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21 September, 2007
Can't beat quality of life in Scandinavia, says world ranking
PARIS (AFP) - Nordic countries take the greatest care of their environment and their people, according to a ranking published on Thursday by the publication Reader's Digest.
Finland comes top of the 141-nation list, followed by Iceland, Norway and Sweden, and then Austria, Switzerland, Ireland and Australia.
At the bottom of the list is Ethiopia, preceded by Niger, Sierra Leone, Burkina Faso and Chad.
The United States comes in 23rd, China 84th and India 104th.
The ranking combines environmental factors, such as air and water quality, respect for biodiversity and greenhouse-gas emissions, as well as social factors, such as gross domestic product, access to education, unemployment rate and life expectancy.
The statistical basis is the UN's Human Development Index and the Environmental Sustainability Index drawn up by Yale and Columbia universities and the World Economic Forum.
European countries -- again, led by Scandinavia -- also top the Reader's Digest assessment of 72 cities for their quality of life. The criteria for this include public transport, parks, air quality, rubbish recycling and the price of electricity.
The winner is Stockholm, followed by Oslo, Munich and Paris.
Asia's mega-cities fare the worst. At the bottom is Beijing, preceded by Shanghai, Mumbai, Guangzhou and Bangkok.
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How Countries Rate
The Reader's Digest Association
Top 5
1. Finland
2. Iceland
3. Norway
4. Sweden
5. Austria
Bottom 5
137. Chad
138. Burkina Faso
139. Sierra Leone
140. Niger
141. Ethiopia
Air Quality
Rates concentration of several pollutants in urban areas
1. Moldova
8. Finland
63. United States
126. Ethiopia
141. Guatemala
The World's Greenest, Most Livable Cities
Using different data, we analyzed 72 major international cities and ranked them in terms of being green and livable. The sources included The Millennium Cities Database for Sustainable Transport (2001) by Jeff Kenworthy and Felix Laube of Australia's Murdoch University, the World Bank's Development Economic Research Group Estimates, and our own reporting on local environmental laws, energy prices, garbage production and disposal, and parkland.
5 Best
1. Stockholm
2. Oslo
3. Munich
4. Paris
5. Frankfurt
5 Worst
68. Bangkok
69. Guangzhou
70. Mumbai
71. Shanghai
72. Beijing
How U.S. Cities Rate
15. New York
22. Washington, D.C.
23. Chicago
26. San Francisco
36. Atlanta
43. Denver
46. Houston
55. San Diego
57. Los Angeles
60. Phoenix
Water Quality
Rates pollutant levels as well as other factors that affect water purity
1. Norway
2. Finland
22. United States
127. Ethiopia
141. Morocco
Greenhouse Gases
Rates carbon emissions per capita and by GDP
1. Chad
18. Ethiopia
75. Finland
107. United States
141. Turkmenistan
Energy Efficiency
Rates conservation efforts and use of renewables such as hydropower
1. D.R. Congo
17. Ethiopia
66. Finland
106. United States
141. Trinidad & Tobago
Environmental Health
Rates childhood mortality, disease; deaths from intestinal infections
1. Austria
8. Finland
125. Ethiopia
16. United States
141. Turkmenistan