Measuring progress towards sustainable development requires appropriate frameworks and databases. The System of Environmental-Economic Accounts (SEEA) is undergoing continuous refinement with these objectives in mind. In SEEA, there is a need for databases to encompass the global dimension of societal metabolism. In this paper, we focus on the latest effort to construct a global multi-regional input−output database (EXIOBASE) with a focus on environmentally relevant activities. The database and its broader analytical framework allows for the as yet most detailed insight into the production-related impacts and “footprints” of our consumption. We explore the methods used to arrive at the database, and some key relationships extracted from the database.
The paper documents EXIOBASE2 for the reference year 2007. It combines national supply and use tables with international trade data and environmental and labour accounts. The database distinguishes 200 products and 163 industries across 43 countries and five rest-of-world regions. This detail helps trace resource use and emissions through international supply chains to final consumption.
The example results compare production-based accounts with consumption footprints. Wealthier countries generally have higher greenhouse gas emissions and labour requirements associated with consumption than with domestic production. The electricity comparison also shows why an assessment across several impact categories matters: a technology can reduce one environmental pressure while increasing another.
These findings refer to the database version and reference year examined in the paper. EXIOBASE2 provides a snapshot rather than an annual time series, and its regional coverage combines many countries into broader groups. Although the project explored an additional physical accounting layer, the results presented in this article do not use that layer. These boundaries matter when interpreting the findings or comparing them with later EXIOBASE versions.
