The utilization rate and value of goods as strategic factors in resource productivity development

The utilization rate and value of goods should be considered the central elements of a new global strategy to be adopted in the pursuit of sustainable consumption and sustainable business. The definition and measurement of the utilization rate are not a simple task, but one that has to be performed in order to contribute towards the radical modification of the present situation and trends, which tend to lead towards a very low utilization rate, and consequently, to a very low level of resource productivity. The present work attempts to establish which factors influence the degree and value of utilization of goods, and how these factors may be measured; it then proposes an indicator which takes into consideration all parameters influencing the manner of utilization. The indicator, if implemented at all levels and countries, can make it possible to elaborate a double-purpose ranking: the first expressing the absolute capacity of each good to satisfy at the same time, individuals and society; the second the capacity to do it in economic manner. The objective comparisons that can be made for different or equivalent goods, in the same or different countries, may be used to see which are the most or less effective of them with reference to the fundamental aspect of "resource productivity", and, consequently, to make choices able to increase it. (c) 2005 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.