Along with many titles such as ‘The Happiest Place on Earth,’ Costa Rica is now leading the way as one of the greenest countries in the world. Costa Rica has long been one of the leaders of environmental conservation, and they continue to increase their performance, ranking number 5 worldwide in the 2012 Environmental Performance Index (EPI).
The ranking is based according to the EPI, a method of measuring both environmental public health and ecosystem vitality. The results provide a means to measure how close countries are to their government’s established environmental policy goals. Yale University and Columbia University release the EPI every year during the World Economic Forum, ranking 132 countries.
Costa Rica’s focus on nature conservation has provided great success in terms of protecting biodiversity. According to Carlos Manuel Rodriguez, Former Costa Rica Minister of Environment and Energy, Costa Rica’s “solid system of protected areas provides the ‘raw material’ for our renowned ecotourism industry and has successfully reverted rates of deforestation.”
Costa Rica continues to follow the EPI reports, using them to help mainstream nature conservation, development policies and social values. Using the EPI as both an informative tool to compare environmental performance, and a political tool to advance policies that improve environmental performance for sustainable development, Costa Rica is continuing to be a very influential example.
Not only the government, but also the people of Costa Rica are continuing to show their increasing knowledge of the importance of environmental protection. Costa Rica’s extensive program of environmental protection is one of the most advanced in the world. Now, countries all over the world are recognizing the efforts of this small but beautiful Central America country.
By example, Costa Rica is encouraging the world to be smarter when it comes to land, water and air. This beautiful country is reaping the benefits of being one of the greenest countries on earth. Ecotourism has flourished in Costa Rica, bringing tourists from all over the world to enjoy the lush rainforest, spectacular flora and pristine oceans and rivers. Costa Rica’s efforts are ahead of its time and its beauty will continue to flourish, giving the world a paradise to enjoy for a very long time.