Wellbeing and equality in Indigenous policy: is the pursuit of statistical equality compatible with Indigenous wellbeing?
Kirrily Jordan, Hannah Bulloch and Geoff Buchanan
Centre for Aboriginal Economic Policy Research, Australian National University
Contact Email:   kirrily.jordananu.edu.au

In recent years there has been an increasing recognition of the limits of GDP as a measure of ‘progress’ and a growing emphasis on notions of wellbeing, satisfaction or quality of life. A number of alternative measures of national progress have emerged both in Australia and overseas, with some of the better known including the ‘Australian Unity Wellbeing Index,’ the ‘Genuine Progress Indicator’ and the ‘Happy Planet Index.’ A number of frameworks have also sought to identify Indigenous-specific notions of wellbeing, including the ‘Indicators of well-being, poverty and sustainability relevant to indigenous peoples’ developed under the United Nations Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues (UNPFII) and the Australian Bureau of Statistics' (ABS) emerging approach to the measurement of Indigenous wellbeing. This paper reflects on the influence of these and other frameworks of wellbeing on current Indigenous policy and discourse in Australia as well as the implications for future policy development. In this it compares a wellbeing approach to the ‘capabilities approach’ developed by economist Amartya Sen. It asks whether a practical commitment to Indigenous wellbeing is compatible with the current policy focus on ‘statistical equality’ that is evident in the federal government’s approach to ‘closing the gaps.’

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