Let’s take a look at the world’s greenest countries!
In times of global warming, plastic pollution and loss of biodiversity, it is becoming more and more important for countries to path the way to a more sustainable and green future.
Going green is more important than ever before! There’s a bunch of things we can do individually to save our planet and live more sustainable, but our impact as individuals will always remain limited.
Countries are responsible for their own sustainability. Being a sustainable country gives citizens a better quality of life, protects the environment and means there will be less problems when it comes to global warming. It is important that all countries move towards going green to tackle climate change by developing a sustainable attitude towards the environment as well as their populations.
These are the top 10 greenest countries in 2023!
What is a "Green" Country?
The environment is a higher priority in some countries than it is in others. This is often reflected in a country’s policymaking and effectiveness of its current environmental protection measures. Being “green” is a way of describing how environmentally friendly (or “sustainable”) a country, community or organization is, based on the 3 pillars of sustainability.
The greenest countries in the world have practices, measures, and policies in place to help tackle the 3 key sustainability challenges: preserving and even restoring the natural environment and its resources as well as improving the health of its citizens.
How to Measure the "Greenness" of a Country?
Let’s be honest! It’s very hard to measure how “green” a country actually is.
In fact, there are countless factors that need to be considered in order to figure out how sustainable a country really is.
Luckily, science has come up with the so-called “Environmantal Performance Index” (EPI). By taking into account 24 performance indicators across ten issue categories, this index quantifies the environmental performance of a country’s policies and measures its environmental trends and performance.
The EPI also allows countries to see how close they are to their established environmental policy goals and meeting the targets of the UN Sustainable Development Goals.
The Top 10 Greenest Countries in the World
1. Switzerland
Switzerland has one of the most sustainable waste management programs in the world and almost scores perfect for water sanitation and water resources. The country converts an average of 100,000 tons of waste into energy. Furthermore, Swiss wastewater plants clean more than 90 million litres of water everyday.
The country has invested heavily into innovative renewable energies, such as solar power, wind turbines, hydroelectric power, geothermal energy, and heat pumps. In fact, solar panels are almost always worth their initial investment in Switzerland. Furthermore, Switzerland is a driving force in terms of green innovations.
Additionally, Switzerland has set itself ambitious goals when it comes to sustainability. By 2050, the country is planning to achieve 100% renewable energy and becoming carbon neutral.
Finally, Switzerland is famous for its progressive stance on animal rights, which can be seen in the country’s management and control of zoos. Read more about the pros & cons of zoos.
2. France
France is well-known for its environmental initiatives such as hydroturbines along its rivers and prohibiting its supermarkets from throwing away or destroying unsold food (that is still of good quality).
The country also scores particularly high when it comes to air quality. This can be seen in the many parcs and green areas it has developed in the major cities over the years.
3. Denmark
Denmark is known for its efficient greenhouse gas emission policies and its efforts to prevent climate change. The country is leading in wind power. Around half of the nation”s energy is sourced from wind turbines.
Denmark’s capital (Copenhagen) is the world’s largest green city, and is planning to be completely carbon neutral by 2025. Denmark has around half of their energy supplied by renewable sources, and due to the usage and popularity of bikes across the country emissions from cars and vehicles has been reduced.
Finally, Denmark stands out for its actions in the biodiversity and habitat category and air quality.
4. Malta
Malta is ranking at the top for the biodiversity and habitat category and water sanitation and water resources.
Malta is known for its efficient and environmentally-friendly train system as well as its agritourism. Malta’s ranking as the fourth-greenest country in the world comes with its challenges, such as the country’s lack of space and local resources, energy dependency, water scarcity, and e-waste management.
For example, in order to tackle water scarcity, the country has developed a strategy to turn seawater into potable water using desalination, an innovative future approach to water sourcing.
5. Sweden
Sweden is known for being one of the most sustainable countries in the world, notably for its use of renewable energy sources and low carbon dioxide emissions.
Sweden’s government set an ambitious goal for 2045, pledging to be fossil fuel-free and running 100% on renewable energy. In order to achieve this, the country is using electric buses, smart roads, and urban farming (next to many other initiatives).
Finally, Sweden excells at sustainable leadership as it constantly challenges itself and other countries to become greener.
6. United Kingdom
The United Kingdom ranks very high when it comes to water and sanitation, including drinking water and sanitation.
There are about 8,879 wind turbines currently in the U.K., supplying the country with sustainable, clean power. Additionally, the country hevaily invest into sustainable banking and the circular economy.
7. Luxembourg
Despite its growing population and GDP, Luxembourg is the seventh-greenest country thanks to its progress in decoupling environmental pressures from its economic growth.
Luxembourg scores especially high in the biodiversity and habitat category as well as for its management of water resources.
8. Austria
Austria is known for having strict standards for waste management, chemicals, air pollution, and agriculture. Austria ranks notably high for agriculture and ecosystem vitality.
9. Ireland
Similar to the UK, Ireland scores particularly high in water and sanitation as well as air quality. People in the UK know how to save water properly.
The country has shown that it is commited to the Paris Agreement by investing heavily into wind energy with the overall aim of reducing its carbon emissions. Furthermore, Ireland is well-known for its modern and low-carbon heating technology.
10. Finland
Finishing the top ten list of the greenest countries is Finland. The country ranks very well for environmental health.
Additionally, Finland scores notably high in the heavy metals exposure, water and sanitation, and air quality categories. Finland prioritizes forest and wildlife conservation and is currently 35% powered by renewable energy sources.
Finally, since the country is facing very long winters, its citizens are masters when it comes to saving energy in winter.
Do you want to explore more green destinations? Then you should check out the greenest cities in the world.
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