Denmark ranks highest on this year’s Climate Change Performance Index

The Nordic country’s exceptional efforts to fight the climate crisis have been recognised

This year, Denmark has performed best on the Climate Change Performance Index (CCPI), which was published on 9 November at COP26 in Glasgow. The CCPI assesses the performance of 60 countries across 4 categories: Greenhouse Gas Emissions, Renewable Energy, Energy Use, and Climate Policy. After this, it ranks countries based on their scores from “very high” to “very low”.

On its website, the CCPI explains that no country is currently performing well enough in all 4 categories to achieve a “very high” score. For this reason, the top 3 places on the index remain empty.

Subsequently, Denmark ranks fourth – and therefore, highest – on the CCPI.

Denmark’s success

The Nordic country has performed best on the CCPI as it has ranked high in 3 of the 4 categories (Greenhouse Gas Emissions, Renewable Energy, and Climate Policy). Taking this further, it has increased its climate efforts significantly over the past two decades, shifting from depending on coal to using wind and biomass power. Now, over 30% of its primary energy supply reportedly comes from renewable energy sources.

Commenting on the country’s success, Minister of Climate Dan Jørgensen shared: “We are not done with the green transition, but we have come a long way. And since we are a small country that wants to make a difference by leading by example, it is good that our efforts are being recognised around the world. Only in this way can we inspire others to do many of the same things that we are successful at.”

Despite this, Jørgensen admits that Denmark still has a long way to go if it wishes to perform well enough to rank in the CCPI’s top 3.

Apart from Denmark, two Nordic countries have also ranked high. More specifically, Sweden and Norway have claimed 5^th and 6^th place, respectively.

To view the rankings of all 60 countries, visit CCPI’s website.