Environmentally efficient well-being: Is there a Kuznets curve?

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January 1, 2012 - Thomas Dietz<tdietz@msu.edu><tdietz@msu.edu>, Eugene A. Rosa, Richard York

Journal or Book Title: Applied Geography

Keywords: Environmental Kuznets Curve; Human well-being; Sustainability indicators

Volume/Issue: 32 (2012)

Page Number(s): 21-28

Year Published: 2010

The environmental Kuznets curve (EKC) posits an inverted “U” shaped relationship between the affluence of a nation and the stress it places on the biophysical environment, with increases in affluence from low to moderate levels producing increased environmental stress but further increases eventually leading to a tipping point after which further affluence reduces environmental stress. We hypothesized that the same pattern might obtain for the relationship between affluence and the efficiency with which a nation produces human well-being compared to the stress it places on the environment. The environmental intensity of human well-being (EIWB) was represented as the ratio of a nation’s per capita ecological footprint to its average life expectancy at birth. Using panel data on 58 nations, we find that, on average, the relationship between gross domestic product per capita and EIWB is a U shape, the inverse of the Kuznets curve.

DOI: 10.1016/j.apgeog.2010.10.011

Type of Publication: Journal Article

Publisher: Elsevier

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Tag List
  • center for systems integration and sustainability,
  • environmental kuznets curve,
  • human well-being,
  • sustainability indicators
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