenpeace UK. “Further collaboration around tackling fossil fuel subsidies can only be a good thing.

“But given G7 and G20 leaders have repeatedly signed statements over many years to tackle this issue, now is the time for real action. UK fossil fuel production subsidies are worth billions every year. These should be redirected immediately, alongside extra taxes on the fossil fuel industry, to unlock cash to deliver on the UK’s climate finance obligation to support developing countries.”

Image: Eelco Böhtlingk

Six weeks after it became the first nation to quit burning coal for electricity, the UK is to ban all future coal projects. The government there announced this week that it would introduce legislation “as soon as possible” to ban new licences for coal mining. 

“The canary stopped singing a long time ago – coal’s days have been numbered for some time,” said Greenpeace UK’s policy director, Doug Parr. “But bringing a definitive end to new mining in the UK is a momentous move from the government and should be celebrated. 

“Now, given the escalating floods, hurricanes, and heatwaves across the world as the climate crisis escalates, it must get on with banning new oil and gas development.”

Image: iStock

Private school pupils in England no longer perform better at GCSE level than state school pupils in the core subjects of English, maths, and science, once results have been adjusted for socioeconomic background. 

That’s according to research by University College London, which showed that a grade gap still exists in creative subjects, such as music, drama, and art, even after results have been adjusted for socioeconomic background.

“Over the last two decades, state schools have increased their focus on the core subjects to deliver results, which is reflected here,” said lead author Prof Jake Anders. “While it is positive for social mobility that state schools are producing stronger results in the core subjects, inequality still exists – and is arguably becoming more pronounced – in industries such as acting, music and art.”

Image: Eliott Reyna

Late blooming writers take heart – a new literature competition has launched for authors aged 60 and over. 

The Bridport Prize’s new Never Too Late Award aims to “unlock the hidden talent of older writers”. Open to scribes around the world, it’s a recognition that older authors struggle to be seen despite their wealth of experience. 

The award is backed by best-selling author Kit de Waal (pictured), whose debut novel My Name is Leon was published when she was 56. “Even now at 64 I consider myself mid-career with a lot more to do and say,” she said. “Thanks to The Bridport Prize and the Never Too Late Award, we can recognise the unique voice and hard work of older writers who are just getting started.”  

The £500 award is for writers across poetry, short story, novel or flash fiction. The deadline is 31 May 2025. 

Image: Justin David

Urban wildflower patches are just as biodiverse as meadows, according to a study by researchers at the University of Warsaw. 

They compared meadow habitats with sown wildflower gardens in Warsaw city centre. The diversity of plants, bees, butterflies and hoverflies was broadly the same at the site, they found, though there were twice the number of butterflies fluttering around the natural meadows. 

The research comes as towns and cities introduce more greenery to reduce urban heat, soak up rainwater and boost biodiversity. The latest research from Poland suggests that patches of wildflowers could be effective at achieving the latter.  

“Sown meadows can compensate insects for the absence of large, natural meadows, especially in the fragmented spaces in cities,” the research concluded. 

Image: Bryan White

An Edwardian-era estate in London is proving heat pump sceptics wrong after becoming the oldest social housing block in the UK to get renewable heating.

The Sutton Dwellings estate (pictured) in Chelsea, built in 1913, has 81 flats, all of which have been fitted with British-made ground source heat pumps.

Like traditional gas boilers, the Kensa heat pumps are small enough to be housed inside a cupboard in each flat. However, unlike gas, renewable heat energy used by the pumps is sourced from the ground via the 27 boreholes drilled deep beneath the estate.

“Often you see claims that heat pumps don’t work, they aren’t suitable for older buildings, there isn’t enough space to install them in cities. This project is proof you can do all these and more,” said Stuart Gadsden, commercial director at Kensa. 

The annual running costs of the heat pumps is expected to be around £300 for a one-bed flat.

Image: Kensa

A new approach to pain management for people with cancer that has spread to their bones has shown promise in a UK trial. 

The 12-month pilot brought together expert clinicians from a variety of fields to devise a programme to manage the pain of 135 patients in the final months of their lives. 

This holistic ‘forum approach’ might sound obvious, but according to the Oxford University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust, which led the trial, there is no established pathway for managing the symptoms of bone metastases. 

Fourteen patients had their pain levels recorded for the trial; three claimed to be pain free by the end of it, while the other 11 reported improvements in pain.

“This is an innovative approach in terms of collaborative working and streamlining, but doesn’t require any new, novel or overly expensive elements, and thus could be scaled relatively easily,” Dr Victoria Bradley, who led the trial, told Positive News. “We are working with colleagues regionally and internationally to try to develop process models for our work to help share the approach more broadly.”

Image: Philippe Leone

Good news could be arriving for Britain’s beleaguered rail passengers: the country’s first co-operatively owned railway service has been given the green light.

The Office of Road and Rail (ORR) has approved a bid by Somerset-based Go-op to run services between the English towns of Swindon and Taunton.

“This is a new train operating company, so we need to find our feet with quite a small-scale operation,” Alex Laurie, Go-op’s chair, told Positive News. “But we absolutely do see it as a template for further schemes, both developed by ourselves and by other co-ops around the country.” 

Go-op will be owned and managed by staff and members of the public, with profits “reinvested to improve the service”. It will publish a business plan and launch a community share offer in the coming weeks, with the aim of buying rolling stock and launching its first service by the end of 2025. 

“I hope that we have proved the basic idea that there is no reason that communities can’t meet their own transport needs and address the gaps in the network that the nationwide planners have left.” 

Image: Roman Rezor

The perennially uplifting International Landscape Photographer of the Year competition unveiled its winning shots this week. 

A photograph capturing sunrise on the Atacama Desert in Chile (pictured) was among four images that helped Canada’s Andrew Mielzynski scoop top honours.

See some of the other winning shots here.

Image: Andrew Mielzynski/International Landscape Photographer of the Year
Main image: iStock