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Policy indexes � what do they tell us and what are their applications? The case of climate policy and business planning in emerging markets

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  • Swenja Surminski
  • Andrew Williamson

Abstract

The last two decades have witnessed an explosion in the publication of country indexes that measure and rank the relative policy performances of governments. Whilst there is a well understood audience for such rankings amongst policy-makers and the media, much less is known about their use and applicability to business users and business planning. In this study we explore if and how policy indexes can assist business decision-making and compare and contrast the strength and weaknesses of using indexes between their current target audience of government decision makers and business planners. We focus on one particular area � climate policy � where several of these types of indexes have been developed, all with different aims, varying in investigation of the information content of these climate change indexes and by a number of stakeholder interviews with business representatives. Despite several challenges and limitations to the use of policy indexes by business leaders, we suggest that the need for data and information to support business planning and market entry decisions is strong � particularly in emerging markets and in sectors that face political uncertainty.

Suggested Citation

  • Swenja Surminski & Andrew Williamson, 2012. "Policy indexes � what do they tell us and what are their applications? The case of climate policy and business planning in emerging markets," GRI Working Papers 88, Grantham Research Institute on Climate Change and the Environment.
    • Handle: RePEc:lsg:lsgwps:wp88
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    1. Muscillo, Alessio & Re, Simona & Gambacorta, Sergio & Ferrara, Giuseppe & Tagliafierro, Nicola & Borello, Emiliano & Rubino, Alessandro & Facchini, Angelo, 2023. "An open data index to assess the green transition - A study on all Italian municipalities," Ecological Economics, Elsevier, vol. 212(C).
    2. Mavisakalyan, Astghik & Tarverdi, Yashar, 2019. "Gender and climate change: Do female parliamentarians make difference?," European Journal of Political Economy, Elsevier, vol. 56(C), pages 151-164.
    3. Scott, Daniel & Hall, C. Michael & Gössling, Stefan, 2019. "Global tourism vulnerability to climate change," Annals of Tourism Research, Elsevier, vol. 77(C), pages 49-61.
    4. Ellis Wongsearaya, 2022. "An Agricultural ‘Systems-Based’ Framework For Indexing Potential Exposure To Farming Pesticides: Test Findings From Asia-Pacific, And Asean," Malaysian Journal of Sustainable Agriculture (MJSA), Zibeline International Publishing, vol. 6(2), pages 131-141, March.
    5. Julian Dieler, 2016. "Effectiveness of Climate Policies: Empirical Methods and Evidence," ifo Beiträge zur Wirtschaftsforschung, ifo Institute - Leibniz Institute for Economic Research at the University of Munich, number 68.

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