Comparative analysis of environmental sustainability indicators: Insights from Japan, Bangladesh, and Thailand

This study analyses environmental sustainability indicators (ESIs) and explores their governance challenges in developing countries (Bangladesh and Thailand) and advances possible remedies in light of the practices of a developed country (Japan). A comparative analysis of countries' performance based on the ESIs could help identify useful practices from countries with high ESI to improve the poor ESI countries. While it is broadly understood that renewable energy and effective governance support environmental sustainability, our findings extend this knowledge by detailing how these factors interact specifically within the contexts of developed and developing nations. The analysis delineates the complex relationship between GDP growth, fossil fuel reliance, and sustainability efforts, offering a detailed examination of the variance in ESI performance across these countries. Beyond established notions, this study empirically validates the relationships between environmental sustainability (ES) and its influencing factors, providing a country-specific analysis that emphasizes the differential impact of renewable energy adoption, governance quality, and economic policies on environmental sustainability in Japan, Bangladesh, and Thailand. The results also revealed that Bangladesh's performance in terms of majority ESIs ranges from bad to worse, while Japan exhibits good performance in all its ESI indicators except for emissions. Thailand's ESI performance indicates its vulnerability to climate disasters and slow growth of renewable energy. The ESI measures of Thailand have shown its susceptibility to climate-related calamities and a slowdown in the rate of renewable energy implementation. A noticeable discrepancy in the execution of regulatory frameworks was noted between developing countries, such as Bangladesh, and industrialized ones, such as Japan. The outstanding results of Japan's ESI may be credited to the successful practices of its citizens and their strong devotion to the rule of law.