Financial Transparency Coalition

There are obvious relationships between illicit financial flows, corruption, and tax evasion and environmental sustainability. For example, shell corporations can be used to mask illegal fishing or poaching. Corruption can enable companies to get around environmental compliance laws. And tax evasion can divert valuable resources away from environmental enforcement. In sum, illicit financial flows are human constructs that supplement and enhance damaging human behavior, contributing both to stagnating economic growth and worsening environmental conditions. But is there another—more direct—way to examine illicit financial flows and the environmental sustainability? The definition of sustainability isn’t as obvious as you’d think. “Sustainable” in its...