Charted: Per-Capita CO2 Emissions by Global Region (1960-2022)
By Marcus Lu, Visual Capitalist
This graphic visualizes over 60 years of per-capita CO2 emissions by region, based on analysis from Climate Watch (accessed via the World Resources Institute).
Data shows that North America has had the highest levels of per-capita CO2 emissions since 1960, though emissions have fallen significantly over the past few decades.
North America Leads
As of 2022, North America’s per-capita CO2 emissions are more than double the levels seen within the next highest regions.
This gap is largely driven by Canada and the United States. While figures vary by source, Mexico’s estimated per-capita emissions in 2022 were only around 3.4 metric tons.
Region tCO2 per Capital (2022)
North America 15
Europe & Central Asia 7
East Asia & Pacific 7
Middle East & North Africa 6
Latin America and
Caribbean 3
South Asia 2
Sub-Saharan Africa 1
Per-capita emissions have come down significantly since 1970. This is due to a combination of technological advancements, government policy shifts, and economic changes.
Technology Advancements
A key contributor to the decline in emissions is cleaner energy production. Throughout the 2000s, natural gas gradually replaced coal as the primary energy source.
Other energy sources such as nuclear, wind, and solar have further reduced dependence on fossil fuels.
Policy Shifts
In the U.S., legislation such as the Clean Air Act of 1970 have helped to reduce emissions. This act gave the federal government power to regulate air pollution from a range of sources including vehicles.
There have been several amendments to the Clean Air Act that expanded its scope of coverage.
The introduction of carbon taxes and carbon markets is also encouraging emissions reductions.
Economic Changes
Another factor at play is North America’s overall shift to a more service-based economy. The service sector typically uses less energy than the industrial sector.
This introduces the concept of “carbon leakage”, which is when companies outsource their production (and resulting emissions) to a different part of the world.