To provide search and retrieval of texts of multilateral environmental agreements (MEAs)

To provide information on the status of country participation in international environmental agreements.

To create a comparative index of national-level environmental sustainability and to provide a mechanism for making environmental management more quantitative, empirically grounded and systematic.

To provide geographical portraits of vulnerability designed to incorporate both exposure to climate change and national capacities to adapt.

To make the acquisition, comparison and analysis of sustainability indicators easier by compiling them in a single database, incorporating multiple country codes, and condensing the indicator descriptions into short methodological summaries in an accompanying data dictionary.

To provide information on the medium and long term plans for China's national economic and social development.

To provide quantitative metrics for evaluating a country's environmental performance in different policy categories relative to clearly defined targets.

To provide quantitative metrics for evaluating a country's environmental performance in different policy categories relative to clearly defined targets.

To provide quantitative metrics for evaluating a country's environmental performance in different policy categories relative to clearly defined targets.

To provide a comparative index of national-level environmental sustainability based on lessons learned from the year 2000 pilot effort.

To provide quantitative metrics for evaluating a country's environmental performance in different policy categories relative to clearly defined targets.

To test the feasibility of creating a comparative index of national-level environmental sustainability.

To provide a comparative index of national-level environmental sustainability covering a number of sustainability dimensions.