Today, the University of Notre Dame Global Adaptation Index (ND-GAIN) released the latest data tracking vulnerability and readiness to demographic and climate change across 175 countries. The impact of Typhoon Haiyan puts a focus on the importance of building for resilience and sustainability. The ND-GAIN index demonstrates the vulnerability of the Philippines, ranked at 105 on the index, and the even greater vulnerability faced by the 72 countries with even lower rankings.

The annual index was originally launched two years ago. We like this project because it provides actionable information and because it demonstrates the value of open data. All of the data for ND-GAIN is drawn from existing open sources like the OECD and World Bank. It enables decision makers to identify areas of vulnerability and improvement. The latest data reveals that countries like Cambodia, Kenya and Haiti may need more than 100 years just to reach the readiness levels that the richest countries have already attained.

Check out index.gain.org to explore the 2013 data.