WRI - Environmental Democracy Index and Population

This layer shows the overall 2016 Environmental Democracy Index for 70 countries around the world. The map also shows the total population of each country for reference. The Environmental Democracy Index is an average of three overall pillars: transparency, participation, and justice. These pillars are made up of 23 guidelines adopted by the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP), which are arithmetic averages of 75 legal indicators. As described on the Background and Methodology page, the Environmental Democracy Index rides on the following: "Environmental democracy is rooted in the idea that meaningful public participation is critical to ensure that land and natural resource decisions adequately and equitably address citizens’ interests. At its core, environmental democracy involves three mutually reinforcing rights: the right to freely access information on environmental quality and problems the right to participate meaningfully in decision-making the right to seek enforcement of environmental laws or compensation for harm. Protecting these rights, especially for the most marginalized and vulnerable, is the first step to promoting equity and fairness in sustainable development. Without essential rights, information exchange between governments and the public is stifled and decisions that harm communities and the environment cannot be challenged or remedied. Establishing a strong legal foundation is the starting point for recognizing, protecting and enforcing environmental democracy. " The population estimate comes from the Esri 2016 World Population Estimate.