Environmental country reviews

COSTA RICA 2023: A megadiverse county, Costa Rica is known globally for its success in reversing deforestation and pursuing a growth model based on the sustainable use of its environmental resources. However, energy use and related greenhouse gas emissions increased in the last decade.

UNITED STATES 2023: The United States, the world’s largest economy, has made progress in reducing several environmental pressures while maintaining one of the highest GDPs per capita in the world. It has decoupled emissions of greenhouse gases, air pollutants, water abstractions and domestic material consumption from economic and population growth.

ISRAEL 2023: Israel’s rapid economic and population growth along with a high degree of urbanisation continue to exert significant pressure on the environment. Israel has raised its climate ambitions in recent years, though is not on track to reach greenhouse gas reduction targets.

GERMANY 2023: Germany has continued to improve its environmental performance over the past decade. It has ambitious climate targets with the aim to reach climate neutrality by 2045 and achieve negative emissions after 2050.

PORTUGAL 2023: Portugal managed to decouple several environmental pressures from economic growth over 2013-19. It played a leading role in the approval of the European Climate Law and adopted the Portuguese Framework Climate Law in 2021. This needs to be swiftly implemented to achieve carbon neutrality by 2050, improve climate resilience and protect ecosystems.