Results of the annual Commitment to Development Index (CDI) – which ranks 21 of the world's richest countries on their dedication to policies that benefit poorer nations – have just been released. This year the focus is on the environment, where the U.S. ranks last. CGD research fellow David Roodman has extended the CDI environmental component to cover four of the biggest developing countries: Brazil, Russia, India and China. He finds that they generally perform well on greenhouse gas emissions, consumption of ozone-depleting substances, and tropical timber imports. Major weaknesses include low gas taxes, deforestation and heavy fossil fuel use. The Index will be presented in Washington on Monday, Oct. 15.
