In his address at the Adelaide Ideas Festival John Daley argues that the first thing we must get right is to put a value on the long-term. And to make sure the important things happen, we may need to select fewer priorities for change.

The second number we need to improve is our educational outcomes. Australia is doing well, but our performance has plateaued. We have the opportunity to go from good to great. We know that teacher quality is key. Substantial additional funding may not be the answer, although change will require governments to expend scarce political capital.

Apart from better education, many other factors contribute to sustainability, personal fulfilment, and social interaction. To set priorities we must work out what are the biggest drivers.

John Daley also sets out some of the priorities for the Grattan Institute, a newly formed think tank based in Melbourne.