The Environmental Performance Index (EPI) is a method of quantifying and numerically marking the environmental performance of a state’s policies. The EPI was developed by Yale University (Yale Center for Environmental Law and Policy) and Columbia University (Center for International Earth Science Information Network) in collaboration with the World Economic Forum and the Joint Research Centre of the European Commission to evaluate environmental sustainability relative to the paths of other countries. The Environmental Performance Index uses outcome-oriented indicators, then working as a benchmark index that can be more easily used by policy makers, environmental scientists, advocates and the general public.
The 2022 Environmental Performance Index (EPI) provides a data-driven summary of the state of sustainability around the world. Using 40 performance indicators across 11 issue categories, the EPI ranks 180 countries on environmental health and ecosystem vitality. These indicators provide a gauge at a national scale of how close countries are to established environmental policy targets. The EPI offers a scorecard that highlights leaders and laggards in environmental performance and provides practical guidance for countries that aspire to move toward a sustainable future.
The average score for all countries increased by 8.65%. This year, leaders increased their distance with those who are last. Denmark with a score of 77.9 remains the leader in the current "Environmental Performance Index" ranking, scoring 0.2 (0.3%) more than United Kingdom, who is ranked second with a score of 77.7. The top five were Denmark, United Kingdom, Finland, Malta, and Sweden.
The bottom five countries with their ranks and scores were: Pakistan (24,6), Bangladesh (23.1), Vietnam (20.1), Myanmar (19.4), and India (18.9). Our other neighbours scored thus: Nepal (162, 28.3), China (160, 28.4), Sri Lanka (132, 34,7), Bhutan (85, 42.5)
Press Release
Global progress to reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions remains insufficient to meet the net-zero GHGs by mid-century target established in the 2021 Glasgow Climate Pact, according to the 2022 Environmental Performance Index (EPI) produced by researchers at Yale and Columbia Universities. Using the past 10-years’ emissions trajectory as a basis for projecting 2050 emissions, the EPI researchers forecast that the vast majority of countries will not achieve the net-zero goal. A number of nations — including the United States — are projected to fall far short of the target.
Only a handful of countries — notably Denmark and the United Kingdom — are currently projected to reach GHG neutrality by 2050, according to the EPI’s analyses. The countries performing well on the net-zero GHG in 2050 metric have enacted some of the world’s most ambitious climate policies. For example, Denmark has set a national target of reducing 2030 emissions by 70% compared to the 1990 level and has adopted a
comprehensive policy agenda to deliver on this commitment including recently expanded GHG taxes.
More than 50% of emissions in 2050 are slated to come from just 4 countries: China, India, the United States, and Russia. “While U.S. emissions are declining rapidly, they are not falling fast enough to get to net zero by 2050 given the very high emissions starting point of the United States,” said EPI project director Martin Wolf. More troubling, GHGs continue to rise in China, India, Russia, and a number of other major developing countries.
Just 24 countries — the dirty two-dozen — will account for nearly 80% of 2050 residual GHG emissions unless climate change policies are strengthened and emissions trajectories shifted.
Ranking 180 countries on 40 performance indicators covering climate change, environmental public health, and ecosystem vitality, the EPI constitutes the world’s leading analysis of country-level sustainability trends. The 2022 EPI offers a powerful policy tool for assessing performance at the global and national levels across an array of critical sustainability issues including air and water pollution, waste management, biodiversity and habitat protection, as well as the transition to a clean energy future. Country rankings are grounded in the best available data from international organizations and research centers around the world that have been carefully analyzed by Yale and Columbia researchers.
In highlighting leaders, calling out laggards, and spotlighting the best policy practices on an issue-by-issue basis, the EPI provides a guide to policymakers on the path to a sustainable future. It also offers opposition political leaders, the media, environmental advocates, business executives, community groups, and citizen activists a mechanism for holding governments accountable.
2022 EPI Rankings
Denmark emerges as the most sustainable country in the world according to the 2022 EPI. Retaining its #1 ranking from 2020, Denmark’s top score reflects strong performance across many of the issues tracked by the EPI with notable leadership in climate and sustainable agriculture. Dan Jørgensen, the Danish Minister for Climate, Energy, and Utilities, commented on Denmark’s achievements: “Denmark is a small country. But we
want to make a big difference. That’s why we aim to set a good example. We hope that by doing so, we can inspire others to also do more to preserve our planet. And when we set ambitious targets for ourselves, we also spark innovation and the development of solutions and technology that can help the green transformation in other countries. We have come a long way. But we still have a lot of work to do. Even though Denmark comparatively is doing a lot at a fast pace, we are not satisfied. We need to do more even faster. And we will.”
Other high-scoring nations include the United Kingdom and Finland, both of which earn top rankings from their strong climate change performance driven by policies that have substantially cut GHGs in recent years. Sweden and Switzerland, also among the top countries, rise above their peers in terms of air and water quality. But as Yale Professor Jay Emerson, who leads the team doing the EPI’s statistical analyses, noted, “No country is top-tier across the board. Even Denmark has things to learn from others.”
Beyond providing global and country-level results, the 2022 EPI offers insights into the drivers of good environmental performance. As senior research scientist Alex de Sherbinin of Columbia University’s Columbia Climate School and one of the lead authors of the 2022 EPI explained, “Good governance, policy commitment, and targeted environmental investments separate the nations that are moving toward a sustainable future from those which are not. High-scoring countries have well-thought-through programs to protect public health, conserve natural resources, and mitigate greenhouse gas emissions.”
Lagging its peers, the United States places 43rd out of 180 countries in the 2022 EPI. This relatively low ranking reflects a nation that has become deeply divided over how to respond to environmental challenges leading to inaction in Washington on critical issues such as climate change — and the rollback of environmental protections during the Trump Administration. Between 2016 and 2020, the Administration repealed or weakened nearly 100 environmental regulations, reversing progress the U.S. had made in climate mitigation, air quality, and habitat conservation. In particular, the United States’ withdrawal from the Paris Climate Agreement, relaxed methane emissions regulations, and weaker fuel efficiency standards meant the nation lost precious time while its peers in the developed world enacted significant policies to reduce their GHG emissions.
While the data indicate the U.S. has made strides toward improving air quality and marine protected areas, the aggregate ranking puts it behind most wealthy western democracies, including France (12th), Germany (13th), Australia (17th), Italy (23rd), and Japan (25th).
The lowest scores overall go to countries that are struggling with civil unrest and other crises (such as Myanmar or Haiti), or nations that have prioritized economic growth over environmental sustainability, such as India, Vietnam, Bangladesh, and Pakistan. India, with markedly poor air quality and quickly rising GHG emissions, comes in at the very bottom of country rankings for the first time. Poor air quality and growing GHG emissions continue to impact China’s EPI ranking, placing the nation 160th out of 180 countries in the 2022 scorecard.
Additional Global Insights
Worldwide trends suggest that many countries have made significant progress over the past decade on critical environmental health issues like sanitation, drinking water, and indoor air pollution. These gains demonstrate
that investments in environmental infrastructure, like wastewater treatment facilities, and better household energy technologies, such as cleaner cookstoves, can translate into rapid improvements in public health. The EPI’s new air quality metrics indicate, however, that residents in most countries still breathe unsafe air. More than 8 million people die prematurely each year from exposure to indoor and ambient air pollutants. Southern
Asian countries, such as India, Nepal, and Pakistan, are particularly lagging in air quality.
Ecosystem trends capture both remarkable improvements and persistent challenges when it comes to preserving habitat and biodiversity around the world. Belgium, the U.A.E., Croatia, and Niger have substantially expanded protected habitat within their borders, earning top scores for biodiversity metrics in the 2022 EPI. The world has also met its marine protected areas target, successfully preserving 10% of coastlines – but with ocean
ecosystems still threatened in much of the world, there remains a good bit of work to do in this issue category. On other issues, global performance continues to move away from sustainability. Fisheries are especially in decline, with nearly all countries earning scores below 50% on this vital issue.
The Drivers of Good Environmental Performance
At every level of development, some countries achieve scores that exceed their peer nations with similar economic circumstances. Cutting-edge analyses of the 2022 EPI rankings make clear that the factors explaining environmental success include good governance, country wealth, quality of life, independent media, and well-crafted regulations. The researchers found strong correlations between EPI scores and government effectiveness, rule of law, regulatory quality, happiness, and GDP per capita. Sustainable development requires financial resources, which enable investments in environmental protection. The wide divergence in scores among wealthy countries demonstrates, however, that policy choices also matter. Leaders that carefully manage pollution threats and natural resource use can drive their countries toward a more sustainable future.
