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Environmental performance indices play a crucial role in evaluating countries' environmental efforts and advancing global environmental governance. This study critically examines disparities among prominent climate performance indices, including the Environmental Performance Index (EPI), Climate Change Performance Index (CCPI), and Climate Action Tracker (CAT). We reveal significant divergences in country rankings, particularly between ‘developed’ and ‘least developed’ nations, underscoring how methodological choices profoundly impact outcomes and interpretability. We develop an analytic tool, called EPI-equity, to demonstrate how integrating equity principles can substantially alter performance assessments. We propose a conceptual framework to classify indices based on the perspectives they embody, highlighting how these can shape the interpretation of performance. Our results suggest that the outcomes of environmental performance indices are more likely to concur when they represent similar perspectives. We propose that explicitly articulating the perspective implied by the formalism of performance indices can enhance transparency, guide developers in aligning methodological choices with intended interpretations, and equip users with a clearer understanding of the results. Our analysis highlights the importance of employing multiple indices that encompass a range of perspectives for a comprehensive evaluation of countries' environmental performance. Our adaptable framework provides a structured approach to guide the selection of indices ensuring that they span a broad spectrum of viewpoints. This method mitigates the likelihood of conflicts arising from fragmented worldviews on complex socio-environmental issues.
Dhara et al. (Fri,) studied this question.