NXS-GRX · GRX-IDX-ENV · VUL Human and systems vulnerability

Environmental pressure index

0-10 index of environmental pressure and ecosystem condition combining air pollution, land and forest degradation, biodiversity status, ocean condition and waste pressure.

Construction Simulator Indicators

Page GRX-IDX-ENVEdition Baseline Edition 2026Evidence close 2026-09-30Indicator Standard IDX.ENV.biodiversity.environmental_pressureValues not yet publishedSnapshot 31a753f76

FIG 1 · Method card

Aggregation

arithmetic

equal weights · floor 0.1 where geometric

Uncertainty

1,000 draws

normalisation, weights, aggregation, imputation

Structure

5 components

16 leaf indicators

Coverage

60% minimum

modelled share ≤ 20%

From the Indicator Standard definition of this index.

leaf indicators

components

1,000

Monte Carlo draws

series read it

01Construction

From indicators to the composite

The environmental dimension of a place profile: where ecological decline is eroding health, livelihoods and natural protection against hazards.

computation

How Environmental pressure is computed

Graph24 nodes

Graph

01Indicators

02Sub-indices

03Domain index

04Pillar

05Composite

100%

List

PM2.5 exposure, population-weighted mean
Indicator · IND · ug/m3
Annual mean concentration of fine particulate matter (diameter 2.5 micrometres or less) to which residents are exposed, weighting satellite- and model-derived surface concentrations by population.
Population exposed above the WHO PM2.5 guideline, share
Indicator · IND · %
Share of residents living where annual mean PM2.5 exceeds the 2021 WHO air-quality guideline of 5 micrograms per cubic metre.
Seasonal peak ozone exposure
Indicator · IND · [ppb]
Population-weighted mean of the highest six-month running average of daily maximum eight-hour ozone concentration, in parts per billion.
Annual tree cover loss rate
Indicator · IND · %
Area of tree cover (canopy 30 % or more in the 2000 baseline) removed or killed in the year, from Landsat-based change detection, as a percentage of the 2000 tree cover area; the five-year mean is carried alongside.
Degraded land, share of land area
Indicator · IND · %
Share of land degraded according to the one-out-all-out combination of declining land cover, land productivity and soil organic carbon over the reporting period.
Forest area, share of land area
Indicator · IND · %
Land spanning more than 0.5 hectares with trees taller than 5 metres and canopy cover above 10 %, excluding land predominantly in agricultural or urban use, as a percentage of land area.
Red List Index
Indicator · IND · 1
Index from 0 (all species extinct) to 1 (all species least concern) of aggregate extinction risk across comprehensively assessed species groups, nationally disaggregated.
Biodiversity Intactness Index
Indicator · IND · 1
Modelled average abundance of originally present species across the area relative to an undisturbed reference, from 0 to 1, based on land use and its intensity.
Key biodiversity areas covered by protected areas
Indicator · IND · %
Average share of each terrestrial and freshwater key biodiversity area that lies inside protected or conserved areas, by ecosystem type.
Coastal eutrophication index
Indicator · IND · %
Deviation of coastal chlorophyll-a concentration from its long-term baseline within the exclusive economic zone, from satellite ocean-colour data, as a share of the coastal area with high deviation.
Average marine acidity (pH)
Indicator · IND · [pH]
Average surface seawater pH measured at representative sampling stations in the country's waters.
Marine heatwave days per year
Indicator · IND · d/a
Average annual number of days on which sea surface temperature in the country's waters exceeds the seasonally varying 90th percentile of a 1982-2011 baseline for five or more consecutive days.
Fish stocks within biologically sustainable levels
Indicator · IND · %
Share of assessed marine fish stocks whose abundance is at or above the level producing maximum sustainable yield.
Municipal solid waste generated per capita
Indicator · IND · kg/a/{person}
Mass of municipal solid waste generated per resident per year, from national or city waste statistics.
Municipal solid waste managed in controlled facilities
Indicator · IND · %
Share of municipal solid waste generated that is collected and then managed in controlled recovery or disposal facilities.
Mismanaged plastic waste per capita
Indicator · IND · kg/a/{person}
Mass of plastic waste per resident per year that is littered, openly burned or disposed of in uncontrolled dumps, from waste-flow models.
Air pollution sub-index
Sub-index · SUB · w 1 · 25.0%
Composite of population-weighted PM2.5 exposure, the share above the WHO guideline and seasonal peak ozone.
Land and forest degradation sub-index
Sub-index · SUB · w 1 · 25.0%
Composite of tree cover loss rate, degraded land share and forest cover.
Biodiversity status sub-index
Sub-index · SUB · w 1 · 25.0%
Composite of the Red List Index, the Biodiversity Intactness Index and protection of key biodiversity areas.
Ocean condition sub-index
Sub-index · SUB · w 0.5 · 12.5%
Composite of coastal eutrophication, marine acidity, marine heatwave days and the share of sustainably fished stocks.
Waste pressure sub-index
Sub-index · SUB · w 0.5 · 12.5%
Composite of municipal solid waste generation, the share managed in controlled facilities and mismanaged plastic waste.
Environmental pressure index
Domain index · IDX · arithmetic
0-10 index of environmental pressure and ecosystem condition combining air pollution, land and forest degradation, biodiversity status, ocean condition and waste pressure.
Human and systems vulnerability
Pillar · PILLAR · 8 indices
How susceptible are people, livelihoods, ecosystems and essential systems to harm when a shock arrives?
NXS-GRX Composite Risk
Composite · COMPOSITE · four pillars
Composite = (HTE × VUL × MSF × LCC)^(1/4), each pillar on 0–10 floored at 0.1; pillar = expert-weighted geometric mean of its domain indices

Not runIn progressDone

FIG 2. 16 indicators, 5 components, real Indicator Standard weights (the bar under each node is its share). Select a node to trace what it feeds and what feeds it; Simulate run plays the computation in order.

02Simulator

Run this index's own aggregation

Set each component, change the aggregation or the weight uncertainty, and watch the interval, the class probability and each component's contribution respond.

FIG 3 · Simulator: aggregate environmental pressure on your numbers

Components (0 to 10)

Air pollution sub-index · w 13.0

Land and forest degradation sub-index · w 15.0

Biodiversity status sub-index · w 17.0

Ocean condition sub-index · w 0.54.0

Waste pressure sub-index · w 0.56.0

Aggregation

Weight uncertainty ±%25

Mix aggregation alternatives (0 or 1)1

–

runs in your browser

Contribution of each component (leave one out)

Simulator: the index's published aggregation run on numbers you set, with 1,000 draws over weights and aggregation. The slider positions are starting points for the explainer, not NXS-GRX (canonical data, provenance and risk) values.

03Method

Treatment, normalisation, weighting, aggregation, uncertainty

Treatment: WINSORISE
Outlier rule: |skew| > 2, kurtosis > 3.5
Normalisation: MIN_MAX
Imputation: NONE
Coverage minimum: 60% of components
Modelled share cap: 20% of weight
Weighting: equal
Aggregation: arithmetic
Scale: 0 to 10
Uncertainty: 1,000 Monte Carlo runs over normalisation, weights, aggregation, imputation
Framework basis: Yale EPI 2026 (structure only); UN SEEA Ecosystem Accounting; OECD/JRC Handbook (2008)

Very low0.0 to < 2.0

Low2.0 to < 3.5

Medium3.5 to < 5.0

High5.0 to < 6.5

Very high6.5 to 10.0

04Components

5 components, 16 indicators

Air pollution sub-index w 1

Composite of population-weighted PM2.5 exposure, the share above the WHO guideline and seasonal peak ozone.

Indicator	Unit	Evidence	Sources	Share
PM2.5 exposure, population-weighted meanIND.ENV.air.pm25_exposure	ug/m3	Class C	wb-wdi, who-ambient-air-quality-database, acag-satellite-pm25, copernicus-cams	50.0%
Population exposed above the WHO PM2.5 guideline, shareIND.ENV.air.pm25_guideline_exceedance.share	%	Class C	wb-wdi, acag-satellite-pm25, jrc-ghsl-ghs-pop	25.0%
Seasonal peak ozone exposureIND.ENV.air.ozone_exposure	[ppb]	Class C	state-of-global-air, copernicus-cams, toar	25.0%

Land and forest degradation sub-index w 1

Composite of tree cover loss rate, degraded land share and forest cover.

Indicator	Unit	Evidence	Sources	Share
Annual tree cover loss rateIND.ENV.land.tree_cover_loss.share	%	Class C	gfw-umd-tree-cover-loss	40.0%
Degraded land, share of land areaIND.ENV.land.land_degradation.share	%	Class C	unccd-prais, trends-earth	40.0%
Forest area, share of land areaIND.ENV.land.forest_cover.share	%	Class B	fao-fra, wb-wdi	20.0%

Biodiversity status sub-index w 1

Composite of the Red List Index, the Biodiversity Intactness Index and protection of key biodiversity areas.

Indicator	Unit	Evidence	Sources	Share
Red List IndexIND.ENV.biodiversity.red_list_index	1	Class B	iucn-red-list, un-sdg-database	33.3%
Biodiversity Intactness IndexIND.ENV.biodiversity.biodiversity_intactness	1	Class C	nhm-predicts-bii	33.3%
Key biodiversity areas covered by protected areasIND.ENV.biodiversity.key_biodiversity_area_protected.share	%	Class B	kba-partnership, wdpa-protected-planet, un-sdg-database	33.3%

Ocean condition sub-index w 0.5

Composite of coastal eutrophication, marine acidity, marine heatwave days and the share of sustainably fished stocks.

Indicator	Unit	Evidence	Sources	Share
Coastal eutrophication indexIND.ENV.ocean.coastal_eutrophication	%	Class C	unep-global-environment-monitoring, copernicus-marine	25.0%
Average marine acidity (pH)IND.ENV.ocean.ocean_acidity	[pH]	Class B	ioc-unesco-sdg1431-portal, socat	25.0%
Marine heatwave days per yearIND.ENV.ocean.marine_heatwave_days	d/a	Class C	noaa-oisst, copernicus-marine	25.0%
Fish stocks within biologically sustainable levelsIND.ENV.ocean.sustainable_fish_stocks.share	%	Class B	fao-fisheries-sofia	25.0%

Waste pressure sub-index w 0.5

Composite of municipal solid waste generation, the share managed in controlled facilities and mismanaged plastic waste.

Indicator	Unit	Evidence	Sources	Share
Municipal solid waste generated per capitaIND.ENV.pollution.msw_generation.pc	kg/a/{person}	Class B	wb-what-a-waste, unstats-environment-waste, unep-global-waste-outlook	33.3%
Municipal solid waste managed in controlled facilitiesIND.ENV.pollution.msw_controlled_management.share	%	Class B	un-habitat-waste-wise-cities, un-sdg-database	33.3%
Mismanaged plastic waste per capitaIND.ENV.pollution.mismanaged_plastic_waste.pc	kg/a/{person}	Class D	oecd-global-plastics-outlook, peer-reviewed-plastic-flow-models	33.3%

05Domain

Environment and biodiversity

Pollution, ecosystem condition, land and biodiversity, and nature dependence.

Sub-domain	Indicators
Air quality	3
Land and forests	5
Biodiversity	4
Ocean	5
Pollution and waste	3
Nature dependence	2

Anchor frameworks (pillar structure and definitions only): Yale EPI 2026; UN SEEA; TNFD; ESRS E2-E5; SDG 14, 15.

06Indicators

All 22 environment and biodiversity indicators

FIG 4 · Indicators in scope, by domain and sub-domain

Area is the number of indicator definitions; colour is the pillar the domain feeds (Macroeconomy and Space feed through their indices). Select a block to filter the table.

Filter by name, code, domain, sub-domain or crosswalk

Indicator	Domain	Sub-domain	Component	Unit	Levels	Crosswalks
PM2.5 exposure, population-weighted meanIND.ENV.air.pm25_exposure	ENV	Air quality	hazard	ug/m3	COUNTRY, ADM1, CITY, GRID	WB_WDI EN.ATM.PM25.MC.M3 SDG 11.6.2 EPI PMD
Population exposed above the WHO PM2.5 guideline, shareIND.ENV.air.pm25_guideline_exceedance.share	ENV	Air quality	exposure	%	COUNTRY, ADM1, CITY	WB_WDI EN.ATM.PM25.MC.ZS
Seasonal peak ozone exposureIND.ENV.air.ozone_exposure	ENV	Air quality	hazard	[ppb]	COUNTRY, ADM1, CITY, GRID
Land areaIND.ENV.land.land_area	ENV	Land and forests	context	km2	COUNTRY, ADM1, ADM2, CITY	WB_WDI AG.LND.TOTL.K2
Forest area, share of land areaIND.ENV.land.forest_cover.share	ENV	Land and forests	vulnerability	%	COUNTRY, ADM1	SDG 15.1.1 WB_WDI AG.LND.FRST.ZS
Annual tree cover loss rateIND.ENV.land.tree_cover_loss.share	ENV	Land and forests	hazard	%	COUNTRY, ADM1, ADM2, GRID	EPI TCL
Degraded land, share of land areaIND.ENV.land.land_degradation.share	ENV	Land and forests	hazard	%	COUNTRY, ADM1, GRID	SDG 15.3.1
Road densityIND.ENV.land.road_density	ENV	Land and forests	hazard	km/km2	COUNTRY, ADM1, ADM2, CITY, GRID
Red List IndexIND.ENV.biodiversity.red_list_index	ENV	Biodiversity	vulnerability	1	GLOBAL, REGION, COUNTRY	SDG 15.5.1
Biodiversity Intactness IndexIND.ENV.biodiversity.biodiversity_intactness	ENV	Biodiversity	vulnerability	1	COUNTRY, ADM1, GRID
Terrestrial protected areas, share of land areaIND.ENV.biodiversity.terrestrial_protected.share	ENV	Biodiversity	response	%	COUNTRY, ADM1	WB_WDI ER.LND.PTLD.ZS
Key biodiversity areas covered by protected areasIND.ENV.biodiversity.key_biodiversity_area_protected.share	ENV	Biodiversity	response	%	COUNTRY, REGION	SDG 15.1.2
Marine protected areas, share of territorial watersIND.ENV.ocean.marine_protected.share	ENV	Ocean	response	%	COUNTRY	WB_WDI ER.MRN.PTMR.ZS SDG 14.5.1
Coastal eutrophication indexIND.ENV.ocean.coastal_eutrophication	ENV	Ocean	hazard	%	COUNTRY, REGION	SDG 14.1.1
Average marine acidity (pH)IND.ENV.ocean.ocean_acidity	ENV	Ocean	hazard	[pH]	COUNTRY, REGION, SITE	SDG 14.3.1
Fish stocks within biologically sustainable levelsIND.ENV.ocean.sustainable_fish_stocks.share	ENV	Ocean	vulnerability	%	GLOBAL, REGION, COUNTRY	SDG 14.4.1
Marine heatwave days per yearIND.ENV.ocean.marine_heatwave_days	ENV	Ocean	hazard	d/a	COUNTRY, REGION, GRID	UNDRR_HIPS_2025 MH0708
Municipal solid waste generated per capitaIND.ENV.pollution.msw_generation.pc	ENV	Pollution and waste	hazard	kg/a/{person}	COUNTRY, CITY
Municipal solid waste managed in controlled facilitiesIND.ENV.pollution.msw_controlled_management.share	ENV	Pollution and waste	coping capacity	%	COUNTRY, CITY	SDG 11.6.1 EPI MSW
Mismanaged plastic waste per capitaIND.ENV.pollution.mismanaged_plastic_waste.pc	ENV	Pollution and waste	hazard	kg/a/{person}	COUNTRY, ADM1
GDP in sectors highly dependent on nature, shareIND.ENV.nature_dependence.nature_dependent_gdp.share	ENV	Nature dependence	exposure	%	COUNTRY, PORTFOLIO
Crop production value dependent on animal pollination, shareIND.ENV.nature_dependence.pollinator_dependent_crops.share	ENV	Nature dependence	exposure	%	COUNTRY, ADM1

07Quote

Environmental pressure index, world

The world reading of this index, every country as a tile and the largest movements since the previous edition.

NXS-GRX · ENV · 195 profiles · 0–10 scale

Environmental pressure index, world

—

Values publish with the edition; the interval, class and change appear here.

Previous edition: —
Range since 2016: —
Coupled composite: —
Coupling score S: —
Pulse, latest week: —
Outlook, 12 months: —
Method: Indicator Standard 1.0 · NXS-GRX 2026
Draws: 1,000

Environmental pressure index, world, by edition

No released values yet. The first edition draws the history here with its interval band and class bounds.

The line is the point value by edition; the band is the 90% interval; dashed lines are the class bounds at 2, 3.5, 5 and 6.5.

No movements yet. Changes since the previous edition are listed here from the second edition on, with the indicators that drove them.

08Values

Country values

FIG 5 · Environmental pressure index: countries (values when released)Find a country

Loading the map

Equal Earth · Natural Earth 1:110mValues when released

Until the first edition is released the map shows UN M49 regions or the Nexus Reports edition; it then shows this index's classes with each country's interval on hover. Countries are listed by name, never ordered by value.

Tiles: /api/v1/public/grix/risk-products/tiles/env/{z}/{x}/{y}.mvt
Observation key: nis:IDX.ENV.biodiversity.environmental_pressure:{ISO3}:{YEAR}:A

09Series

Series that read this index

GLBGlobal SystemsThe state of interdependent global risk: the twenty domain indices aggregated to the world, the five core systems (water, energy, food, health, biodiversity) and their couplings, the global tail register and the gap between perceived and measured risk.GS-11Global BiodiversityEnvironmental pressure, ecosystem condition, nature dependency of economies and the nature–climate–water–food feedbacks.GS-12Global Earth observationWhat Earth observation can and cannot see of risk: coverage, revisit, latency and the observing systems NXS-GRX depends on.SR-04MineralsCritical-mineral concentration, processing dependency, price and export-restriction risk, and the environmental and social footprint of extraction.SR-09Planetary boundariesEarth-system boundaries and tipping elements as slow-onset, high-impact risk.XT-18Climate intervention technologiesCarbon removal and proposed climate interventions: physical, governance and termination risks, read from published assessments only.TH-01Nexus InterdependencyThe water, energy, food, health and biodiversity systems read together: drought to energy stress, energy disruption to health stress, biodiversity loss to food-system stress, flood to water contamination, heat to health and grid stress, cyber-physical disruption across all five.

10Validity

Crosswalks and validity checks

Crosswalks map leaf indicators to source code lists; established indices are used for validity checks, never re-weighted as inputs.

Code system	Leaf indicators mapped
`SDG`	9
`WB_WDI`	3
`EPI`	3
`UNDRR_HIPS_2025`	1

11Across the Nexus

Platforms, standards and ways to take part

Field and service platforms of GCRI, GRF and GRA, the Nexus Risk Standards for this domain, learning, working groups and open calls. Every link is a live page.

Across the Nexus

GCRI Biodiversity · GCRI Oceans and Coasts · GRA Climate and Nature Financial Risk · GRF Climate and Nature Governance · GRA Asset Management

12Cite

Cite and reuse

GCRI Canada (2026). The Global Risks Index (NXS-GRX): Environmental pressure index (GRX-IDX-ENV), Baseline Edition 2026. Preparatory working draft. https://risksindex.com/indices/environmental-pressure/ UNI NXS-GRX-AR-000120.

See this index in every country profile

Each profile shows this index with its interval and class once released.

Country profiles All indices

Status

The methodology, structure and definitions of The Global Risks Index are a preparatory working draft (2026), circulated for review and comment and not for implementation. No value appears until an edition is released from a governed evidence cut; values then carry intervals, classes, sources and their correction pathway. Simulators run the published methods on numbers you choose and never show a NXS-GRX value.

What NXS-GRX is not

NXS-GRX is research and risk-analytics information. It is not a credit or ESG rating and uses no rating scale, not a benchmark for financial instruments, not official statistics, not an emergency warning or official classification, and not advice. It must not be used to evaluate natural persons. Risk classes are bands on a published scale, never rankings of countries or people.

Institutions and sources

The Nexus Consortium is stewarded by three independent not-for-profit institutions: GCRI Canada as Lead Institution, Consortium Secretariat and lead contracting organization, The Global Risks Forum (GRF) and The Global Risks Alliance (GRA). Technology, infrastructure and service providers work with the Consortium at arm's length under written agreements, like every other external party in the public-private-planet model, and hold no role in its stewardship.

Every value carries the attribution of its sources, which keep their own licences. External names are cited for interoperability only. Nexus-authored text is intended for CC BY 4.0 on release.

Avis en français

La méthodologie et les définitions du NXS-GRX sont un projet de travail préparatoire (2026). Le NXS-GRX est une information de recherche et d'analyse des risques : ni notation, ni indice de référence financier, ni statistique officielle, ni alerte, ni conseil. Les classes de risque sont des bandes sur une échelle publiée, non des classements.

Cart review

Environmental pressure index

arithmetic

1,000 draws

5 components

60% minimum

From indicators to the composite

Run this index's own aggregation

Treatment, normalisation, weighting, aggregation, uncertainty

5 components, 16 indicators

Air pollution sub-index w 1

Land and forest degradation sub-index w 1

Biodiversity status sub-index w 1

Ocean condition sub-index w 0.5

Waste pressure sub-index w 0.5

Environment and biodiversity

All 22 environment and biodiversity indicators

Environmental pressure index, world

Country values

Series that read this index

Crosswalks and validity checks

Platforms, standards and ways to take part

Across the Nexus

Cite and reuse

See this index in every country profile

Status

What NXS-GRX is not

Institutions and sources

GLOBAL RISKS INDEX (GRIx)