Cyprus's Responsibility Towards The Environment

Cyprus Republic of Cyprus [Country Profile Page]
Status	Independent State
Social and Moral Index	29th best
Capital	Nicosia
Land Area	9 240km21
Location	Asia, Europe, The Mediterranean, The Middle East
Groupings	Small Islands
Population	1.2m2
Life Expectancy	81.20yrs (2017)3
GNI	$38 188 (2017)4
ISO3166-1 Codes	CY, CYP, 1965
Internet Domain	.cy6
Currency	Euro (EUR)7
Telephone	+3578

Regarding its responsibility towards the environment, Cyprus is 44th in the world. This is computed from 21 data sets. Cyprus comes in the best 20 in the rate of rational beliefs on the environment in the population₉ (amongst the best in The Mediterranean). It does better than average for its environmental performance₁₀, its sign-up rate to major international accords on protecting the environment (one of the highest in The Mediterranean), energy to GDP efficiency₁₁ and in its forested percent change 2000-2020₁₂ (but low for The Mediterranean). But, there's bad news too. Cyprus does worse than average in reducing annual meat consumption per person₁₃.

1. Cyprus's Responsibility Towards The Environment
2. Data Sets
   1. Forest Area Change 2000-2020
   2. Environmental Performance
   3. Energy to GDP Efficiency
   4. International Accords on the Environment
   5. Rational Beliefs on the Environment
   6. Meat Consumption
3. Links

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1. Cyprus's Responsibility Towards The Environment

#climate_change #the_environment

Compared to The Mediterranean (2025)14
Pos.		Lower is better Avg Rank14
1	Morocco	46.5
2	Spain	59.5
3	Tunisia	60.1
4	Greece	61.4
5	Italy	63.1
6	Cyprus	64.8
7	France	72.8
8	Turkey	75.0
9	Syria	77.4
10	Egypt	78.0
11	Algeria	79.7
12	Slovenia	82.1
13	Croatia	88.5
	The Mediterranean Avg	80.97
q=22.

Responsibility Towards The Environment (2025)14
Pos.		Lower is better Avg Rank14
1	Sri Lanka	34.9
2	Uruguay	43.2
3	Switzerland	45.0
	...
41	Gambia	63.3
42	Senegal	63.4
43	Hong Kong	64.6
44	Cyprus	64.8
45	Dominican Rep.	65.0
46	Ecuador	65.6
47	Hungary	65.8
48	Guatemala	66.1
	World Avg	84.93
q=199.

All countries' current and historical approach towards the environment is gauged via 21 datasets, including multiple decades of data on its forested percent change 2000-2020, its environmental performance, energy to GDP efficiency, its sign-up rate to major international accords on protecting the environment, the rate of rational beliefs on the environment in the population, reducing annual meat consumption per person and its score on the Green Future Index.

The countries that do the best (Sri Lanka, Uruguay and Switzerland) tend to have avoided the excesses of early industrial countries, and have not yet repeated the same mistakes of environmental destruction - at least, not on the same scale. The regions with the best average results per country are Central America, South America and Scandinavia. The worst are Eritrea, The Vatican City and Timor-Leste (E. Timor), and the worst regions Micronesia, Australasia and Melanesia.

For more, see:

• " Countries With the Best Environmental Records" by Vexen Crabtree (2025).

2. Data Sets

2.1. Forest Area Change 2000-2020

#biodiversity #deforestation #environmentalism #forests #over-exploitation #the_environment

Forest Area Change 2000-2020 Higher is better12
Pos.		Total12
1	Guernsey	82.6%
2	Bahrain	75.2%
3	Iceland	64.7%
	...
78	French Polynesia	0.6%
79	Germany	0.6%
80	Norway	0.6%
81	Cyprus	0.5%
82	New Zealand	0.4%
83	Slovenia	0.4%
84	Wallis & Futuna	0.3%
85	Japan	0.2%
	The Mediterranean Avg	7.5%
	World Avg	-0.1%
q=234.

Cyprus ranks 81st in the world regarding its forested percent change 2000-2020.

Forests are carbon sinks, mitigating against climate change_15,16. Unfortunately, we are destroying over 70,000 km² of forest each year₁₇. In the last few thousand years, we've removed 30-40% of the Earth's forest cover_18,16, mostly to clear space for agriculture, and for logging_19,20. The produce from both is shipped from poorer countries to richer ones. Half-hearted government efforts and company obfuscation of supply chains makes it almost impossible for consumers to tell which foods and products are from sustainable sources, and which ones are encouraging irresponsible deforestation, meaning that there is little incentive for companies to relent.

The effects are catastrophic. 15% of all greenhouse gas emissions are the result of deforestation_21,19. It brings soil erosion from wind and rain which, over time, can almost-permanently stop any hope of growing food₂₂, and spreads desertification. Entire ecosystems are collapsing as a result, including ones that we depend upon₂₃. The water cycle is driven by forests, and their loss reduces ordinary rainfall, increases flooding, removes an abundant source of water filtration, and contributes to a rise in water levels.₂₄.

Some regions of the world are increasing their forest cover₁₆; the best from 2000-2020 are Scandinavia (13.8% ), The Balkans (11.0% ) and Baltic States (7.6% )₁₂. There is an overall trend that developed countries gathered their riches by using up their natural resources, and now, they pay poorer countries to use up theirs instead, whilst they can afford to slowly rebuild their natural environments. But it's not wholly that simple - some rich regions are still burning through what they've got. The regions clearing their forests fastest are Central America (-12.8% ), Africa (-9.1% ) and North America (-2.9% )₁₂.

For more, see:

• "Deforestation" by Vexen Crabtree (2024).

Averages by decade for Cyprus (for the ranks, lower is better):

Forest Area Change 2000-2020	2000s  Average	2010s  Average
Cyprus:	0.7%	-0.2%
World Rank:	66th	⇣  150th
World Avg:	0.6%	-0.7%

2.2. Environmental Performance

#climate_change #energy #sustainability #the_environment

Environmental Performance Higher is better10
Pos.		201810
1	Switzerland	87.4
2	France	84.0
3	Denmark	81.6
	...
21	Australia	74.1
22	Greece	73.6
23	Taiwan	72.8
24	Cyprus	72.6
25	Canada	72.2
26	Portugal	71.9
27	USA	71.2
28	Slovakia	70.6
	The Mediterranean Avg	65.8
	World Avg	56.4
q=180.

Cyprus is positioned 24th in the world regarding its environmental performance.

The Environmental Performance Index 2018 data includes 24 indicators including air pollution, water and sanitation, biodiversity, ecosystems and environmental health, combined into a single score by country, by the Yale University Center for Environmental Law & Policy.

2.3. Energy to GDP Efficiency

#energy #sustainability #the_environment

Energy to GDP Efficiency Lower is better11
Pos.		2022 Avg11
1	Rwanda	0.25
2	Chad	0.26
3	Tanzania	0.31
	...
59	Sao Tome & Principe	0.88
60	Germany	0.91
61	Palestine	0.91
62	Cyprus	0.92
63	Tunisia	0.93
64	Israel	0.94
65	Djibouti	0.94
66	France	0.95
	The Mediterranean Avg	1.23
	World Avg	1.23
q=165.

Cyprus is positioned 62nd in the world with regard to energy to GDP efficiency.

GDP per unit of energy consumption is often called 'Energy Intensity'. It's how efficient countries are at producing GDP in terms of primary energy use. It represents primary energy consumption using the substitution method, per unit of gross domestic product (GDP). A lower value means that less energy was used to maintain the country's GDP.

Averages by decade for Cyprus (for the ranks, lower is better):

Energy to GDP Efficiency	1960s  Average	1970s  Average	1980s  Average	1990s  Average	2000s  Average	2010s  Average
Cyprus:	1.76	2.17	1.84	1.78	1.46	1.15
World Rank:	35th	⇣  39th	⇣  95th	⇡  94th	⇣  95th	⇡  89th
World Avg:	2.05	2.13	2.10	2.15	1.60	1.30

2.4. International Accords on the Environment

#environmentalism #internationalism

International Accords on the Environment Higher is better
Pos.		Total Avg Rate
1	Sweden	83%
2	Canada	82%
3	Norway	81%
	...
24	Brazil	71%
25	Chile	71%
26	S. Africa	71%
27	Cyprus	71%
28	Japan	70%
29	UK	70%
30	Tunisia	70%
31	Austria	70%
	The Mediterranean Avg	56.4%
	World Avg	57.5%
q=197.

Cyprus comes 27th in the world with regard to its sign-up rate to major international accords on protecting the environment (amongst the highest in The Mediterranean).

Each country is scored using a formula that takes the date each country took up major international environmental agreements, as a ratio of maximum possible days. The agreements covered are: (1) the Basel Convention on the Control of Transboundary Movements of Hazardous Wastes and their Disposal, (2) the Rotterdam Convention on the Prior Informed Consent Procedure for certain hazardous Chemicals and Pesticides, (3) the Stockholm Convention on Persistent Organic Pollutants, (4) the Waigani Convention (for those countries that are eligible), (5) the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD), (6) the Kyoto Protocol and (7) its successor, the Paris Agreement, (8) the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES), (9) the Montreal Protocol on Substances that Deplete the Ozone Layer and finally, (10) the Vienna Convention for the Protection of the Ozone Layer.

For more, see:

• " Countries With the Best Environmental Records" by Vexen Crabtree (2025).

Cyprus enacted the Basel Convention on waste and the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES) both during their first year, and one of the early adopters of the Kyoto Protocol in 1999.

“In 2023, Cyprus accounted for around 0.3% of the EU's net greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, and achieved a net emissions reduction of 5.6% compared with 2005. The country's total emissions decreased by 4.7% between 2005 and 2023, while its net carbon removals in the land use, land-use change and forestry (LULUCF) sector increased by 36%. Emissions from sectors covered by the effort-sharing legislation have increased by 7.9% since 2005, and in 2023 were slightly higher than those from sectors under the EU emissions trading system (ETS), which were down 14.9% over the same period. Although Cyprus intends to reach zero net emissions in 2050, the level of progress towards the EU climate neutrality objective appears to be insufficient. [...] Almost half of Cyprus's national recovery and resilience plan, which includes a REPowerEU chapter, is dedicated to the green transition, with a focus on energy and transport.”

EU 2023 Climate Action Strategy₂₅

Averages by decade for Cyprus (for the ranks, lower is better):

International Accords on the Environment	1970s  Average	1980s  Average	1990s  Average	2000s  Average	2010s  Average
Cyprus:	45%	33%	62%	88%	98%
World Rank:	6th	⇣  42nd	⇣  47th	⇡  29th	⇣  70th
World Avg:	8.5%	23.3%	45.0%	74.4%	90.7%

2.5. Rational Beliefs on the Environment

Rational Beliefs on the Environment Higher is better9
Pos.		2011 %9
1	Argentina	78.3%
2	Greece	77.6%
3	Brazil	77.1%
4	Trinidad & Tobago	74.5%
5	Costa Rica	74.2%
6	Cyprus	71.0%
7	Guatemala	70.9%
8	Philippines	70.8%
9	S. Korea	70.7%
10	Colombia	70.3%
11	Bolivia	69.3%
12	Paraguay	68.9%
	The Mediterranean Avg	40.1%
	World Avg	39.9%
q=145.

Amongst the best in The Mediterranean in terms of the rate of rational beliefs on the environment in the population, Cyprus comes 6th-best in the world. In a 2023 survey, 39% of Cypriots identified climate change as one of the four most serious problems facing the world (less than the 46% EU average)₂₅. "Most expect the national government (69%), business and industry (67%) and/or the EU (63%) to tackle climate change, while 41% think it is a personal responsibility"₂₅.

2.6. Meat Consumption

#animal_rights #animal_welfare #diet #food #health #meat #veganism #vegetarianism

Meat Consumption Lower is better13
Pos.		2021 kg13
1	Congo, DR	03.0
2	Burundi	03.5
3	Bangladesh	04.3
	...
133	Italy	74.3
134	Norway	74.7
135	Mexico	75.4
136	Cyprus	75.8
137	Austria	76.4
138	Germany	76.6
139	Greece	76.8
140	Serbia	77.6
	The Mediterranean Avg	59.1
	World Avg	52.5
q=185.

Cyprus is positioned 136th in the world in terms of reducing annual meat consumption per person.

There are five key arguments in favour of vegetarianism which accrue even from partial adoption: (1) Vegetarian diets have notable health advantages over carnivorous diets, especially for heart and cardiovascular issues_26,27,28. (2) It is morally better to avoid killing or harming animals. (3) Plant-based diets use much less water than carnivorous ones, to the extent that agricultural and water management scientists urge governments to encourage people to switch₂₉. (4) Vegetarian food production uses substantially less land_26,30,31. And, (5) vegetarianism is better for the environment than meat-production for emissions, sewerage, pollution and chemicals usage._26,30. A plant-based diet causes 75% less greenhouse gas emissions than a typical carnivorous diet₃₁. The global food industry causes about 1/3 of all planet-heating emissions, and so "to slow the worst climate effects, the United Nations has called for a drastic reduction in meat consumption"₃₁. Despite this, "reducing appetites for carbon-intensive meat and dairy is incredibly hard"₃₂ and as countries get richer, they tend to eat more meat.

In the 2010s, meat consumption per person in Cyprus was well above the global average (of 49kgs per year), putting unnecessary strain on water supplies and the environment, although the rate during that decade was reducing.₁₃

On average throughout the 2010s, Cyprus's rate was 77.7.