According to the 2016 Environmental Performance Index, which ranks 180 countries on how they protect human health and ecosystems, Slovenia is the 5th most environmentally friendly country on Earth.

The annual Environmental Performance Index (EPI) is compiled by researchers from the US-based Yale University and Columbia University. The index ranks how well countries perform on high-priority environmental issues in two broad policy areas: protection of human health from environmental harm and the protection of ecosystems.

According to the report, the greenest country on Earth is Finland, followed by Iceland and Sweden. Slovenia earned a very respectable 5th position, while its neighbours Croatia, Austria, Hungary and Italy are placed on 15, 18, 28 and 29 position respectively.

World’s top 10 most environmentally friendly countries (with their scores):
1. Finland (90.68)
2. Iceland (90.51)
3. Sweden (90.43)
4. Denmark (89.21)
5. Slovenia (88.98)
6. Spain (88.91)
7. Portugal (88.63)
8. Estonia (88.59)
9. Malta (88.48)
10. France (88.20)
…
15. Croatia (86.98)
18. Austria (86.64)
28. Hungary (84.60)
29. Italy (84.48)

(photo: Peter Zajfrid)