Every figure below carries its named source and year. The Eco Index scores twelve pillars on the same scale everywhere; seven are measured from published data with fixed thresholds, five are assessed from the named sources.
France at a Glance.
The score, and the four numbers that set the tone. 12 equally-weighted pillars, every pillar sourced.
Compare with:
Renewable power
26%
of electricity
Food imported
11%
of merchandise imports · ~US$83,331m a year
The Eco Index across 12 pillars · scored 0 to 5 · World Bank, OWID, WHO/UNICEF JMP, FiBL, Protected Planet, IUCN, UNESCO (2023-24)
Water
Food & farming
Plant-based
Organic
Conservation
Wildlife
Materials
Pollution
Recycling
Energy
Culture
Heritage
Facts That Surprise People About France.
The numbers and firsts that change how you see France, the sobering and the remarkable. Every one is dated and linked to its source.
SoberingFood
9.7 million tonnes of food waste a year
France produced 9.7 million tonnes of food waste in 2023, according to the French environment ministry.
SoberingHealth
Women smoke more than anywhere else in the EU
One in four French adults still smoked daily in 2021. The smoking rate among women, 23%, was the highest across EU countries.
SoberingHealth
One in five adults drinks heavily
21% of French adults reported regular heavy drinking in 2019, a higher share than in most EU countries. Overall alcohol consumption was 6% above the EU average in 2021.
SoberingFood
Most teenagers skip fruit and vegetables
About two thirds of French 15 year olds did not eat any fruit or vegetables every day in 2022. Overweight and obesity in this age group rose from 10% in 2010 to 16% in 2022.
RemarkableFood
The French meal is UNESCO heritage
The gastronomic meal of the French was added to UNESCO's Representative List of Intangible Cultural Heritage in 2010. UNESCO describes a set structure, from aperitif through at least four courses to liqueurs.
RemarkableFood
The baguette has UNESCO status
The artisanal know how and culture of baguette bread joined UNESCO's Representative List in 2022. A baguette is made with only four ingredients: flour, water, salt, and leaven or yeast.
RemarkableFood
Supermarkets may not destroy edible food
French shops of over 400 square metres must offer donation agreements to food aid charities for their unsold food, and making edible unsold food unfit to eat is banned. The rules trace to the Garot law of 2016.
RemarkableHealth
Few avoidable deaths
Avoidable mortality rates in France were among the lowest in the EU in 2020, well below the EU average. Life expectancy at birth was 82.3 years in 2022.
The History of France.
France is a modern secular society that nonetheless keeps strong regional living traditions. The Breton fest-noz dance and music gathering is inscribed by UNESCO and is played on the biniou bagpipe and bombard.
Where the name comes from
From the Franks, the Germanic confederation that took over Roman Gaul. Source: national and regional toponymic records.
The land itself: flat plains and rolling hills across the north and west, mountainous elsewhere, with the Pyrenees in the south and the Alps in the east. Its high point is Mont Blanc, 4,806 m. Source: national mapping and survey records.
Where it starts
Chauvet, 37,000 years ago
The Chauvet cave in the Ardeche was occupied across two long periods between roughly 37,500 and 27,000 years ago, and holds over 300 images of animals across 13 different species, among the earliest and finest painting known anywhere on Earth. The galleries at Lascaux followed around 17,000 years ago. From about 4500 BC thousands of standing stones were raised at Carnac in Brittany, predating the Egyptian pyramids.
How it got here
Massalia to the Republic
Greek settlers founded Massalia around 600 BC, the port that became Marseille and France's oldest city. Gaulish peoples were conquered into the Roman world, and in 800 a Frankish king was crowned emperor. The monarchy was overthrown in 1789 and the Declaration of the Rights of Man adopted. Slavery was abolished in the colonies in 1848, women voted for the first time in 1945, and occupation from 1940 ended in liberation.
The timeline
c. 32,000 to 30,000 years ago
Chauvet.
More than 1,000 images, among the earliest known and best preserved figurative drawings in the world, show animals such as mammoths, bears, cave lions, rhinos, bison and aurochs. Source
c. 21,000 to 18,000 years ago
Lascaux.
The painted galleries of Lascaux date from the early Magdalenian. The cave is closed to the public because tourism was damaging the painted walls, and visitors now see replicas such as Lascaux II, opened in 1983. Source
c. 5000 to 2300 BC
Carnac.
Neolithic menhirs, standing stone alignments, stone circles and tombs are raised in Brittany over more than two thousand years. Source
c. 600 BC
Massalia.
Phocaean settlers land on the shores of the Lacydon inlet around 600 BC and found the port that becomes Marseille. Source
1st century BC
Gaul.
Julius Caesar conquers Gaul. Source
800
Charlemagne.
Charlemagne, king since 768, is crowned emperor. Source
1789
Revolution.
The Revolution begins and the Declaration of the Rights of Man and of the Citizen is adopted. Source
1848 and 1945
Abolition and the vote.
A decree of 27 April 1848 abolishes slavery in the colonies, and women vote for the first time in 1945. Source
1940 to 1944
Occupation and resistance.
The armistices of 1940 seal France's defeat and begin the occupation. In 1944 the country is freed, with the liberation of Paris in August as a high point. Source
UNESCO World Heritage, Decorated Cave of Pont d'Arc (Chauvet) · Musee d'Archeologie nationale, Saint-Germain-en-Laye · Musee national de Prehistoire, Les Eyzies · Ministry of Culture, Lascaux cave · UNESCO World Heritage, Megaliths of Carnac and of the shores of Morbihan · Archives nationales, Decret d'abolition de l'esclavage de 1848 · Assemblee nationale, La conquete de la citoyennete politique des femmes
Nature and Biodiversity in France.
The World Bank reports 28.8% of French land and 49.2% of its seas as protected in 2025, but the marine figure is inflated by vast protected areas around overseas territories such as the French Southern and Antarctic Lands. Protection of metropolitan coastal waters is far lower and Natura 2000 marine sites are often lightly managed.
Is wild France protected? 28.8% of the land is, against a 30% target for 2030
How protected is nature in France?
Forest cover32.48%
Terrestrial protected area28.8%
Marine protected area49.2%
172 (mammals, birds, fish & plants) listed as threatened.
Found only here. Corsican endemics such as the Corsican nuthatch, plus Alpine and Corsican endemic flora
The watchlist
ThreatenedVanellus gregarius Critically Endangered on the IUCN Red List, and recorded in France in GBIF occurrence data (bird).
ThreatenedMyliobatis aquila Critically Endangered on the IUCN Red List, and recorded in France in GBIF occurrence data (shark or ray).
ThreatenedGwynne's Mining Bee (Andrena bicolor) Not assessed on the IUCN Red List, and recorded in France in GBIF occurrence data (insect).
ThreatenedRouen pansy (Viola hispida) Critically Endangered on the IUCN Red List, and recorded in France in GBIF occurrence data (plant).
ThreatenedAnguilla anguilla Critically Endangered on the IUCN Red List, and recorded in France in GBIF occurrence data (species).
ThreatenedCorneola crombezi Critically Endangered on the IUCN Red List, and recorded in France in GBIF occurrence data (species).
ThreatenedPen Shell (Pinna nobilis) Critically Endangered on the IUCN Red List, and recorded in France in GBIF occurrence data (species).
ThreatenedAlewife (Alosa alosa) Critically Endangered on the IUCN Red List, and recorded in France in GBIF occurrence data (species).
What is still here, and what is gone?
Tap a species for the honest status.
Closest to being lost, by name
Vanellus gregarius
Critically Endangered, the last IUCN category before Extinct in the Wild, and still recorded in France. GBIF holds 8 verified occurrence records.
Myliobatis aquila
Critically Endangered, the last IUCN category before Extinct in the Wild, and still recorded in France. GBIF holds 3 verified occurrence records.
Rouen pansy (Viola hispida)
Critically Endangered, the last IUCN category before Extinct in the Wild, and still recorded in France. GBIF holds 10 verified occurrence records.
Species named here are drawn from GBIF occurrence records for France filtered to the IUCN Red List threatened categories. Species are listed where GBIF holds occurrence records for them in this country. Record counts are not published here because the figure cannot be reproduced from a public GBIF query.
Who is putting it back
National park in Réunion, mapped and named in the open record for France. OpenStreetMap.
National park in Occitania, mapped and named in the open record for France. OpenStreetMap.
National park in Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes, mapped and named in the open record for France. OpenStreetMap.
National park in Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes, mapped and named in the open record for France. OpenStreetMap.
National park in Occitania, mapped and named in the open record for France. OpenStreetMap.
National park in Guadeloupe, mapped and named in the open record for France. OpenStreetMap.
Water and Ocean in France.
France is well watered by major rivers including the Loire, Rhône, Seine and Garonne alongside extensive groundwater, and tap water is safe nationwide with 99.7% of people on safely managed supply in 2024 (JMP). A free carafe of tap water is standard in restaurants.
Does France have enough fresh water? Yes, with headroom
99.7% of people here have safely managed drinking water at home (2024, WHO/UNICEF JMP). Tap water is safe for a visitor nearly everywhere.
Cleanest water: Alpine and volcanic aquifers (Évian, Volvic)
How much fresh water does France have, per person?
2,933 m³
France
1,000 m³
the UN “water scarce” line
France withdraws about 24,428 million cubic metres of fresh water a year (2022). That is 21.4% of the fresh water actually available to it, which FAO counts as medium water stress. Of what is taken, farming takes 10%, homes and towns 22%, industry 68%. Source: FAO AQUASTAT.
What are the rules on France beaches?
✓Tap water: Drinkable.
✓Plastic rules: EU single-use-plastic ban since 2021 plus France's AGEC anti-waste law (loose fruit and veg plastic-packaging ban; end to single-use plastics targeted for 2040).
✓Solo travel: rated easy on the record for this destination.
✓Marine protection: 49.2% of the sea is protected. The 30x30 pledge is met.
Named on the open map: Calais plage, Dieppe - plage de la piscine, Hardelot Plage, Plage Carcans, Plage La Gougouline, Plage La Madrague. They are a handful of the many named beaches in the public record for France, each one a place you can look up before you go. OpenStreetMap.
Where does the sewage go?
90.0%
of people have safely managed sanitation
90.0% of people here use a safely managed sanitation service, meaning waste is contained, emptied and treated rather than reaching the ground or the sea untreated (2024, World Bank / WHO-UNICEF JMP, SDG 6.2.1). The rest is what the rivers and the coast receive.
How is the sea around France doing?
One cross-section, every answer measured.
Surface
What the coast carries
Mediterranean south, alpine east, oceanic west, a country of four climates.
Nearshore
Protected water
49.2% of territorial waters are protected, against the 30% pledged for 2030 under the Global Biodiversity Framework.
Cleanest
Where the water is cleanest
Alpine and volcanic aquifers (Évian, Volvic).
The record
Measured
France is well watered by major rivers including the Loire, Rhône, Seine and Garonne alongside extensive groundwater, and tap water is safe nationwide with 99.7% of people on safely managed supply in 2024 (JMP). A free carafe of tap water is standard in restaurants.
France scored 81 out of 100 on the Ocean Health Index in its 2025 assessment, above the global average of 72, and ranked 15th of 220 coastal regions. The index team says it is no longer updating scores, so the 2025 figures may be the last.
Sea protected
49.2%
Against the 30% pledged for 2030 under the Global Biodiversity Framework.
Threatened species
172 (mammals, birds, fish & plants)
Mammals, birds, fish and higher plants on the IUCN list.
Is the tap water safe in France?
99.7% of people have safely managed drinking water at home (2024, WHO/UNICEF JMP). Renewable fresh water works out at about 2,933 cubic metres per person a year (World Bank).
How hard is the water supply being pushed?
Of every 10 buckets nature refills, 2 are already taken. Withdrawals run at 21.4% of what France renews internally each year (2022, World Bank / FAO AQUASTAT). That is inside the 25% mark generally treated as water stress, so the supply has headroom.
When is the best time to visit France? Tap your month.
Tap your month.
How much fresh water does France actually have?
Nature renews about 2,933 cubic metres of fresh water per person per year here. That ranks France 103 of 208 countries measured, putting it in the drier half of the world. The UN treats anything under 1,000 cubic metres as water scarce, and this is above that line. World Bank / FAO AQUASTAT.
Food and Drink in France.
France is the European Union's leading agricultural producer and a long-established net agri-food exporter, notably of wheat, dairy, sugar-beet and wine, so its food-import dependence is low. Farming spans almost every temperate product from cereals to fruit and livestock.
Where does the food in France come from?
10.6% imported
about US$83,331m a year
On the plate: Bread (wheat), potatoes, Puy green lentils, dried beans, ratatouille vegetables (aubergine, courgette, tomato), chestnuts, and olives and olive oil in the south
1 of 10
bites are imported
The island buys in more food energy than it eats. About US$83,331m a year leaves the country to pay for it. The green slice is roughly what still grows here.
About 10.6% of everything France buys in from abroad is food, roughly 1 in every 10 imported items on the dock (2024, World Bank). Farming itself is 1.4% of the economy and 52.5% of the land is agricultural, of which 31.4% is arable. The green slice is roughly what still grows here.
What is killing people in France? The imported diet.
Cause of death, and the diet behind it.
Non-communicable diseases, all combined78.9%
Diabetes6.5%
Santé publique France counted 11,442 lower limb amputations in 9,236 people with diabetes in mainland France in 2007, up from 10,265 in 8,470 people in 2004, and found that half of those amputated in 2004 had died in hospital or lost more of the limb within three years. A study in the agency's weekly bulletin in February 2026 said chronic foot wounds are now the leading cause of hospital admission for people with diabetes, and that La Réunion recorded 370 amputations in 270 people in 2023, a rate well above mainland France. Source: Santé publique France.
Adults living with overweight or obesity. 34.3%.
Can France feed itself?
31.4%
Arable land
52.5%
Agricultural land
743,724
Farmers
41,758,882
Arable acres
1.4%
Agriculture, share of GDP
Harvest: Grape harvest (vendange) September to October; Provence lavender late June to July; chestnuts and walnuts in autumn
Feeding itself
France is the European Union's leading agricultural producer and a long-established net agri-food exporter, notably of wheat, dairy, sugar-beet and wine, so its food-import dependence is low. Farming spans almost every temperate product from cereals to fruit and livestock.
Certification
Eurostat estimates just under 10% of French farmland was organic in 2024 at 9.5%, broadly in line with Agence Bio's figures. Organic area has grown steadily over the past decade.
Water for crops
France is well watered by major rivers including the Loire, Rhône, Seine and Garonne alongside extensive groundwater, and tap water is safe nationwide with 99.7% of people on safely managed supply in 2024 (JMP). A free carafe of tap water is standard in restaurants.
Why the organic number looks like that. Certification covers only part of what is grown cleanly, so a small certified share is a gap in the paperwork rather than proof that nothing is. What the official land record does show: 52.5% of the country is agricultural land and 31.4% is arable (2023, World Bank). Certification is paid for per farm per year by a foreign body, which prices out smallholders, so the organic number reads worse than the practice.
What actually grows here
WheatSugar beetsMaizeBarleyPotatoesGrapesRapeseedSunflower seeds
The food that already fits
The plant-based kitchen here is not an import. By tonnage, the largest crops grown in France are sugar beet, wheat, maize, barley and potatoes (FAO, FAOSTAT crop production, 2024). That is what the land itself puts on a plate.
Buy direct where residents buy: Marche Belgrand, Marché Amiral Linois, Marché Bio de Restalgon, Marché Comunal de Tadine, Marché Couvert, Marché Escudier-Jaurès. Each is a mapped, named marketplace, so the money stays with the seller rather than the importer. OpenStreetMap.
Not yet checked by us. Plant based kitchens listed publicly: Enracinés, vegan French restaurant in Lyon: house made vegetable dishes with vegan wines and beers, booking required; Trèfle, vegan restaurant in Lyon: a seasonal tasting menu that changes monthly, booking required; Against the Grain, vegan cafe in Lyon: soups, salads, a daily main and desserts; ZEITGEIST Café, vegan coffee shop in Lyon: cakes, brunch, tofu scramble and quiches; Bloom Sushi, vegan sushi bar in Lyon: sushi, miso soup, gyoza and tempura; Güstavo Gemüse Vebab, vegan fast food in Lyon: kebabs, falafel and bowls. Tell us how they are.
Is this grown in France?
Tap a food for the honest answer.
PotatoesPuy green lentilsDried beansCourgetteChestnuts
World Bank Open Data · FAO, FAOSTAT crop production · World Health Organization · FAO AQUASTAT · Santé publique France, Evolution du taux d'incidence des amputations d'un membre inférieur chez les personnes diabétiques · Santé publique France, BEH 5-6 (17 February 2026), Le parcours de soins des personnes vivant avec un diabète à La Réunion · HappyCow, Lyon listings
Climate and Energy in France.
France runs one of the lowest-carbon electricity systems among large economies, with nuclear power supplying around 65 to 70 per cent of generation and hydropower, wind and solar taking most of the rest, giving a grid that is more than 90 per cent low-carbon. Fossil CO2 emissions are about 4.3 tonnes per person in 2023, well below most wealthy nations, although France's consumption-based carbon footprint is considerably higher at around 9.4 tonnes once imports are counted. France pursues its low-carbon strategy with a legislated net-zero target for 2050. The clean grid and firm policy secure a solid 4.
What powers France?
Renewable 26.1%Fossil 5.2%
RTE runs the national high voltage transmission grid. Since March 2017 it has been held through a joint company owned 50.1 per cent by EDF, 29.9 per cent by the state bank Caisse des Dépôts and 20 per cent by CNP Assurances, and it keeps independent transmission operator status under EU rules. EDF itself has been wholly owned by the French state since June 2023, when the state bought out the remaining shareholders and the company left the stock market. Enedis, a wholly owned EDF subsidiary, runs the local distribution network serving about 95 per cent of customers in mainland France. Network charges and operator conduct are regulated by the Commission de régulation de l'énergie (CRE).
Climate pollution per person
The safe amount, what the planet can absorb
2 tonnes
One person here
4 tonnes
The world average, for comparison
4.7 tonnes
The worst it ever got
10.03 tonnes
The grid
France runs one of the lowest-carbon electricity systems among large economies, with nuclear power supplying around 65 to 70 per cent of generation and hydropower, wind and solar taking most of the rest, giving a grid that is more than 90 per cent low-carbon. Fossil CO2 emissions are about 4.3 tonnes per person in 2023, well below most wealthy nations, although France's consumption-based carbon footprint is considerably higher at around 9.4 tonnes once imports are counted.
Pollution
France backs the EU single-use-plastics ban with its own AGEC anti-waste law, which targets an end to single-use plastic packaging by 2040, though the decree banning plastic packaging on loose fruit and vegetables was annulled by the Conseil d'Etat on 8 November 2024. Air quality is improving but population-weighted PM2.5 was still 10.4 µg/m³ in 2022 (World Bank), about double the WHO guideline.
Water stress
France is well watered by major rivers including the Loire, Rhône, Seine and Garonne alongside extensive groundwater, and tap water is safe nationwide with 99.7% of people on safely managed supply in 2024 (JMP). A free carafe of tap water is standard in restaurants.
What pollutes most here
1The grid The share of electricity still generated from fossil fuel.72.8%
2Industry Intensive pig and poultry farming in Brittany, driving nitrate runoff and green-tide algal blooms.named
3Air Modelled annual mean against a WHO guideline of 5 µg/m³.10.38
4On the record France backs the EU single-use-plastics ban with its own AGEC anti-waste law, which targets an end to single-use plastic packaging by 2040, though the decree banning plastic packaging on loose fruit and vegetables was annulled by the Conseil d'Etat on 8 November 2024.
What has France promised on climate?
Net zero, whole economy2050
Electricity renewable today22.8% (2021)
Land protected, against a 30% target28.8% by 2025
Sea protected, against a 30% target49.2% by 2025
The net-zero target year on file with Climate Watch is 2050, status: in law; in policy document. Measured against it, 22.8% of electricity is already renewable (2021, World Bank), so 77.2% of the grid is still to be converted. The pledge on file is measured here against what has actually been delivered, not taken on its own (UNFCCC NDC Registry, CBD Kunming-Montreal Target 3).
The biggest line item
One return flight against a whole year of living.
A resident's entire year4 t CO2e
Safe-climate budget, per year2 t CO2e
Sydney return, economy3.06 t CO2e
Singapore return, economy1.94 t CO2e
Los Angeles return, economy1.64 t CO2e
Johannesburg return, economy1.57 t CO2e
New York return, economy1.05 t CO2e
How much CO2 does flying to France emit?
Tap where you would fly from. One return flight, economy.
Firsts on climate finance. On 24 January 2017 France sold its first green government bond, €7 billion over 22 years, which was by far the largest green bond issued anywhere at the time. For comparison, the European Investment Bank had issued €4 billion in 2016. The Senate notes that Poland had issued a sovereign green bond shortly before. By the first half of 2021 that one bond had grown to nearly €31 billion through further sales. A second green bond, maturing in 2044, followed in March 2021 for €7 billion, and by January 2022 France had €42.3 billion of green bonds outstanding, according to the Senate.
Climate Watch (WRI) · UNFCCC NDC Registry · World Bank Open Data · UK DESNZ greenhouse gas conversion factors · EDF, EDF finalised the indirect sale of 49.9% of RTE to Caisse des Dépôts and CNP Assurances (31 March 2017) · EDF, Implementation of the squeeze out procedure in respect of the equity securities of EDF (June 2023) · CRE, Rapport sur le respect des codes de bonne conduite et l'indépendance des gestionnaires de réseaux 2019-2020: Enedis · La finance pour tous (IEFP), La France a émis la plus importante obligation verte au monde (27 January 2017) · Sénat, Rapport d'information r21-773
AI and Data Centres in France.
Every prompt runs on a machine in a building on somebody’s grid. What that costs the planet depends less on the prompt than on what is burning to power it. Here is what would power one in France.
Data centres
227
Operational facilities, Cloudscene, July 2026.
Grid renewable
26.1 %
What a machine here runs on.
What powers a data centre in France?
Most of the power behind a machine here is still burned.
Renewable 26.1%Fossil 73.9%
Cooling water. Every one of those halls runs on the national grid, which is 22.8% renewable today (World Bank). A data centre is only as clean as the electricity behind it, so the same figure that decides this country's climate score also decides the footprint of the AI running inside it. Cooling water use is not separately published by facility, and no operator here reports it.
The rules. France has 227 colocation and interconnection facilities on the public PeeringDB register, concentrated in Paris (37), Vélizy-Villacoublay (6), Marseille (5), alongside 27 internet exchanges (SFINX, France-IX AURA, Equinix Paris, France-IX Paris). Named sites include UltraEdge Velizy, Telehouse, Paris 2 (Voltaire, Léon Frot), Telehouse, Paris 1 (Jeûneurs), UltraEdge Paris, Courbevoie.
Where the cables land. 27 landing points · Ajaccio, Bastia, Bonifacio, Calvi
Economy and Tourism in France.
24% residents to 76% visitors across a year. 217,877,000 international arrivals in 2019 against 68,720,337 people who live here (2025, World Bank / UN Tourism).
Where a visitor dollar goes in France
117,109k
Visitors a year
1.7
Visitors per resident
How deep in debt is France?· for every $100 France earns in a year, it owes…
Pay to the order of: the creditorsmemo · today
$ 118What is owed now, for every $100 of national income (2026).
IMF World Economic Outlook, 2026signed, the creditors
Pay to the order of: the creditorsmemo · projected 2031
$ 121The IMF's own forecast has this rising to $121 by 2031.
IMF World Economic Outlook projection, 2031signed, the forecast
For every $100 France earns in a year, it owes $118 (2026, IMF World Economic Outlook). That is more than a full year of national income, and the interest is paid before anything else.
Where does a tourist dollar actually go in France?
Play one tourist dollar around the board. Every square is a measured fact from this page.
START!
1
GO: a visitor lands
$100 goes on the table. 217,877,000 international arrivals in 2019 against 68,720,337 residents, 3.2 visitors for every resident (World Bank / UN Tourism).
$100 in play2
The bed
Who owns the largest places to stay in France is not published in the records we can check, so this square is left open rather than guessed. Where a listing names its owner, it is shown in the ownership table below.
not published3
The plate
Food is only 10.6% of everything France imports (2024, World Bank), so most of a meal is bought from producers inside the country. Eating what the land here actually grows, wheat, sugar beets, maize, barley, potatoes, grapes, rapeseed, sunflower seeds, keeps that money with the grower.
mostly home-grown4
The power
77.2% of the electricity is fossil (2021, World Bank). Lighting, cooling and hot water are paid for largely in imported fuel.
burns away5
What actually stays
On the parts that can be measured, the power leaves and the plate stays. It is genuinely a coin toss, decided by what you book.
split6
Pay the bank first
France owes $118 for every $100 it earns (IMF World Economic Outlook, 2026 projection). The interest is paid before anything else on this board.
$118 per $1007
A spread hand
The largest single export, machinery and mechanical appliances, is 11.3% of the total (2023, UN Comtrade). No one shock can take the whole board.
top export 11.3%8
Community chest
Tourism earns 4.8% of everything France makes from exports (2020, World Bank / UN Tourism). That is how much of the economy depends on the game continuing.
4.8% of exports9
The flight
Getting here is usually the biggest single line on the bill. From Sydney a return economy seat is 3.06 t CO2, on the UK Government's published conversion factors. It is the one part of the trip this board cannot reduce.
3.06 t CO210
Back to GO
The economy turns over about US$3,596 billion a year (IMF World Economic Outlook, 2026 projection). Every lap of this board is a choice about how much of it stays.
US$3,596bnGDPUS$3,366.3bn
Agriculture, share of GDP1.4%
Visitors a year117,109,000
Visitors per resident1.7
Residents~68,720,337
Agriculture
Farming is 1.4% of the economy. France is the European Union's leading agricultural producer and a long-established net agri-food exporter, notably of wheat, dairy, sugar-beet and wine, so its food-import dependence is low.
Natural materials
France is the world's largest producer of flax, supplying around 75% of global flax fibre in 2022, with Normandy one of the three main growing regions, and linen is a thriving modern industry. Wool and hemp traditions also persist.
Energy
France runs one of the lowest-carbon electricity systems among large economies, with nuclear power supplying around 65 to 70 per cent of generation and hydropower, wind and solar taking most of the rest, giving a grid that is more than 90 per cent low-carbon. Fossil CO2 emissions are about 4.3 tonnes per person in 2023, well below most wealthy nations, although France's consumption-based carbon footprint is considerably higher at around 9.4 tonnes once imports are counted.
Who owns the biggest hotels in France?
By rooms · company records and press.
Hôtel Mas de l’Oulivié · ~27 roomsIndependentnot published
Visitors, over time
2015203,302k
2016203,042k
2017207,274k
2018211,998k
2019217,877k
2020117,109k
International tourism receipts run at about US$35.96 billion in 2020 (World Bank / UN Tourism). That is 4.8% of everything the country earns from exports.
How much of your money actually stays here?
Tap the holiday you are planning.
Visiting France, whoever you are.
Resort guest, villa renter, family, nomad or backpacker. The honest playbook for each, from the same sourced numbers.
Already booked a resort? · the rescue list
Five swaps that move your money back on-island
1. Eat where the country eats Choose kitchens cooking bread (wheat), potatoes, puy green lentils, dried beans, ratatouille vegetables (aubergine, courgette, tomato), chestnuts, and olives and olive oil in the south over imported menus. The checked list
2. Book with a local operator Never the lobby desk. The margin on a tour is the part that stays.
3. Stay somewhere locally owned Ownership decides where the room rate books. Eco stays
4. Use the transport residents use Excellent SNCF rail with TGV high-speed trains (Paris to Lyon around two hours); book ahead for cheaper fares
5. Buy the craft, not the souvenir Natural-materials work made here pays the maker directly; imported gifts pay a shipping line.
Swipe
First time here
The EU's leading farm nation and the world's largest flax grower, with deep regional food cultures and returning Alpine and Pyrenean wildlife.
Best time: Late spring (May to June) and early autumn (September to October), warm and less crowded than peak summer
Getting around
Excellent SNCF rail with TGV high-speed trains (Paris to Lyon around two hours); book ahead for cheaper fares
Transport is where the fare either stays or leaves.
Eating here
The everyday plate is bread (wheat), potatoes, puy green lentils, dried beans, ratatouille vegetables (aubergine, courgette, tomato), chestnuts, and olives and olive oil in the south. Everyday plant foods include bread, potatoes, Puy green lentils, dried beans, ratatouille vegetables, chestnuts and, in the south, olives and olive oil.
Eating what the country grows is the cheapest way to cut the import bill.
Good to know
Cards everywhere; EUR. Lunch breaks and Sundays are sacred.
Rate my hotel. Tap yours for the honest verdict.
Ownership from company records and press.
Who owns the place to stay
Hôtel Mas de l’OuliviéIndependent · 27 rooms
The one property listed here does not publish who ultimately owns it, so no claim is made either way. Ownership is what decides how much of a room rate stays in the country, which is why we show it when a listing states it.
Society and Governance in France.
How well is France actually run?
Governance, measured · World Bank WGI
Four measured answers, none of them opinion. Averaged across corruption control, delivery and accountability, France scores 75 out of 100 (2024, World Bank Worldwide Governance Indicators). That is a state that generally does what it says it will do, which is what makes a climate pledge worth reading.
What is daily life in France really like? Measured
Getting around, breathing, throwing away, learning. The honest checklist.
TransportAirWaterWastePower
✓How you get around Excellent SNCF rail with TGV high-speed trains (Paris to Lyon around two hours); book ahead for cheaper fares
Made in France.
France is the world's largest producer of flax, supplying around 75% of global flax fibre in 2022, with Normandy one of the three main growing regions, and linen is a thriving modern industry. Wool and hemp traditions also persist. Every step of processing done at home is value that stops leaving the country.
What France actually sells the world
The single biggest thing France sells the world is machinery and mechanical appliances, 11.3% of all exports in 2023 (about US$74.71 billion, UN Comtrade). The next four are vehicles at 9.2%, electrical machinery and electronics at 7.6%, aircraft and spacecraft at 6.1%, pharmaceuticals at 5.8%.
Sells now · 11.3% of exports
Machinery and mechanical appliances
Machinery and mechanical appliances is 11.3% of everything France sold abroad in 2023, worth about US$74.71 billion. UN Comtrade.
Sells now · 9.2% of exports
Vehicles
Vehicles is 9.2% of everything France sold abroad in 2023, worth about US$61.02 billion. UN Comtrade.
Sells now · 7.6% of exports
Electrical machinery and electronics
Electrical machinery and electronics is 7.6% of everything France sold abroad in 2023, worth about US$50.31 billion. UN Comtrade.
Sells now · 6.1% of exports
Aircraft and spacecraft
Aircraft and spacecraft is 6.1% of everything France sold abroad in 2023, worth about US$40.52 billion. UN Comtrade.
Sells now · 5.8% of exports
Pharmaceuticals
Pharmaceuticals is 5.8% of everything France sold abroad in 2023, worth about US$38.37 billion. UN Comtrade.
Could make · grown here already
Bread (wheat)
Grown in France and mostly sold raw. Processing it here would keep the margin here.
Could make · grown here already
Potatoes
Grown in France and mostly sold raw. Processing it here would keep the margin here.
Could make · grown here already
Puy green lentils
Grown in France and mostly sold raw. Processing it here would keep the margin here.
The maths for an entrepreneur. France produces about US$3,366 billion a year, which is roughly US$48,986 per person (2025, World Bank). Farming is 1.4% of that, while food is 10.6% of everything the country imports. The country buys in more food than its own farms contribute to the economy, and every point of that gap is a business someone could build here rather than ship in. With 31.4% of the land arable, the raw material for that is already in the ground.
See the verified makersCulture in France.
UNESCO listed in 2012
Breton fest-noz
A festive night of traditional Breton dances with singing or live music, with about a thousand held every year.
Biniou and bombarde
The pair of biniou and bombarde players remains an emblem of Breton music, heard at festoù-noz, contests, parades and festivals throughout the year.
UNESCO urgent safeguarding list since 2009Corsican paghjella singingA male Corsican singing tradition in which three voices always enter in the same order, sung in church and in daily life.
Does France protect its heritage by law?
Partly, and the gaps say as much as the protections.
What is kept alive. France is a modern secular society that nonetheless keeps strong regional living traditions. The Breton fest-noz dance and music gathering is inscribed by UNESCO and is played on the biniou bagpipe and bombard. Corsican polyphonic paghjella singing, also UNESCO listed, continues, alongside Basque and Occitan music and dance and a calendar of regional festivals.
Who it belongs to. France channels tourism into rural areas through an extensive network of gîtes, farm stays and AOC wine and food regions, and rooted regional cultures from Brittany to the Basque Country and Corsica remain strong. Spending nonetheless concentrates heavily in Paris and on the Côte d'Azur.
Only here. Champagne, which may legally come only from the Champagne region under its protected designation of origin.
The Future of France.
Three futures for France, every one run forward from measured data.
Where the making actually happens
Named craft workshops on the open map: Absolument créatif, Alex Jumilly, Ame d'art, Api Ways, Artcolore, Artichoke.
Every measured trend on one line
Run forward at the pace already recorded.
World Bank open data, recorded series
How much forest is left?
Forest cover moved from 27.6% to 32.9% across 29 recorded years.
How clean is the grid?
Renewable electricity moved from 15.3% to 22.8% across 26 recorded years.
How much climate pollution per person?
CO2 per person moved from 6.41 t to 4 t across 29 recorded years.
How many people visit?
Tourist arrivals moved from 148,263k to 117,109k across 24 recorded years.
How much land is protected?
Protected land moved from 25.4% to 28.8% across 12 recorded years.
How many people still farm?
Farm workforce moved from 4.64% to 2.33% across 30 recorded years.
How much sea is protected?
Protected sea moved from 20.4% to 49.2% across 12 recorded years.
How much land is farmed?
Agricultural land moved from 55.9% to 52.8% across 29 recorded years.
How fast is it urbanising?
Urban population moved from 75.1% to 78.8% across 30 recorded years.
Is the air getting cleaner?
Air pollution moved from 19.2 µg/m³ to 8.23 µg/m³ across 28 recorded years.
Is water getting scarcer?
Fresh water per person moved from 3,359 m³ to 2,933 m³ across 27 recorded years.
Is diet-related disease rising?
Adult overweight moved from 41.1% to 34.3% across 27 recorded years.
Who has power?
Electricity access moved from 100% to 100% across 29 recorded years.
Is income rising?
GDP per person moved from 26,792 to 48,986 across 30 recorded years.
How fast is it growing?
Population moved from 59,541k to 68,720k across 30 recorded years.
What share of all energy is renewable?
Renewable energy use moved from 10.7% to 16.2% across 26 recorded years.
How much energy does one person use?
Energy per person moved from 3,976 kg to 3,183 kg across 29 recorded years.
How much land and sea is protected together?
Protected area, total moved from 23.5% to 36.7% across 12 recorded years.
How long do people live?
Life expectancy moved from 77.8 yrs to 83 yrs across 29 recorded years.
How much does a hectare of cereal produce?
Cereal yield moved from 6,456 kg/ha to 6,281 kg/ha across 29 recorded years.
How much fertiliser goes on the land?
Fertiliser use moved from 270 kg/ha to 155 kg/ha across 29 recorded years.
How many people still live rurally?
Rural population moved from 24.9% to 21.2% across 30 recorded years.
How much value per cubic metre of water?
Water productivity moved from 51.6 $/m3 to 108 $/m3 across 27 recorded years.
How much goes on health?
Health spending moved from 9.62% to 11.5% across 24 recorded years.
How much forest is there in total?
Forest area moved from 148,620 km2 to 177,950 km2 across 30 recorded years.
How much electricity per person?
Electric power use moved from 6,622 kWh to 6,536 kWh across 30 recorded years.
How have agriculture emissions moved?
Agriculture emissions moved from 89.1 to 67.09 MtCO2e across 33 recorded years.
Climate Watch (WRI), historical emissions
How have building emissions moved?
Building emissions moved from 89.55 to 49.52 MtCO2e across 33 recorded years.
Climate Watch (WRI), historical emissions
How have electricity/heat emissions moved?
Electricity/Heat emissions moved from 75.14 to 44.41 MtCO2e across 33 recorded years.
Climate Watch (WRI), historical emissions
How have energy emissions moved?
Energy emissions moved from 355.38 to 271.13 MtCO2e across 33 recorded years.
Climate Watch (WRI), historical emissions
How have industrial processes emissions moved?
Industrial Processes emissions moved from 45.44 to 19.7 MtCO2e across 33 recorded years.
Climate Watch (WRI), historical emissions
How have manufacturing/construction emissions moved?
Manufacturing/Construction emissions moved from 60.87 to 38.74 MtCO2e across 33 recorded years.
Climate Watch (WRI), historical emissions
Worst caseCurrent pathBest case
Worst case
Every measured decline continues at the pace already recorded. The weakest pillar, plant-based eating at 3/5, is the one that gives way first.
Computed from: recorded series extended with no policy change
What the best case actually asks for
Lift plant-based eating
It scores 3 out of 5 today, among the weakest parts of France's record. Everyday plant foods include bread, potatoes, Puy green lentils, dried beans, ratatouille vegetables, chestnuts and, in the south, olives and olive oil.
measured each year
Costs: spending and enforcement, not new technology
Lift wildlife
It scores 3 out of 5 today, among the weakest parts of France's record. The Camargue delta is famous for flamingos, white horses and black bulls, and large carnivores are returning: wolves recolonised naturally from Italy from around 1992 and brown bears were reintroduced to the Pyrenees using Slovenian stock.
measured each year
Costs: spending and enforcement, not new technology
Lift heritage
It scores 3 out of 5 today, among the weakest parts of France's record. France is a modern secular society that nonetheless keeps strong regional living traditions. The Breton fest-noz dance and music gathering is inscribed by UNESCO and is played on the biniou bagpipe and bombard.
measured each year
Costs: spending and enforcement, not new technology
Government and Goals in France.
Who is in charge of France now · Office-holders from the UN Protocol and Liaison Service public list of Heads of State and Heads of Government, 20 October 2026. Legislature and election dates from IFES ElectionGuide. Constitution dates from the Constitute Project. Governance scores from the World Bank Worldwide Governance Indicators 2024.
Sébastien Lecornu
Head of government
Sébastien Lecornu is the head of government of France, in office since 10 September 2025. Every climate, protection and energy pledge on this page is delivered, or not, under this administration.
Public opinion, measured
Voice and accountability, the freedom to question government scores 79.0 out of 100 in 2025. On this World Bank scale, 100 is the strongest governance measured. Up from 78.8 in 2024. World Bank Worldwide Governance Indicators, 2025 data (updated 25 September 2026)
Control of corruption scores 73.1 out of 100 in 2025. On this World Bank scale, 100 is the strongest governance measured. Down from 73.4 in 2024. World Bank Worldwide Governance Indicators, 2025 data (updated 25 September 2026)
Political stability and absence of violence scores 64.0 out of 100 in 2025. On this World Bank scale, 100 is the strongest governance measured. Up from 62.8 in 2024. World Bank Worldwide Governance Indicators, 2025 data (updated 25 September 2026)
Rule of law scores 74.6 out of 100 in 2025. On this World Bank scale, 100 is the strongest governance measured. Down from 75.0 in 2024. World Bank Worldwide Governance Indicators, 2025 data (updated 25 September 2026)
Regulatory quality scores 72.5 out of 100 in 2025. On this World Bank scale, 100 is the strongest governance measured. Down from 73.6 in 2024. World Bank Worldwide Governance Indicators, 2025 data (updated 25 September 2026)
Sébastien LecornuPrime Minister
Parliament (Parlement)Legislature, bicameral
Last election30 June 2024 to 7 July 2024
Constitution1958, as revised to 2024
Government typesemi-presidential republic
France national goals: climate commitments on record · as recorded by Climate Watch, World Resources Institute
Plain Answers About France.
The questions people actually type, answered in full sentences from the sourced data above.
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Is France sustainable?
France scores 78 out of 100 on the Throne Eco Index, across twelve equally weighted pillars. The EU's leading farm nation and the world's largest flax grower, with deep regional food cultures and returning Alpine and Pyrenean wildlife.
Is the water in France safe and plentiful?
France is well watered by major rivers including the Loire, Rhône, Seine and Garonne alongside extensive groundwater, and tap water is safe nationwide with 99.7% of people on safely managed supply in 2024 (JMP). A free carafe of tap water is standard in restaurants.
Can France feed itself?
France is the European Union's leading agricultural producer and a long-established net agri-food exporter, notably of wheat, dairy, sugar-beet and wine, so its food-import dependence is low. Farming spans almost every temperate product from cereals to fruit and livestock.
Is it easy to eat plant-based in France?
Everyday plant foods include bread, potatoes, Puy green lentils, dried beans, ratatouille vegetables, chestnuts and, in the south, olives and olive oil. Classic French cuisine is nonetheless built on meat, butter and cheese, and a strong wholefood or vegetarian tradition is recent and mainly urban.
How much of France is actually protected?
The World Bank reports 28.8% of French land and 49.2% of its seas as protected in 2025, but the marine figure is inflated by vast protected areas around overseas territories such as the French Southern and Antarctic Lands. Protection of metropolitan coastal waters is far lower and Natura 2000 marine sites are often lightly managed.
What wildlife is left in France?
The Camargue delta is famous for flamingos, white horses and black bulls, and large carnivores are returning: wolves recolonised naturally from Italy from around 1992 and brown bears were reintroduced to the Pyrenees using Slovenian stock. Alpine wildlife includes ibex, chamois and marmots, though endemism in mainland France is modest.
Is France on clean energy?
France runs one of the lowest-carbon electricity systems among large economies, with nuclear power supplying around 65 to 70 per cent of generation and hydropower, wind and solar taking most of the rest, giving a grid that is more than 90 per cent low-carbon. Fossil CO2 emissions are about 4.3 tonnes per person in 2023, well below most wealthy nations, although France's consumption-based carbon footprint is considerably higher at around 9.4 tonnes once imports are counted. France pursues its low-carbon strategy with a legislated net-zero target for 2050.
How polluted is France?
France backs the EU single-use-plastics ban with its own AGEC anti-waste law, which targets an end to single-use plastic packaging by 2040, though the decree banning plastic packaging on loose fruit and vegetables was annulled by the Conseil d'Etat on 8 November 2024. Air quality is improving but population-weighted PM2.5 was still 10.4 µg/m³ in 2022 (World Bank), about double the WHO guideline.
Does recycling work in France?
Eurostat records a 40.9% municipal recycling rate for 2024, mid-table for the European Union and below leaders such as Germany.
Is the farming in France organic?
Eurostat estimates just under 10% of French farmland was organic in 2024 at 9.5%, broadly in line with Agence Bio's figures. Organic area has grown steadily over the past decade.
Are there natural materials and craft in France?
France is the world's largest producer of flax, supplying around 75% of global flax fibre in 2022, with Normandy one of the three main growing regions, and linen is a thriving modern industry. Wool and hemp traditions also persist.
Is there living culture in France?
France channels tourism into rural areas through an extensive network of gîtes, farm stays and AOC wine and food regions, and rooted regional cultures from Brittany to the Basque Country and Corsica remain strong. Spending nonetheless concentrates heavily in Paris and on the Côte d'Azur.
What heritage does France keep alive?
France is a modern secular society that nonetheless keeps strong regional living traditions. The Breton fest-noz dance and music gathering is inscribed by UNESCO and is played on the biniou bagpipe and bombard. Corsican polyphonic paghjella singing, also UNESCO listed, continues, alongside Basque and Occitan music and dance and a calendar of regional festivals.
So is France actually green? The measured answer
What is working: land protected at 28.8%, sea protected at 49.2%.
What is not: renewable electricity at 22.8% against a 100% mark.
How France Ranks, region and world.
Where France sits on the Eco Index, against its Europe neighbours and the 77 destinations scored worldwide.
How does France compare in Europe?
1Switzerland78
3Finland77
4Slovenia77
5Portugal75
Scored Europe destinations, Eco Index.
The global top 10 of the 77 destinations scored
1Switzerland78
3Finland77
4Slovenia77
5Australia77
6Portugal75
7Germany75
8New Zealand75
9Italy73
10Spain73
France sits 2 of 77 at 78/100. Every name links to its own destination page, built exactly like this one. The full ranking
What is France particularly good at?
✓ Conservation, scored 5/5. The World Bank reports 28.8% of French land and 49.2% of its seas as protected in 2025, but the marine figure is inflated by vast protected areas around overseas territories such as the French Southern and Antarctic Lands. Protection of metropolitan coastal waters is far lower and Natura 2000 marine sites are often lightly managed.
✓ Energy, scored 5/5. France runs one of the lowest-carbon electricity systems among large economies, with nuclear power supplying around 65 to 70 per cent of generation and hydropower, wind and solar taking most of the rest, giving a grid that is more than 90 per cent low-carbon. Fossil CO2 emissions are about 4.3 tonnes per person in 2023, well below most wealthy nations, although France's consumption-based carbon footprint is considerably higher at around 9.4 tonnes once imports are counted. France pursues its low-carbon strategy with a legislated net-zero target for 2050. The clean grid and firm policy secure a solid 4.
✓ Water, scored 4/5. France is well watered by major rivers including the Loire, Rhône, Seine and Garonne alongside extensive groundwater, and tap water is safe nationwide with 99.7% of people on safely managed supply in 2024 (JMP). A free carafe of tap water is standard in restaurants.
Where does France score worst?
✕ Plant-based eating, scored 3/5. Everyday plant foods include bread, potatoes, Puy green lentils, dried beans, ratatouille vegetables, chestnuts and, in the south, olives and olive oil. Classic French cuisine is nonetheless built on meat, butter and cheese, and a strong wholefood or vegetarian tradition is recent and mainly urban.
✕ Wildlife, scored 3/5. The Camargue delta is famous for flamingos, white horses and black bulls, and large carnivores are returning: wolves recolonised naturally from Italy from around 1992 and brown bears were reintroduced to the Pyrenees using Slovenian stock. Alpine wildlife includes ibex, chamois and marmots, though endemism in mainland France is modest.
✕ Heritage, scored 3/5. France is a modern secular society that nonetheless keeps strong regional living traditions. The Breton fest-noz dance and music gathering is inscribed by UNESCO and is played on the biniou bagpipe and bombard. Corsican polyphonic paghjella singing, also UNESCO listed, continues, alongside Basque and Occitan music and dance and a calendar of regional festivals. These living regional cultures place France in the middle band rather than higher.
A note from the lens of mother natureSwipe
Plant-based eating, 3/5
Everyday plant foods include bread, potatoes, Puy green lentils, dried beans, ratatouille vegetables, chestnuts and, in the south, olives and olive oil. Classic French cuisine is nonetheless built on meat, butter and cheese, and a strong wholefood or vegetarian tradition is recent and mainly urban.
Consequence: It is the lowest-scoring part of France's record, so it is where the score moves first.
Wildlife, 3/5
The Camargue delta is famous for flamingos, white horses and black bulls, and large carnivores are returning: wolves recolonised naturally from Italy from around 1992 and brown bears were reintroduced to the Pyrenees using Slovenian stock.
Heritage, 3/5
France is a modern secular society that nonetheless keeps strong regional living traditions. The Breton fest-noz dance and music gathering is inscribed by UNESCO and is played on the biniou bagpipe and bombard.
The France Directory.
Everything on Hold The Throne that sits in France, checked and listed.
How the rest of the world scores France
Independent global indices, for calibration.
Forest cover
32.9
World Bank, 2024.
Protected land
28.8
World Bank, 2025.
Protected sea
49.2
World Bank, 2025.
Renewable grid
22.8
World Bank, 2021.
CO2 per person
4.0t
World Bank, 2024.
Threatened species
172 (mammals, birds, fish & plants)
Recorded figure, sourced on this page.
Control of corruption
73.1 / 100
World Bank Worldwide Governance Indicators, 2025. Score from 0 to 100, where 100 is the strongest governance.
Government effectiveness
77.1 / 100
World Bank Worldwide Governance Indicators, 2025. Score from 0 to 100, where 100 is the strongest governance.
Rule of law
74.6 / 100
World Bank Worldwide Governance Indicators, 2025. Score from 0 to 100, where 100 is the strongest governance.
Political stability
64.0 / 100
World Bank Worldwide Governance Indicators, 2025. Score from 0 to 100, where 100 is the strongest governance.
Voice and accountability
79.0 / 100
World Bank Worldwide Governance Indicators, 2025. Score from 0 to 100, where 100 is the strongest governance.
Environmental Performance Index
69.8 / 100 · 7 of 177
Yale Environmental Performance Index 2026, ranked 7 of 177 countries assessed.
Ecosystem vitality
56.9 / 100 · 21 of 177
Yale Environmental Performance Index 2026, ranked 21 of 177 countries assessed.
Biodiversity and habitat
55.7 / 100 · 41 of 177
Yale Environmental Performance Index 2026, ranked 41 of 177 countries assessed.
Air quality
84.9 / 100 · 12 of 177
Yale Environmental Performance Index 2026, ranked 12 of 177 countries assessed.
Terrestrial biomes protected
86.6 / 100 · 37 of 177
Yale Environmental Performance Index 2026, ranked 37 of 177 countries assessed.
Marine habitat protected
73.0 / 100 · 5 of 111
Yale Environmental Performance Index 2026, ranked 5 of 111 countries assessed.
How France Is Scored. The Throne Standard.
Every destination on the index is scored the same way, so a 4 in Barbados means exactly what a 4 means in Iceland. No self-declared data and no brochure claims are accepted. Seven pillars are scored from published measurements with the same fixed thresholds everywhere: energy (low-carbon share of electricity, 90% or more scores 5, 70% 4, 50% 3, 25% 2), conservation (land and sea protected), water (safe drinking water, wastewater treated, water stress), organic farmland, recycling, food import dependence and air quality. Where a measurement is not published for a place, that pillar keeps its source-assessed score and is labelled as such. Wildlife, culture, heritage, materials and plant-based eating have no comparable measurement and are assessed from the named sources. The Eco Index is the average of the twelve pillar scores multiplied by 20. Every figure on this page carries its named source and year, and the history on each page names what empire took as plainly as it scores the present.
The 12 pillars every destination is scored on, equally weighted
01
Water
Safe drinking water, wastewater treated and water stress. Measured.
02
Food & farming
How much of the import bill is food: whether the place feeds itself. Measured.
03
Plant-based
How easy it is to eat plant-based, from documented sources.
04
Organic
Certified organic share of farmland. Measured.
05
Conservation
Land and sea legally protected, against the 30 by 30 goal. Measured.
06
Wildlife
What survives, what is endemic, what is lost, from documented sources.
07
Materials
Local natural fibres and craft, from documented sources.
08
Pollution
Air quality (PM2.5, measured) and plastics and waste policy.
09
Recycling
Share of municipal waste recycled. Measured.
10
Energy
Low-carbon share of electricity, nuclear included. Measured.
11
Culture
Living culture and community-led visits, from documented sources.
12
Heritage
What the law keeps standing, from documented sources.
What each 0 to 5 pillar score means, in plain words
0
Absent
nothing verifiable exists
1
Failing
measurably going the wrong way
2
Weak
claims outrun delivery
3
Fair
real effort, mixed results
4
Strong
genuinely good, evidence named
5
Leading
world class, and the trend holds
Where the numbers come from.
The institutions above are the ones cited on this page, ranked by how many of its figures they carry. This same sectioned page renders for all 77 scored destinations, each with its own researched history, comparison charts and three-way future. Read the full methodology
Every figure on this page, and where it came from: 85 sources across 29 institutions
World Bank15 FIGURES
- Forest area (% of land area) AG.LND.FRST.ZS, 2023 check
- Marine protected areas (% of territorial waters) ER.MRN.PTMR.ZS, 2025 check
- PM2.5 mean annual exposure EN.ATM.PM25.MC.M3, 2022 check
- CO2 emissions per capita EN.GHG.CO2.PC.CE.AR5, 2024 check
- Threatened species (mammals EN.MAM.THRD.NO, birds EN.BIR.THRD.NO, fish EN.FSH.THRD.NO, higher plants EN.HPT.THRD.NO), 2022 check
- Renewable electricity output (% of total) EG.ELC.RNEW.ZS, 2021 check
- GDP (current US$) NY.GDP.MKTP.CD, 2025 check
- International tourist arrivals ST.INT.ARVL, 2020 check
- Agricultural land (% of land area) AG.LND.AGRI.ZS, 2023 check
- Arable land (% of land area) AG.LND.ARBL.ZS, 2023 check
- Agriculture, value added (% of GDP) NV.AGR.TOTL.ZS, 2025 check
- Renewable internal freshwater per capita (m3) ER.H2O.INTR.PC, 2022 check
- Safely managed sanitation (% of population) SH.STA.SMSS.ZS, 2024 check
- Overweight prevalence, adults (%) SH.STA.OWAD.ZS, 2022 check
- Population total SP.POP.TOTL, 2025 check
Other published sources11 FIGURES
- The implementing decree of 20 June 2023 was annulled by the Conseil d'Etat on 8 November 2024, so all fresh fruit and vegetables may again be sold in plastic; the AGEC article 7 target is specifically single-use plastic packaging by 2040 check
- Andrena bicolor does not appear on the IUCN Red List at all in the IUCN snapshot published 28 July 2026; it is a common bee with 1,170 GBIF occurrence records in France check
- No credible source supports a one-third world share; the flax industry body names Normandy as one of France's three main growing regions, and French regional sources place it nearer 40 to 50 per cent, so the specific figure is removed rather than replaced with a guess check
- Fiche d'inventaire du patrimoine culturel immateriel: Le fest-noz (PCI.bzh, Bretagne Culture Diversite), The Breton fest-noz dance and music gathering is inscribed by UNESCO and is played on the biniou bagpipe and b check
- Fiche d'inventaire du patrimoine culturel immateriel: Le fest-noz (PCI.bzh, Bretagne Culture Diversite) corroboration check
- Fiche d'inventaire du patrimoine culturel immateriel: Le fest-noz (PCI.bzh, Bretagne Culture Diversite) corroboration check
- Fiche d'inventaire du patrimoine culturel immateriel: Le fest-noz (PCI.bzh, Bretagne Culture Diversite) corroboration check
- Cantu in paghjella: Patrimoine Culturel Immateriel et nouvelles technologies dans le projet i-Treasures (HAL, CNRS open archive), Corsican polyphonic paghjella singing, also UNESCO listed, continues, alongside Basque and Occitan music and d check
- Cantu in paghjella: Patrimoine Culturel Immateriel et nouvelles technologies dans le projet i-Treasures (HAL, CNRS open archive) corroboration check
- Cantu in paghjella: Patrimoine Culturel Immateriel et nouvelles technologies dans le projet i-Treasures (HAL, CNRS open archive) corroboration check
- Cantu in paghjella: Patrimoine Culturel Immateriel et nouvelles technologies dans le projet i-Treasures (HAL, CNRS open archive) corroboration check
Eurostat9 FIGURES
- Area under organic farming sdg_02_40, 2024 check
- Recycling rate of municipal waste cei_wm011, 2024 check
- UN SDG Global Database, electronic waste recycled (%) EN_EWT_RCYR, France, 2018 (74.2%), country-reported check
- Statistics Explained: Performance of the agricultural sector, The EU's leading farm nation and the world's largest flax grower, with deep regional food cultures and returni check
- Statistics Explained: Performance of the agricultural sector corroboration check
- Statistics Explained: Performance of the agricultural sector corroboration check
- Statistics Explained: Performance of the agricultural sector corroboration check
- recycling rate of municipal waste (cei_wm011) check
- municipal waste by treatment operation (env_wasmun) check
FishBase species summary5 FIGURES
- Myliobatis aquila, Critically Endangered on the IUCN Red List, and recorded in France in GBIF occurrence data (shark or ray). check
- Myliobatis aquila corroboration check
- Anguilla anguilla, Critically Endangered on the IUCN Red List, and recorded in France in GBIF occurrence data (species). check
- Anguilla anguilla corroboration check
- Anguilla anguilla corroboration check
Archives nationales de France4 FIGURES
- Exposition du decret d'abolition de l'esclavage de 1848, Slavery was abolished in the colonies in 1848, women voted for the first time in 1945, and occupation from 194 check
- Exposition du decret d'abolition de l'esclavage de 1848 corroboration check
- Exposition du decret d'abolition de l'esclavage de 1848 corroboration check
- Exposition du decret d'abolition de l'esclavage de 1848 corroboration check
UNESCO Institute for Statistics4 FIGURES
BirdLife International, IUCN and UNEP-WCMC3 FIGURES
- UN SDG Global Database, terrestrial Key Biodiversity Areas covered by protected areas (%) ER_PTD_TERR, France, 2025 (81.1%), country-reported check
- UN SDG Global Database, marine Key Biodiversity Areas covered by protected areas (%) ER_MRN_MPA, France, 2025 (80.9%), country-reported check
- UN SDG Global Database, freshwater Key Biodiversity Areas covered by protected areas (%) ER_PTD_FRHWTR, France, 2025 (78.0%), country-reported check
FAO, Global Forest Resources Assessment3 FIGURES
- UN SDG Global Database, forest area (% of land area) AG_LND_FRST, France, 2025 (33.0%), country-reported check
- UN SDG Global Database, forest area under a long-term management plan (%) AG_LND_FRSTMGT, France, 2025 (48.0%), country-reported check
- UN SDG Global Database, forest area inside legally established protected areas (%) AG_LND_FRSTPRCT, France, 2025 (24.3%), country-reported check
IUCN3 FIGURES
- Red List Categories and Criteria, version 3.1, second edition (2012), Critically Endangered, the last IUCN category before Extinct in the Wild, and still recorded in France. check
- Red List Categories and Criteria, version 3.1, second edition (2012) corroboration check
- Red List Categories and Criteria, version 3.1, second edition (2012) corroboration check
Musee d'Histoire de Marseille3 FIGURES
- Le Port antique (Musees de Marseille, Ville de Marseille), Greek settlers founded Massalia around 600 BC, the port that became Marseille and France's oldest city. check
- Le Port antique (Musees de Marseille, Ville de Marseille) corroboration check
- Le Port antique (Musees de Marseille, Ville de Marseille) corroboration check
FAO2 FIGURES
GBIF occurrence search2 FIGURES
RTE2 FIGURES
UICN Comite francais2 FIGURES
- MNHN, FCBN and AFB, La Liste rouge des especes menacees en France: Flore vasculaire de France metropolitaine, Critically Endangered on the IUCN Red List, and recorded in France in GBIF occurrence data (plant). check
- MNHN, FCBN and AFB, La Liste rouge des especes menacees en France: Flore vasculaire de France metropolitaine corroboration check
UN Comtrade2 FIGURES
WHO/UNICEF Joint Monitoring Programme2 FIGURES
Climate Watch (WRI)1 FIGURE
- Net-Zero Tracker check
Constitute Project1 FIGURE
- France 1958 (rev. 2024) check
Ember1 FIGURE
- France electricity data (nuclear and low-carbon share). check
Heritage is one of three pillars tied on 3 out of 51 FIGURE
- alongside plant-based food and wildlife; the page's own best-case text already says "among the weakest parts" check
IEA, World Energy Balances1 FIGURE
- UN SDG Global Database, renewable share of total final energy consumption (%) EG_FEC_RNEW, France, 2023 (18.4%), modelled estimate check
IFES ElectionGuide1 FIGURE
- France elections and chambers check
Insee1 FIGURE
- France greenhouse gas emissions and carbon footprint, 2023. check
Our World in Data / Ember1 FIGURE
- Share of electricity from renewables, 2024 check
UN Protocol and Liaison Service1 FIGURE
- Heads of State, Heads of Government and Ministers for Foreign Affairs, public list dated 20 October 2026 check
UNESCO1 FIGURE
- Intangible Cultural Heritage Lists check
World Bank / UNEP-WCMC WDPA1 FIGURE
- Terrestrial protected areas ER.LND.PTLD.ZS, 2025 check
World Bank / WHO-UNICEF JMP1 FIGURE
- Safely managed drinking water SH.H2O.SMDW.ZS, 2024 check
World Nuclear Association1 FIGURE
- Nuclear Power in France. check