Is Eco-efficiency the Way to Becoming More Green or is Everything Swept Away by the Jevons Paradox?

Abstract

The most striking finding of our analysis is the presence of a limited variation across nations in the ecological footprint (EF) per unit of the GDP. EF intensity is lowest (eco-efficiency is highest) in affluent nations, but the level of efficiency in these nations does not appear to be of sufficient magnitude to compensate for their large productive capacities. These results suggest that modernization and economic development alone will be insufficient to bring ecological sustainability to societies.