Survey says …

Although America is becoming more eco-minded, the country is still dead last on a list of 17 countries surveyed for consumer behavior toward the environment.

Greendex 2010 is the third annual worldwide tracking survey of consumer choice and the environment released by the National Geographic Society and polling firm GlobeScan. It looked at categories including food, transportation, household energy and resource use and what consumers were doing to minimize their impacts on the environment. Americans were the least sustainable in their choices, followed by Canadians and the French. The most sustainable consumers live in India, Brazil, China and Mexico, listed in descending order.

Ten of the 17 countries, including the United States, showed an increase in eco-friendly behavior over the 2008 survey, and much of the difference was due to more energy efficiency in the home. Americans, Hungarians, Brits and Australians all saw increases in the household category because of this.

The Greendex found that, out of a list of 10 obstacles to living more sustainable lifestyles, greenwashing was tops, followed by governments and industries failing to act.

Find out if you’re living more like an Indian or an American by taking a brief survey to discover your own Greendex score at www.nationalgeographic.com/greendex.