October 30th, 2006, the British Government released a 700-page report titled the “Stern Review on the Economics of Climate Change”. It was written by economist Nicholas Stern chairman of the Grantham Research Institute on Climate Change and the Environment at the London School of Economics. The report basically discusses the issue of “global warming” in terms of the world economy. The summary of the review states:
“The Review first examines the evidence on the economic impacts of climate change itself, and explores the economics of stabilising greenhouse gases in the atmosphere. The second half of the Review considers the complex policy challenges involved in managing the transition to a low-carbon economy and in ensuring that societies can adapt to the consequences of climate change that can no longer be avoided” (You can download the executive summary here)
Basically, the review argues that it would be strongly advised and a smart move to act now about these global warming issues, and that there will be benefits if the companies were to act now, but disaster if we leave it for later. Some of the things discussed:
- For example, the cost of climate change mitigation, basically reducing the severity of the issue, will be 1% of annual GDP by 2050 if we ACT NOW, 5-20% if we act LATER.
- We will gain a benefit of 2.5 trillion dollars, and global depression if we do nothing.
- We must stabilize GHGs, using carbon taxes, we can deploy low-carbon technologies, and we need to reduce 80-90% below 1990 levels by 2050 in developed countries.
- There is still time to avoid the worst impacts of climate change if strong collective action starts now.
Like my previous posts suggested, I think that the media is a great way of spreading the word, and now I argue that major corporations are the same as well. May it be Coca-Cola, Apple, Sony, Bose, or Tim Hortons, no matter what it is, all those companies I just listed play a major role in our every day lives. Now if all these major corporations were to adapt to a new sustainability plan to fight back in this war against climate change, I think the world can change. And yes, these corporations focus on the money for most parts, but the Stern Review suggested that profits will be earned!
Of course I don’t understand anything about business or how the economy functions, even a basic understanding of economics will not get me anywhere because I don’t know how it functions in the REAL WORLD, I only know by books how it works. It will be much more complicated than the Stern Review suggests I know, but I believe however complicated it may be, if it’s for the sake of our humanity, isn’t it worth it?