Measuring transitions ?
Five major shifts — energy, ecological, digital, social, circular — read through the international indices that shape public decision-making in 2025-2026.
The current decade demands deep, systemic transformations.
Whether it concerns the climate emergency, technological mutations, or growing demands for social justice, States — particularly those of the Global South — face challenges of unprecedented scale that are reshaping their development trajectories and their strategic room for manoeuvre.
Without reverting to the evolutionist approaches of the past, which ranked countries according to hierarchies of "modernity" in the 1960s-1970s or of "democracy" in the following decades, it remains useful to have synthetic indicators that allow us to situate the dynamics at work and identify the gaps to be bridged.
These indicators, developed by a diversity of actors — universities, international organisations, economic forums and think tanks — cover several key dimensions of contemporary transitions. They are integrated into the Strategic Dashboard developed by the PNT, in order to offer a transversal and operational reading of strategic challenges, and to support decision-making in complex, rapidly evolving environments.
The cornerstone of the climate fight
A profound upheaval of production and consumption models: gradual phase-out of fossil fuels, security of supply, equity of access.
The energy transition is the cornerstone of the fight against climate change. It implies a profound upheaval of our energy production and consumption models, requiring a gradual but determined phase-out of fossil fuels in favour of renewable sources, while ensuring security of supply and equity of access for all populations.
ETI 2025
Index architecture
- Energy system performance — equity of access, security of supply
- Environmental sustainability — carbon intensity, share of renewables
- Institutional readiness — regulatory framework, political stability
- Human & technological capital — R&D, cleantech patents, training
- Investment & infrastructure — green capital flows, smart grids
ETI 2025 ranking · score /100
Key finding. The four Nordic countries dominate the top 4 of the 2025 ranking, reflecting 30 years of sustained investment, mature low-carbon infrastructure and political stability without global equivalent. No country has yet crossed the 80/100 threshold — the Swedish leader peaks at 77.5.
weforum.org/publications/fostering-effective-energy-transition-2025/
GFI 2023
Five measurement pillars
- Carbon emissions — intensity trajectory, carbon neutrality
- Energy transition — renewables deployment, coal phase-out
- Green society — sustainable food, clean transport, low-carbon buildings
- Clean innovation — patents, cleantech financing, green start-ups
- Climate policy — NDC ambition, implementation, governance
GFI 2023 ranking
Distinctive feature of the index. Developed by MIT, the GFI is the only energy transition index that significantly weighs technological innovation and concrete policy commitments, beyond mere infrastructure metrics.
technologyreview.com/2023/04/05/1070581/the-green-future-index-2023/
According to the ETI 2025, no country in the world has yet completed a full energy transition. Global leaders peak between 71 and 77/100. This finding underlines the scale of the path remaining to meet the goals of the Paris Agreement.
Beyond energy, the health of ecosystems
Preserving biodiversity, controlling pollution, building resilience to climate shocks.
Beyond the sole energy dimension, the ecological transition encompasses the preservation of biodiversity, the control of pollution, the health of ecosystems and resilience to climate shocks.
EPI 2024
Assessment categories
- Climate change & energy — GHG intensity, low-carbon policies
- Air quality — PM2.5, ozone, population exposure
- Environmental health — drinking water, sanitation, lead
- Ecosystem vitality — forests, wetlands, protected areas
- Biodiversity & habitat — endangered species, agricultural pressure
- Water resources & sustainable agriculture
EPI 2024 ranking · score /100
An academic reference since 2006, the EPI is the only global environmental index based entirely on measured rather than declarative data. Estonia has achieved a 40% drop in its GHG emissions, becoming the unexpected model of European ecological transition.
epi.yale.edu
SDG Index 2025
The 17 SDGs covered
- SDG 1-2 — No poverty & zero hunger
- SDG 3-4-5 — Health, education, gender equality
- SDG 6-7-8 — Water, energy, decent work
- SDG 9-10-11 — Innovation, inequalities, sustainable cities
- SDG 12-13-14 — Consumption, climate, life below water
- SDG 15-16-17 — Life on land, peace & justice, partnerships
SDG Index 2025 ranking · score /100
Universality & legitimacy. The 10th edition of the SDG Index 2025 confirms Nordic dominance: 19 of the top 20 countries are European. No country in the world is yet simultaneously on track for all 17 SDGs — even leaders face critical deficits on SDGs 12, 13 and 14.
sustainabledevelopment.report · dashboards.sdgindex.org
The EPI 2024 reveals that while high-income countries are progressing on air and water quality, their total ecological footprint remains structurally unsustainable. The SDG Index 2025 confirms that no country in the world is simultaneously on track for all 17 SDGs.
The second great engine of the century
Competitiveness, public service efficiency, innovation capacity: digital is reshaping global economic hierarchies.
The digitalisation of economies is the second great engine of transformation of this century. It largely determines future competitiveness, the efficiency of public services and the innovation capacity of societies.
IMD WDCR 2025
Three strategic factors
- Knowledge — digital talent, university training, concentration of researchers
- Technology — regulatory framework, venture capital, R&D ecosystem
- Future readiness — corporate agility, IT integration, digital transformation
WDCR 2025 ranking
Distinctive value. The IMD WDCR 2025 covers 69 economies and confirms Switzerland at the top of global digital competitiveness. Hong Kong SAR enters the top 5, reflecting its rising technological power in the Asia-Pacific region.
imd.org/centers/wcc/world-competitiveness-center/rankings/world-digital-competitiveness-ranking/
NRI 2025
Four assessment pillars
- Technology — network access, digital content, emerging technologies (AI, IoT)
- Governance — digital trust, regulatory framework, inclusion
- Impact — economic spillovers, quality of life, contribution to the SDGs
- People — individuals, businesses, governments in the digital era
NRI 2025 ranking
A holistic view of digital. For the 4th consecutive year, the United States, Finland and Singapore occupy the podium. The NRI 2025 confirms that small advanced Northern European economies are best at converting their digital infrastructure into real human progress.
networkreadinessindex.org
No sustainability without equity
Guaranteeing every individual a dignified, free and fulfilling life — independently of national economic wealth.
Sustainability cannot be achieved without social equity. The social transition measures a society's capacity to guarantee every individual a dignified, free and fulfilling life — independently of national economic wealth.
SPI 2026
Three assessment dimensions
- Nutrition & medical care
- Water & sanitation
- Decent housing
- Personal safety
- Access to knowledge
- Access to information
- Health & wellness
- Environmental quality
- Personal rights & civic voice
- Freedom of choice
- Social inclusion
- Advanced education
SPI 2026 ranking · score /100
The SPI 2026 reveals a historic turning point: after a decade of steady progress, global social progress has stagnated since 2021. Of the 171 countries assessed, 50 countries have regressed, 85 have not changed significantly, and only 36 have progressed. Personal rights and freedoms have lost nearly 6 points since 2011, victims of the rise of authoritarianism and populism. The United States falls to 32nd place — now overtaken by the European Union by 3 points.
The SPI demonstrates empirically that GDP alone does not suffice to explain the level of social progress. Denmark and the United States have comparable GDP per capita, but US social progress is nearly 10 points lower. The level of progress in the United States is comparable to that of Latvia, whose GDP per capita is yet half as large.
socialprogress.org
Social progress is a deliberate policy, not an automatic consequence of economic growth.
Another vision of performance
The circular economy and ESG (Environmental, Social, Governance) criteria offer another vision of the performance criteria of companies and public institutions.
The circular economy and ESG (Environmental, Social, Governance) criteria offer another vision of the performance criteria of companies and public institutions.
CGR 2025 · KAPSARC 2024
Areas of analysis
- Measuring the circularity gap — share of circular vs. linear economy by country
- Material & resource flows — extraction, use, recycling, losses
- Priority national interventions — sectoral roadmaps
- KAPSARC CCE Index — country performance towards a circular carbon economy
The CGR 2025 delivers a finding even more alarming than in 2024: the share of the genuinely circular economy has continued to decline. Linear economic growth structurally outpaces circularity efforts. According to the report: "We cannot recycle our way out of this crisis" — reducing raw material consumption is now unavoidable.
circularity-gap.world/2025 · cceindex.kapsarc.org
ESG Indices 2025
The three ESG pillars
- E — Environmental — decarbonisation, biodiversity, water management, climate policy
- S — Social — human rights, working conditions, supply chain, health
- G — Governance — rule of law, transparency, anti-corruption, democracy
2025 Sovereign ESG leaders
Decisive financial impact. Sovereign ESG scores have become a central parameter of international financial markets. More than 40 trillion dollars in assets now integrate ESG criteria into their overall management.
robeco.com · esgdata.worldbank.org · spglobal.com
No country in the world has completed even one of these transitions.
The ten indices reviewed converge towards a single finding: global leaders — mostly small Nordic economies — peak well below the theoretical thresholds of completion. The energy transition stalls below 78/100, the circular economy has been declining since 2018, social progress has stagnated since 2021, and no country is simultaneously on track for the 17 SDGs.
For the States of the Global South, these rankings are not verdicts but framing tools: they reveal priority levers of action, the gaps to bridge, and the models to draw inspiration from — without copying them. The PNT's Strategic Dashboard reads them transversally, in the service of informed public decision-making in a rapidly changing environment.