Australia ranks third last on climate change action from the world's large emitters, but has improved slightly since last year, a new report shows.
The latest Climate Change Performance Index ranks Australia ahead of only Kazakhstan and Saudi Arabia based on carbon emissions, trends, renewable energy and climate policy.
The report was launched on the sidelines of United Nations climate talks in Paris, where 196 parties are attempting to forge a historic deal to curb emissions.
Of 58 countries, Australia was 55th - jumping up one spot from last year, with the report noting improved efficiency, policy and renewables.
Australian Conservation Foundation chief executive Kelly O'Shanassy says that's because the renewable energy target wasn't cut as much as the government wanted and clean energy bodies ARENA and the CEFC have survived.
Plans to cut the two agencies stalled in the Senate, while Labor last year negotiated the Renewable Energy Target up from the government's position to slash it by a third.
But high emissions, and an absence of policies to dramatically slash them, earned Australia third last spot.
"It shows that we're absolute laggards and it is embarrassing," Ms O'Shanassy told AAP in Paris.
"We're here saying one thing in Paris, we're doing another thing back home."
Saudi Arabia has been causing trouble in the negotiations, employing common delay tactics to hold up proceedings.
"We're amongst Saudi Arabia (in the report), who have been incredibly disruptive," Ms O'Shanassy said.
At the opening of high-level negotiations on Monday, Foreign Minister Julie Bishop spruiked Australia's "ambitious" 2030 emissions reduction target of 26 to 28 per cent.
The target has been criticised as lacking ambition and placing Australia at the back of the pack, but the government maintains it's one of the strongest goals in terms of per capita emissions in the G20.
The index ranks Denmark, the United Kingdom and Sweden as the top performing countries, and places India up six spots from last year.
It's collated by Climate Action Network Europe and German Watch.
