Top 10 greenest countries in the world

From widening wealth disparity to the environmental ramifications of economic development—the growing focus on global sustainability is a clear sign of the times and research reveals that when a sustainable ethos is applied to policy and business, it typically bodes well for economies and people alike. 

Visual Capitalist has mapped the countries across the globe based on national sustainability using Yale University's Environmental Performance Index (EPI) report. 

The EPI report confirms that national environmental policies—and their positive results—are highly correlated with national wealth as all of the top 10 countries are in Europe. 

Scandinavian countries, which tend to have a high GDP per capita, show strong and consistent results across EPI parameters. 

Denmark which ranks first overall leads the world in slowing its growth in CO2 emissions. Meanwhile, Sweden leads in landfill and recycling treatment. 

Ultimately, it appears the world's greenest countries tend to focus on all areas of sustainability, while laggard countries show more uneven performance across categories.