Sustainable Travel: Which Countries Have The Most Active Environmentalists

With the increase in train travel versus flying, many travelers are seeking countries with active environmentalists, fighting to reduce their carbon footprint. Sustainable travel is the way to go and Arka ran a study to research the 50 most populated countries in the world to identify those with the most active environmentalists.  It might surprise some travelers to find out which country comes top in the study.

Which countries have the most active environmentalists?

A study has been run by Arka on the 50 most populated countries in the world to find which has the most environmental activists. Data relating to the population, environmental (or Green) political parties and non-governmental organizations (NGOs) was used to quantify the activity of environmentalists. Read on to find out which countries came out tops in the study.

1. United States

According to the study, the United States hosts the most active environmentalists, with a composite score of 69. Moreover, it has the most environmental NGOs at 1,800. For each one million Americans, there are reportedly approximately five environmental organizations. Moreover, there are several American environmentalists active in politics, with 12 political parties, such as Dr. Jill Stein’s Green Party. Meanwhile, the beautiful US National Parks are difficult to beat.

2. India

Next on the list of environmentally active countries is India at number two in the world, with a score of 68. For each 1.4 billion Indians there are 1,200 environmental NGOs. Meanwhile, for every one million people there is almost one environmental organization. However, India has 2.4 times fewer green political parties than the United States.

3. Germany

Taking third place in the study is Germany, with a composite score of 62.4. Moreover, German environmentalists are the most active in politics with 14 parties for 83.5 million inhabitants. The EU nation has 18 environmental organizations and parties for each one million people living there.

4. Canada

Canada is fourth in the running, boasting a composite score of 51.2 and has 30 environmental organizations for one million Canadian. This is the highest number in the ranking and compared to the US, its NGOs are less in numbers, with around 1,200 organizations.

5. China

China is the most populated country in the world and comes fifth with a composite score of 46.9. Meanwhile, it has the least amount of green organizations per one million people at 0.4. Here, environmentalists are the least active politically with two political parties and 500 NGOs. However, its positioning on the list is mostly backed by the country’s large population.

6. United Kingdom

Coming in sixth place is the United Kingdom, with a composite score of 38.2, and 16 organizations per one million people – 40 times more than China. Furthermore, the ratio is backed by 69 million citizens in the UK, with seven environmental political parties and 1,100 NGOs.

7. Brazil

With a composite score of 35.6, Brazil snags seventh place in the study. However, it has half as many environmental NGOs as the US. However, the country isn’t too far behind when taking into account the organization-to-population ratio. Meanwhile, environmentalists in Brazil are relatively active in politics, with six parties for 216 million inhabitants.

8. France

Heading back to Europe, France comes in eighth place, with a composite score of 34, while its environmental organizations and parties are not much different from Brazil’s. Moreover, France has a higher organization-to-population ratio of 15.4 compared to Brazil’s 4.2.

9. Poland

Next in line at number nine, Poland has a composite score of 33.3. Moreover, the country has the exact same number of parties and NGOs as France. However, with its smaller population of 37 million, Poland has 1.7 times more organizations for one million inhabitants.

10. Colombia

In tenth place in the study, Colombia boasts a composite score of 31.8. The country has the same number of NGOs and parties as Brazil, which has around four times less population. Meanwhile, the country boasts 17 environmental organizations for one million Colombians,  4.2 times more than Brazil.

More about the study

A spokesperson for Arka commented on the study, saying:

The activity of environmentalists is not solely based on the organization to population ratio. What affects the activity the most is the amount of potential members of parties. In the case of Colombia and Brazil, where Colombia’s organization-to-population ratio is higher, its activity is lower, because of its lower population.

Readers can check out the full results from the study here.

Travelers should keep in mind which countries are more active in working to save the environment when planning their next vacation.