Boosting Prosperity: Reducing the Threat of Global Climate Change Through Sustainable Energy Investments

Douglas H. Ogden

January 1996

Summary

The Intergovernmental Panel in Climate Change (IPCC), an international group of 2,500 climate scientists assembled under the authority of the United l\lations to monitor global climate, recently released a report documenting the causal link between human activity and global climate change. The IPCC report declares that the 6 billion metric tons of carbon emitted into the atmosphere globally each year are indeed heating the planet. Because economic growth and energy consumption have historically marched in lockstep, there is great concern that policy measures aimed at reducing fossil-fuel use could constrain future prosperity.

Fortunately, the world need not choose between catastrophic climate change and economic growth. A host of new technologies offers the means to simultaneously boost the economy and reduce greenhouse gas emissions. So while some argue that cutting U.S. carbon dioxide emissions could be a costly drag on the economy, this report provides dozens of case studies that show the opposite: the reduction of carbon dioxide emissions can be a beneficial side effect of profitable business choices.

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1996, $15.00, E963