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Taking into account recent literature on economic growth, we focus on analyzing the extent to which metropolitan regions (NUTS3 urban predominant regions), as growth poles, especially from Romania and from EU member states and regions with similar levels of development, contribute to economic growth, from the perspective of employment-related issues. We place our analysis in the context of Europe 2020 strategy for smart, sustainable and inclusive growth and of the urban dimension of the EU regional policies. The variables included refer to labor market indicators, in conjunction with demographic data, from Eurostat, providing a more comprehensive understanding of the contribution of growth poles to the overall development of country, in comparison with the capital region, the national average and EU27 average. The selection of growth poles from countries with similar levels of development as Romania is based on previous research results of cluster analysis for year 2010, conducted using headline indicators of Europe 2020 strategy and GDP per head, for country level, and cohesion policy indicators, for NUTS2 regional level, looking for possible overlaps of the country and regional clustering that include Romanian regions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The aim of the study is to determine the pace and directions of changes (understood as: improvement or deterioration) occurring in selected areas of sustainable development of EU Member States. The paper analyzes dynamics of changes in selected areas of sustainable development monitored on the basis of headline indicators published by Eurostat from 2008 to 2015. In the paper, three variants of reference points of synthetic measure of development were considered. On the basis of the obtained results, the countries in which the improvement in the sustainable development and its deterioration can be observed were identified. The results have confirmed the existence of significant developmental disparities between EU Member States in this field, but it should be noted that the obtained results depend on the methodological approach both to the selection of features and the adoption of a specific standardization formula, as well as the considered variants of reference points. The results obtained can be utilized in subsequent years to examine the directions of change observed both from the point of view of European Union as one organization, and the individual EU Member States. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to describe through innovation system foresight and systemic innovation approach to address key systemic issues of European Union (EU) Overseas Countries and Territories (OCTs) concerning the sustainable development and economic resilience: the authors highlight the need for a systemic approach to innovation policy for the sustainable islands’ growth.Design/methodology/approach This research focuses on a multiple case study of selected OCTs, members of the Association of the OCTs. Specifically, this paper illustrates the foresight approach implemented in six OCTs in the context of the Territorial Strategies for Innovation project funded by the 10th European Development Fund.Findings The focus is on innovation system foresight and systemic innovation: the authors argue that key innovation elements of the individual OCTs can be used as crucial components of an emerging innovation system while this specific type of foresight can assist the governments of respective OCTs in the selection and design of specific instruments in relation to the formulation of their innovation strategies and policies.Originality/value This paper is based on work undertaken by the Territorial Strategies for Innovation project team during a three-year period dedicated to supporting the governments of OCTs both in defining and in implementing their innovation strategies. Its main contribution is to develop the concept of innovation system foresight and systemic innovation for the OCTs. The work presented here is considered to be of value by highlighting specific innovation elements for achieving sustainable and inclusive growth in OCTs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Socio-economic development of EU countries has been and remains a constant concern of specialists in the field in recent years, reflected in a country's welfare analysis by socio-economic factors. The study shows that while some European Union countries have a high level of GDP, it lags behind other countries if we consider other indicators showing the level of socio-economic development. The paper evaluated and compared disparities between the 28 EU countries based on a set of indicators that combine relevant economic and social data. The indicators used in research provide insight into three key areas for sustainable development- economic development, innovation, competitiveness and employment. The method used is that of real rank, resulting in a ranking of them according to the importance given to each indicator in terms of information content. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Processes of regionalization are mainly conceived as bottom-up processes of political and economic mobilization—often even as counter-movements to alienating forces of globalization. In marked contrast to this conventional view, this paper argues that sub-national regions are constitutively shaped by and embedded in a wider social context. This external institutional context encourages the ‘reflexive resurgence’ and ‘staging’ of regional identities in terms of most contemporary notions of development, such as innovation, cohesion, competitiveness, sustainability, and so forth. Starting from a macro-phenomenological research perspective (in the tradition of the world society theory proposed by John W. Meyer and colleagues) this paper sketches six major analytical perspectives to account for the massive ‘world-cultural’ regional mobilization currently seen in Europe. It is emphasized that relatively universal (‘world-cultural’) models and practices of regional mobilization are crucial in determining the current shape of European regions. This has particularly been encouraged by the EU Cohesion Policy, which specifies, reinforces and accelerates the diffusion of highly rationalized models of regional development throughout EU territory. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper provides a framework of the tax systems of CIT - Corporate Income Tax in the EU. This paper treats the concept of CIT according to the OECD, EU directives and Kosovo legislation. It aims to identify gaps in the current Kosovo legislaton and the tendency to increase the harmonization of the tax systems in EU, especially, in view of the direct taxes. The theory of international tax law counts some methods used in the case of the relocation of the source of income from countries with high tax rate in countries with the lower tax rate. However, determining the level of taxation in this area is the exclusive issue of Member States in harmony with the principle of subsidiarity. With the aim at securing sustainable economic development and growth in the EU, within the framework of their strategy some changes were proposed regarding the elimination of all legal and fiscal barriers that hinder the full integration of the national systems of member states into the common market. The CCCTB initiative is considered a major step towards aligning the EU tax systems. So, the purpose of this article is to demonstrate the level of harmonization of the tax systems in EU, using the comparativ, empirical, normativ and logical methods, to conclude the role of CIT in the tax systems. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Regional Studies is the property of Routledge and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

In 2010, EU adopted a new growth strategy which includes three growth priorities and five headline targets to be reached by 2020. The aim of this paper is to investigate the current performance of the EU member and candidate states in achieving these growth priorities and the overall strategy target by allocating the headline targets into the priorities and the priorities into the strategy by the use of a composite indicator methodology. The paper determines how far away each member and candidate state is from the targeted levels of the priorities and the strategy by making a distinction between EU 15 and relatively new member states as well. The developed composite indices enable the observation of the performances of the member and candidate states in a single indicator for the overall strategy and each growth priority. The results of the strategy index and three growth priority indices show that Nordic states possess the highest index scores already having reached many of the targets; many new member states performed as good as EU 15 and some EU 15 states are placed at the bottom of the ranking with quite poor performance in reaching the EU 2020 strategy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Problems of Sustainable Development / Problemy Ekorozwoju is the property of Faculty of Environmental Engineering and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Despite existing policies of regional development and cohesion at the national and the EU level, economic regional inequalities or disparities stay relatively high or decrease too slowly. In this context, policies to reduce economic regional disparities in the European Union are a constant concern both for policy-makers and for theoretical and empirical research because of the strong impact on sustainable development in general. In this study we combine elements of theoretical and policy discussions with the empirical assessment of economic regional development in the European Union in order to identify the state of regional disparities, what factors are favouring unbalanced growth in different regions of the EU and to find an appropriate theoretical setting to understand, explain and reduce with regional inequality in the EU. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper presents a new index to quantify, measure and monitor the progress towards the objectives of the Europe 2020 strategy. This index is based on a set of relevant, accepted, credible, easy to monitor and robust indicators presented by the European Commission at the time the strategy was launched. The internal analysis of the index shows that the Smart and the Inclusive growth dimensions of the strategy are strictly correlated and that the trade-offs between each of these two dimensions and the Sustainable one exist but are decreasing, suggesting that a change towards more sustainable models of development is occurring in Europe. The external analysis of the index shows that it can be a valid measure to assess the overall competitiveness of countries and that the most critical factors for this strategy to be successful are good governance and social capital. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Research Papers of the Wroclaw University of Economics / Prace Naukowe Uniwersytetu Ekonomicznego we Wroclawiu is the property of Uniwersytet Ekonomiczny we Wroclawiu and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

In contemporary society knowledge and innovation are seen as vital sources and driving forces for sustainable development, one of the major goals in the world we live today, a subject of great interest for researchers and policy makers. Given this context, the paper aims to analyze and determine the role of EU countries performances in innovation, in generating knowledge, in promoting and using high "green" technologies for their progress towards sustainable development, as evaluated by different systems of measurement for both issues of interest. The methodology is based on methods of analysis and synthesis, of interpretation and relevant comparisons. The paper focuses on identifying the successful key factors of knowledge and innovation systems in determining a sustainable approach and behaviour in society. The results of the research may have a large impact for scientific community preoccupied with knowledge, innovation and sustainable development issues. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Rome Report, published in 1972, drew attention on the contradiction between unlimited growth and consumption in relation to the limited resources of the earth. The report had a powerful impact on the concept of economic development, it contributed to the relocation of the concept of needs within the limits of the thinking that unidirectional development which produces only to assure economic growth in the long run should not affect life on earth. The paper presents the evolution of the concept of sustainable development, which militates for the continuous improvement of quality of life, taking into account the rational and efficient use of resources, how it managed to become, in a relatively short period, the concern of the entire world and why it becomes the principle that lays at the basis of all policies. The paper analyses the relationship between the strategy of sustainable development of EU and the Lisbon Agenda. It also shows that although EU established that sustainable development is the principle on which all European policies are based, and practically competition dominates the political agenda, in fact, the two strategies reinforce each other. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The inherent tension between regional equality and economic growth (efficiency) is recently much debated in the context of place based development policy and agglomeration in the European Union. A general conclusion reached in the literature is that a policy targeted at regional equality may be harmful for economic growth. Such policy therefore should be transformed in such a way that it also promotes the mobility of both people and firms and hence facilitates the possibilities of increased agglomeration. Recent insights from economic theories suggest that agglomeration externalities are not taken into account in the migration decision of firms and people, causing the dynamic urbanisation processes to not necessarily result in a (social) welfare optimum. This is even more so if other welfare effects than GDP and product variety are taken into account. Regional economic development is not sustainable if the dynamic urbanisation processes stemming from agglomeration economies do not lead to a welfare optimum. In this paper we assess the possibility of a non-sustainable regional development path. We conclude that strong additional negative externalities of growing large agglomerations are harder to prove than negative externalities of small agglomerations becoming smaller. Moreover, the size of short run negative effects that will stimulate the migration of people has not been adequately assessed. The European Union should therefore be careful in interpreting place-based costs and benefits of growing, large agglomerations at the detriment of small regions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

With this paper we depict a typology of regions, capturing the diversity of regional innovation systems (RISs) across the EU-25. Following the RIS literature, we select twenty-one variables related to the ability of a region to generate and absorb knowledge, and its capacity to transform research and development into innovation and economic growth. On the basis of the results of principal components and cluster analyses, we identify seven types of RIS where the 186 regions group together according to their sectoral specialisation, technological and economic capacity, and performance. By allowing us to identify similar and more advanced regions, the paper facilitates comparisons and benchmarking between similar regions, thus enabling more accurate policy learning. For each group a number of policy recommendations are suggested, contingent on their local specific characteristics. In short, the contribution of this paper is twofold. Firstly, it provides the first RIS typology for the EU-25 regions completed using a large number of variables. Secondly, the conclusions obtained from the analysis may be used to lead policy makers' actions in the field of regional innovation policy in the EU. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

European governments are tending to perceive cities as sites of renewed economic dynamism and physical renaissance, and as places that can help to resolve social and environmental challenges. The paper presents three propositions for why the fortunes of cities in advanced economies may have improved. It then offers evidence from across Western Europe to assess whether they have done so, both in comparison with their past trajectories and in relation to smaller urban and rural areas. One finding is that cities in aggregate have experienced continued prosperity rather than decline and revival or accelerated growth. Another is that their overall position relative to smaller settlements does not seem to have changed greatly. Looking in more detail, however, there is more evidence of resurgence, as well as the opposite. National variations seem important and cities in Finland, Sweden, Ireland, Britain and Spain show signs of substantial economic improvement over the last decade. In contrast, cities in Germany have experienced a marked slowdown, albeit from a position of comparative prosperity at the outset. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The objective of this article is to analyse the recent evolution of European neighbouring countries in different dimensions related to economic performance (measured in a broader sense), social progress and institutional reforms. With this aim, we design and build a composite indicator to measure these different dimensions. Next, the index is used to characterise the relative evolution of neighbouring countries compared to a wide sample of developed and developing economies. We also test whether a convergence process has taken place in these different dimensions controlling for the potential effect of the European neighbourhood policy. The obtained results show different trends according to the considered dimensions and heterogeneous effects at the country level. From a policy perspective, these results reinforce the validity of the bilateral action plans that have characterised ENP recognising the different starting point and particular characteristics of each neighbouring country. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Institutional reforms in the countries of Central Eastern and South Eastern Europe (CESEE) brought about a redefinition of the role of the state, the market and the business sector. We assess the effects of various dimensions of the institutional environment on the labour productivity of manufacturing firms in selected CESEE countries by employing a multilevel model. Our findings reveal that the curbing of corruption and the provision of inter-industrial externalities through the development of a commercial and professional infrastructure have beneficial effects on firm productivity. At the same time, a stricter political and legal framework and the provision of R&D infrastructure have an adverse effect. Such a finding is typical for producers of standardised products in countries with low levels of legal framework development for which R&D and legal adjustments incur cost disadvantages. The implication is that institutional development should be accompanied by a strengthening of firms' absorptive capacity in order for businesses to benefit from such changes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Analyzing of the effects and the determinants of the energy paradigm changes on influencing the economic growth in European Union starts from the assumption that the economy is highly dependent of energy consumption in achieving of the economic growth and welfare for population. Consequently, the changes in the energy paradigm imply significant transformations in the production structures and their evolution. The aim of the paper is to present and evaluate the effects and determinants of the energy paradigm changes on assuring economic growth in European Union, by using the panel data approach and its subsequent techniques. In this respect, there was considered the evolution of nine economic variables across 30 countries, representing the EU member States during the examined period, plus Iceland and Norway, in order to revile direct and irrefutable connections among these variables in shaping the new energetic paradigm in European space. The results obtained during the research confirm that all nine variables are determinant and significant elements in shaping a new and proactive energy policy and it undoubtedly contribute in achieving of the sustainable economic development [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

To maintain the growth rate and insure the secure and sustainable development of economies, EU countries have to come up with and manage a new source of growth - intangible resources. The intangible resources are relatively a new concept analyzed in scientific literature. A diverse, multi-angle and complex nature of intangible resources can be treated as a new factor in production function. In the knowledge based economy, creativity, generation of knowledge and transmission of it must interact with each other and be combined with entrepreneurship skills. Only interaction between these three key intangible resources could ensure the transition of economy to a new stage of economic development. The purpose of the research paper is to reveal econometrical relationship between intangible resources and its impact on economy in the EU. As a result of analysis, the theoretical framework to evaluate intangible resources has been provided and the accumulation level of intangible resources in EU countries has been estimated. The econometrical relationship suggests the intangible resources have a very important impact on GDP accumulated level. The findings reveal that highest level of intangible resources is observed in Finland, Sweden, Germany, Denmark and Luxembourg. The lowest rate of intangible resources is observed in Cyprus, Romania, Poland, Bulgaria, Lithuania, Latvia and Greece. The conducted research also revealed that there is a strong statistical relationship between input and output of intangible resources. The constructed econometrical model suggests that the modern economic growth much depends on the level of accumulated intangible resources in the country. The change of estimated composite indicator of intangible resources by 1% influences the change of GDP by 0.954% [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper we resume our research on the theoretical-conceptual issues as well as on the mechanisms and policies for increasing resource-efficiency and resource-productivity in the European Union and in Romania, as important issues of implementing the green economy. First we shall make a conceptual analysis of the eco-innovation as a superior from of technological innovation dedicated to the environmental protection. Then there are emphasized some of the main features and challenges on eco innovation in Romania. This time we also address the importance and the role of eco-innovation in sustainable economic development and the transition to a green economy. In this respect, we shall point again the positive direct correlation between eco-innovation and resource productivity revealed by recent national and international surveys as well as by own research. Conclusions and recommendations support eco-innovation as a way to promote green economic growth in Romania. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper assesses three sustainable development strategies -- the European Union's Sustainable Development Strategy in its revised version, the Mediterranean Strategy for Sustainable Development and Slovenia's Development Strategy -- according to the level of sustainability these strategies provide. Deriving from three diverse sustainable development regimes, selected strategies are scrutinised for the presence of the five general principles of effective sustainable development strategies promoted by the United Nations and the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development. Building on George and Kirkpatrick's (2006) framework for analysis, we concentrate on principles of strategic planning and sustainable development, and a coordinated set of measures to ensure their implementation. The results reveal that the major differences between the assessed strategies are present in the sophistication of the theoretical bases and the integration of three main pillars of sustainable development (i.e. environmental, economic and social). In general, the assessed strategies reflect a high degree of inclusiveness of a variety of interests. However, there is a common weakness among them in terms of implementation, be it in the provision of adequate resources, the guarantee of adequate implementing capacity of the institutions designated for implementation or the precise definition of the institutional framework responsible for the implementation of the strategy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Research Papers of the Wroclaw University of Economics / Prace Naukowe Uniwersytetu Ekonomicznego we Wroclawiu is the property of Uniwersytet Ekonomiczny we Wroclawiu and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Copyright of Economic & Business Review is the property of Economic & Business Review and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

For years we have been observing the exponential trend of the economic growth, energy consumption, mineral resources use and greenhouse gas emissions. The human population is exerting an increasing pressure on the environment, which in the highly industrialised regions has lost its natural ability for bio-capacity. The measurement of the member states’ progress in achieving the sustainable development is an integral part of the European Union strategy. The article deals with methods of measuring the level of sustainable development and presents diversification of the EU member states according to the synthetic indicators, such as: domestic material consumption, import dependency, risky external energy supply, diversity index, ecological footprint and total carbon intensity. These determinants affecting potential of the EU states to maintain the achieved level of development in future. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study examines the causal relationship between economic growth and renewable energy consumption using data for 28 countries of European Union, taken from Eurostat database for years from 1995 to 2015. In addition, motivated by EU Directive 2009/28/EC, the tendency of the share of renewable energy consumption into the final energy consumption is analysed. Various panel data techniques implemented in EViews are used. The empirical results suggest a positive impact of renewable energy consumption on economic growth, and emphasize bidirectional or unidirectional Granger causalities between the two macroeconomic indicators, for each country in the panel. These results justify the political decisions of EU concerning the necessity of increasing the renewable energy consumption, and prove that this type of energy consumption has a strong positive impact on economic growth. Thus, the inclusion of such policies in future EU and national strategies is further motivated. Finally, by means of linear regression, an increasing trend was found for the ratio between renewable energy consumption and final energy consumption for all but one of the EU countries. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The manufacturing industry is a key sector in many national economies and is involved in creating sustainable economic growth. At the same time, it is a sector sensitive to internal and external impacts that result in fluctuations in the economic cycle, copying its development or even outstripping the development of economic cycles. The main objective of this contribution was to identify the relationship between manufacturing and GDP, which represents the economic cycle in European Union countries. The time series of selected indicators of the manufacturing industry and GDP from the Eurostat database for Q1 2000-Q4 2016 were used for analysis purposes. An analysis of 296 time series with a quarterly periodicity from 22 EU countries (including the United Kingdom) was performed. The results of analyses indicate that the processing industry is a sector with significant cyclical behavior. In most countries, production and sales in the manufacturing industry behaved as concurrent indicators, changes in production and sales almost immediately reflected in the growth or decline in GDP. Labor market indicators have been shown to be delayed cyclical indicators. Changes in the economic development of the countries have a strong impact on employment, the remuneration of employees and the number of hours worked in the sector. Strong cyclical industries must be constantly monitored, as negative changes in these sectors will automatically exacerbate the economic cycle recession. The results of our analyses represent a valuable platform for economic policy makers and regional strategic plans. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Any country is interested in economic growth regardless of its development level in any period; yet an increasingly important role in defining growth is played by the term 'smart growth'. The EU development strategy until 2020 defines smart growth as a strategic objective. Smart growth does not take place automatically. It is affected both by the condition of the economic, social and natural environments and by subjective factors - the competence of performance agents. The present research distinguished three groups of rural space and regional performance agents: national institutions, local governments and communities of residents of the territories examined by the research. The research summarised the opinions of experts (Latvia n=171; Lithuania n=163) from the south-eastern part of Latvia and the north-eastern part of Lithuania with the purpose of assessing the contribution of the performance agent groups to the promotion of smart economic growth. The research aimed to identify the positive indications of the contribution made by each performance agent group as well as the largest problems affecting the promotion of smart economic growth in each country. Despite the fact that the sample groups were not representative (did not reflect the views of the entire population), the obtained survey data and the results of this analysis provided insight into the performance agents' action ratings from the bottom-up position and allowed comparing the situations in Latvia and Lithuania. The research has become an urgent task in project No. 5.2.3 "Rural and Regional Development Processes and Opportunities in Latvia in the Context of Knowledge Economy" in National Research Programme 5.2. "Economic Transformation, Smart Growth, Governance and Legal Framework for the State and Society for Sustainable Development - a New Approach to the Creation of a Sustainable Learning Community: EKOSOC-LV". [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Acta Scientiarum Polonorum. Oeconomia is the property of Wydawnictwo SGGW and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Continuous and mass tourism development resulted in the need of putting this activity under sustainable development, in order to provide adequate usage of tourist potentials for meeting the current and future travel needs. Sustainable tourism is a form of tourism that contributes economic development of local communities with taking care of permanent environment protection. The subject of this research is tourism on the territory of the City of Užice, analyzed through the application of EU five group comparative indicators, in order to determine the current position of sustainability. The research also covered the following tourist places: Mokra Gora and Užice in Southwestern Serbia. Method of analysis and synthesis, mathematical-statistical method and comparative method were used. The collected data were analyzed by using the method of descriptive statistics. The research results show unequal tourism development in the City of Užice, precisely to the fact that tourism sustainability in tourist places (Mokra Gora and Užice) is different compared to the destination itself. Beside the contribution to the theory of sustainable tourism development, the results can also have a practical application within Užice tourist organizations, which may have a significant impact on destination sustainability in the future. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Research Papers of the Wroclaw University of Economics / Prace Naukowe Uniwersytetu Ekonomicznego we Wroclawiu is the property of Uniwersytet Ekonomiczny we Wroclawiu and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Copyright of Comparative Economic Research is the property of Wydawnictwo Uniwersytetu Lodzkiego and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Sustainable development is indeed a complex phenomena, thus making the comparison and valuation of advances of EU-member states in the implementation of its objectives specifically difficult. The authors attempted to establish a synthetic measure of the level of sustainable development taking into account simultaneously three components: economic, social and environmental. It was aimed to compare particular countries by the mentioned measure and then grouping them. Relying on basis of content aspects the basics of research were 'headline indicators' of sustainable development, sourced from the 2005-2012 research period formed the premise of the study. The study results demonstrate ongoing gradual advances being made in the implementation of concepts of sustainable development in EU-member states. Although there can be visible a gradual convergence of EU-member states in respect of their levels of sustainable development, nonetheless majority of countries still post indicators of sustainable development below the EU average, especially those which recently became members of the European Union. Copyright © 2015 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd and ERP Environment [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]