It is hard to define, and harder to measure. One of the principle tasks in finding a solution is defining 'Quality of life'. This is in contrast to a problem like optimising profit, where profit is something easy to measure. The toolkit one needs for this kind of problem would take the place of a 'sciencewise' decomposition into independent pieces. The toolkit would somehow have to draw attention to problems that were connected, where the connection might not otherwise be noticed.
Analogy is an incredibly powerful tool.
It tends to be used only in an unsophisticated way. Used correctly it can help us relate systems we understand to ones that we know less well. Instead it should be used to suggest questions. Used well analogies can find unexpected connections. Analogies from biology are particularly useful.