Climate Change Main Topic for 7 Sep 2006 Issue of ‘Economist’

Not only did the Economist feature a 16 page spread on global climate change issues this month, but the magazine’s Deputy Editor, Emma Duncan, took it one step further.  She directly addressed the environmental impact of producing and distributing the magazine and arranged for the spread to be carbon-neutralized.

According to Duncan, “We need to think about climate change maybe as individuals think about insuring their houses: you spend maybe 1% of your annual income insuring your house not because you think it's going to burn down, but because if by any chance it did burn down, the consequences for you would be disastrous.”

Climate Change Topics in the Economist Include:

1. The heat is on
   • The uncertainty surrounding climate change argues for action, not inaction. America should lead the way
2. In the loop
   • Warming may set off mechanisms that make it warmer still
3. Those in peril by the sea
   • Two of the big risks from climate change are a shutdown of the Gulf Stream and a rise in sea levels
4. Bringing back the barley
   • Mild weather in Greenland pleases some but not others
5. Reaping the whirlwind
   • Hurricanes used to be thought unconnected to climate change. Now a link is emerging
6. Where the wild things are
   • Not where they used to be, as the world gets warmer
7. Dismal calculations
   • The economics of living with climate change—or mitigating it
8. Selling hot air
   • Kyoto's main achievement was to create a market in carbon. It's flawed, but better than nothing
9. Anti-hero
   • Within a decade, China will emit more greenhouse gases than any other country
10. A coat of green
    • Business is becoming more environment-minded, but only because government is pushing
11. Doing it their way
    • American attitudes to global warming are complex, and are changing
12. Where to start
    • Technological and economic solutions to climate change are available. The problem is politics

by
Erin Swanson
ESwanson@enviance.com