To provide estimates of urban and rural populations and land areas in the low elevation coastal zone.

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

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

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 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 insights into the processes that can negatively influence the sustainable development of countries, with particular reference to vulnerability to natural hazards.

To provide data on country-level GDP per capita and downscaled projections based on the SRES A1, A2, B1, B2 marker scenarios.

To provide data on country-level population and downscaled projections based on the SRES B2 marker scenario.

To provide data on country-level population and downscaled projections based on the SRES A1, B1, and A2 marker scenarios.

To provide tabular data on environmental conditions (elevations, climate, coastal) in which people reside.

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

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

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

To provide an assessment of potential climate change impacts on world crop production, including quantitative estimates of yield changes of major food.

To provide a baseline dataset for the evaluation of climate change impact.