Uruguay is the second best positioned country in the region, according to The Green Future Index 2023 (The Green Future Index), which quantifies the degree to which the economies of different countries are turning towards clean energy, industry, agriculture and society through investment in renewable energy, innovation and green policies.
The ranking is published by the MIT Technology Review publication, which edits and disseminates the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT)an American private university.
After obtaining a score of 5.13, Uruguay ranked as the second country in Latin America with the most prosperous green future, only behind Costa Rica which got a metric of 5.26. The other country on the continent that this index highlighted for obtaining a score greater than 5 was Chili with 5.08. At the same time, all three countries ranked 24th, 26 and 30 globally, respectively.
This is the third year that the index that classifies 76 territories has been carried out, according to its “capabilities to develop a sustainable and low carbon future”.
Yes ok the country improved compared to the mark it obtained in 2022 (4.8)in this year’s measurement Uruguay failed to reach the number it obtained in 2020 (5.38)when this ranking was first developed.
“Uruguay began exporting carbon neutral certified meat to Europewith the carbon footprint label ‘Cradle to Gate‘. Up to 73% of greenhouse gases in Uruguay are produced by the agricultural and forestry sectors”, expressed the report issued by MIT Technology Review along with the list.
The labeling “Cradle to Gate” indicates that the product that carries it captured more carbon than was emitted during the entire commercialization process. Uruguay applied it to its meat in 2021 and it was a pioneer in South America.
The first five economies in the world that presented a better reality in terms of their sustainability for the future, the Nordics from Iceland (6.69), Finland (6.68), Norway (6.37), Denmark and Sweden (both with 6.34).
MIT Technology Review
The Green Future Index 2023 by country.
The index is made up of five pillars. The first is carbon emissions.which “measures how effectively countries are reducing carbon dioxide emissions overall and in key sectors.” Uruguay in this component was ranked 18th globally.
The energy transition is the second variable that was taken into account to prepare the Green Future Index. This pillar assesses “the contribution and growth rate of renewable and clean energy generation in each country”. This was the variable in which Uruguay obtained the best performance after ranking 7th among all the countries considered.
The third pillar is called Green Society and measures “the efforts made by government, industry and society to promote green practices”. Uruguay was ranked 51st and in this variable it was the one with the worst place.
The fourth variable is innovation in cleaning and quantifies “the innovation environment for building a low-carbon future, such as the relative penetration of green patents, investment in cross-border clean energy, and investment in food technology.” Uruguay reached 26th place in this area.
Finally, the political climate was consideredwhich takes into account “the ambition and effectiveness of climate policy, including carbon finance initiatives, sustainable agricultural policy, and the use of pandemic recovery spending to achieve a green economic recovery.” In this pillar, Uruguay reached 26th place.
Also, the report indicated that Uruguay is on the list of the 20 countries that most evolved compared to the 2022 index. And it ranked in the global top 10 (just fifth place) among countries that will accelerate energy transition programs due to its relative exposure to global LNG (liquefied natural gas) supply chains.
