East London Citizen Prosperity Index Methodology

The Citizen Prosperity Index (CPI), developed by the Institute for Global Prosperity at University College London, offers a novel approach to measuring prosperity beyond traditional economic indicators. This methodology paper outlines the CPI's application in east London, focusing on 15 Lower Layer Super Output Areas across five boroughs undergoing regeneration projects. The CPI features a communitydriven design, citizen scientist data collection, and a multidimensional framework encompassing five key domains: Foundations of Prosperity, Opportunities and Aspirations, Power, Voice and Influence, Belonging, Connections and Leisure, and Health and Healthy Environments. The paper describes the mixed-methods approach, combining quantitative surveys with qualitative research, and details the index construction process, including data treatment, post-stratification weights, and z-score normalisation techniques. This methodology enables individual, local, borough, and city-wide analysis, providing a nuanced understanding of prosperity across different scales. The CPI's potential for global application is discussed, highlighting its adaptability to diverse contexts, as demonstrated by its expansion to Lebanon and Tanzania. The paper examines the implications for policy and practice, emphasising the CPI's value in informing targeted interventions and investment strategies across various sectors. By offering stakeholders a sophisticated tool for understanding and promoting prosperity, the CPI contributes to a broader reconceptualisation of prosperity, aligning measurement practices with communitydefined priorities and well-being

Effectively sampling rectal mucus and assessing the validity of a DNA methylation assay in the detection of colorectal cancer.

Colorectal cancer (CRC) is one of the most common cancers in the Western world. Screening for CRC using faecal occult blood test (FOBT) is well established. There is evidence that DNA based stool tests may be more effective than FOBT. Hypothesis The hypothesis is that in patients with CRC, rectal mucus may contain DNA derived from colonic tumours. It is speculated that quantitative or qualitative assessment of DNA in rectal mucus may permit an improved method of CRC screening. Aims Using surgically resected specimens of colonic tumours: To assess the feasibility and reliability of measuring DNA in mucus samples To compare different devices to measure mucus DNA To assess the amount of mucus DNA at various distances from colonic tumours In patients with CRC and controls: To compare the amount of DNA in rectal mucus Using a panel of 3 DNA methylation markers, to compare the rectal mucus DNA methylation profile between patients with CRC and controls Methods Surgical colectomy specimens were obtained from 25 patients with CRC. The feasibility and repeatability of measuring mucus DNA amounts was established using different buffer solutions, different storage techniques and different sampling devices. Mucus DNA amounts were measured at tumour sites and various distances proximal and distal to the tumour. 58 patients referred to a colorectal outpatient clinic with suspected CRC were assessed. Rectal mucus samples were obtained using a balloon device introduced through a proctoscope. All patients were investigated by colonoscopy to clarify the presence or absence of a CRC. The amount of DNA in the mucus samples was measured. The presence of three DNA methylation markers (NDRG4, TFP12 and GATA4) was assessed in all samples. All studies were approved by the local ethics committee. Results Reliable measurement of DNA from mucus samples was established using balloon, foam and brush devices and a cell lysate buffer. Higher amounts of DNA in surgical specimens were found distal to tumours compared to proximally. In patients with CRC the amount of DNA in rectal mucus was higher than in controls (no disease or benign polyps). The three DNA methylation marker panel had a sensitivity of 87% and specificity of 27.5% for the detection of CRC. Conclusions The results are consistent with the hypothesis that DNA detected in rectal mucus is derived from proximal tumours. Higher levels of rectal mucus DNA are obtained from patients with CRC than from controls. The selected DNA methylation panel was not sufficiently useful in our sample group to be of use as a screening technique, due to poor specificity. Further work is in progress to compare DNA abnormalities in resected tumour tissue with DNA from rectal mucus in the same patients. Future work may be required to improve the panel of DNA abnormalities assessed

Developing the Maisha Bora Index

The Maisha Bora Index (MBI), developed by the Institute for Global Prosperity at University College London, provides an innovative approach for assessing prosperity in unplanned settlements of Dar es Salaam, Tanzania. Moving beyond traditional economic indicators, the MBI integrates a multidimensional framework based on the lived experiences and aspirations of residents. It incorporates economic security, social cohesion, environmental sustainability, and governance dimensions to provide a holistic understanding of prosperity. This paper outlines the Index’s conceptual framework, data collection process, indicator selection criteria, and validation methods. The MBI was implemented in three research sites— Bonde la Mpunga, Keko Machungwa, and Mji Mpya— capturing the diversity of socio-economic conditions and urban development challenges in Dar es Salaam. The study employs a mixed-methods approach, combining qualitative research, household surveys, and participatory citizen science methodologies to ensure local engagement and contextual precision. The MBI is calculated through a hierarchical structure: measures collected via the questionnaire are used to calculate indicators; indicators form subdomains, and subdomains are grouped into domains. To ensure robustness and accuracy, the study employed statistical techniques such as poststratification weighting, Z-score normalisation, and sensitivity analysis, allowing for adjustments that enhance the reliability of findings across different settlements. The results offer insights into key enablers and barriers to prosperity in unplanned settlements, providing actionable knowledge for policymakers, NGOs, and community leaders. The participatory nature of the Maisha Bora Index ensures that communities are pivotal in defining and measuring prosperity, reinforcing its practical significance in shaping inclusive urban development strategies

East London Citizen Prosperity Index Methodology

The Citizen Prosperity Index (CPI), developed by the Institute for Global Prosperity at University College London, offers a novel approach to measuring prosperity beyond traditional economic indicators. This methodology paper outlines the CPI's application in east London, focusing on 15 Lower Layer Super Output Areas across five boroughs undergoing regeneration projects. The CPI features a communitydriven design, citizen scientist data collection, and a multidimensional framework encompassing five key domains: Foundations of Prosperity, Opportunities and Aspirations, Power, Voice and Influence, Belonging, Connections and Leisure, and Health and Healthy Environments. The paper describes the mixed-methods approach, combining quantitative surveys with qualitative research, and details the index construction process, including data treatment, post-stratification weights, and z-score normalisation techniques. This methodology enables individual, local, borough, and city-wide analysis, providing a nuanced understanding of prosperity across different scales. The CPI's potential for global application is discussed, highlighting its adaptability to diverse contexts, as demonstrated by its expansion to Lebanon and Tanzania. The paper examines the implications for policy and practice, emphasising the CPI's value in informing targeted interventions and investment strategies across various sectors. By offering stakeholders a sophisticated tool for understanding and promoting prosperity, the CPI contributes to a broader reconceptualisation of prosperity, aligning measurement practices with communitydefined priorities and well-being

Redefining prosperity with and for communities in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania: Beyond economic metrics for African cities

The Institute for Global Prosperity, in partnership with the Centre for Community Initiatives, is launching the Maisha Bora (‘Good Life’) Index for Dar es Salaam, Tanzania. The Maisha Bora Index is Africa’s first citizen-led prosperity measure co-designed over five years with citizen scientists, community members, community leaders and government officials. This working paper summarises headline findings from the Maisha Bora Index. It discusses the implications for urban governance, policy, planning, and development of co-designing new prosperity measures and strategies for action with communities to create more just and inclusive cities

Essays on the quality of institutions and economic performance

This thesis builds a model to describe the process of institutional change in which the probability of revolution depends on the state of the economy and the level of education in the society. The model generates two cases. First, when the cost of revolution is lower than the cost of the recession,institutional change will occur. The magnitude of the negative shock,sufficient to cause a revolution, depends on education; the higher the level of education in the society the lower the magnitude of the negative shock. The second case, when the cost of a revolution is higher than the cost of a negative shock, generates a mechanism of marginal institutional changes. Those who hold the power can adjust the quality of institutions to avoid a revolution; the magnitude of the changes necessary to prevent a revolution depends positively on both the magnitude of the shock and the level of education in the society. Both cases predict that institutional improvement is associated with increasing levels of education. We then test the prediction of our model. First, in a dynamic panel analysis of 86 developing countries, the system GMM results demonstrate that the quality of institutions will increase by 10% if years of schooling increase by one standard deviation. This result is confirmed by two separate bias correction estimations (BCFE and LSDV). Second, we use an EU crossregional dataset of the Quality of Government to examine the determinants of institutional quality in European regions. Using the share of atheists in every region as an instrument for education, our IV estimations confirm the prediction of our model. More education leads to better institutions. Additionally, our findings confirm other existing theories of the political and social determinants of the quality of institutions and demonstrate that this phenomenon is not confined to developing countries or even post-communist economies

A Citizen Prosperity Index for east London: New evidence and a new approach to tackling inequalities

This report launches the Institute for Global Prosperity’s Citizen Prosperity Index for east London: a new way of conceptualising and measuring prosperity based on long-term research about the determinants of prosperity foocal communities. The Citizen Prosperity Index is a new way of measuring prosperity that reports on what matters to local communities in east London. Unlike most indicators and metrics that are decided by experts in government, universities or business, and assumed to be relevant to communities everywhere, the Citizen Prosperity Index is based on long-term qualitative research about lived experiences and local determinants of prosperity in east London. Citizen scientists worked with academic researchers to analyse and categorise the factors that people identified as essential and important for a prosperous life in east London, which were translated into the ‘prosperity model’ that underpins the Citizen Prosperity Index. The Citizen Prosperity Index is a key output from the Prosperity in east London 2021–2031 Longitudinal Study, which aims to address the gaps in academic theory and policy-relevant knowledge about how investments in urban regeneration can create equitable pathways to place-based prosperit