The Catholic University of Costa Rica has announced the results of a groundbreaking investigation. The institution has measured which countries comply with the ecological program proposed by Pope Francis in his Laudato si' encyclical.
FERNANDO SÁNCHEZ
Dean, Catholic University of Costa Rica
“The main goal is for this, which is a sort of 'holy boldness', to take the pope's encyclical and create an index to see if the support expressed for Pope Francis at the time is reflected in the politics of countries.”
To design these indicators, living conditions were studied in 127 nations – representing 93 percent of the world population. Results show that “more than half of the population lives in conditions of risk and instability.”
Based on the statistics, the university has compiled a ranking.
The most compliant country is Finland, which scored an 87.5 percent. Following are New Zealand, Australia, Sweden and Canada, one of two American countries within the top 20 together with Costa Rica.
The goal of this investigation is to monitor nations' environmental and social development to caution the relevant institutions, whether public or not. In addition, the observatory aims to be a concrete action to help achieve what Pope Francis proposes in his encyclical, the common good and care for the common home.
TOP 20 COUNTRIES BASED ON LAUDATO SI' INDEX
1. Finland 87.51%
2. New Zealand 85.43%
3. Australia 85.36%
4. Sweden 85.30%
5. Canada 83.14%
6. Denmark 82.85%
7. Norway 82.74%
8. Estonia 81.83%
9. Ireland 81.55%
10. Spain 80.72%
11. Portugal 80.53%
12. United Kingdom 80.24%
13. Slovenia 79.48%
14. France 79.24%
15. Switzerland 79.10%
16. Austria 78.83%
17. Germany 77.95%
18. Latvia 77.89%
19. Netherlands 77.41%
20. Costa Rica 77.35%
