Fishburn Hedges

31.08.2010

Bjorn Lomborg, once the poster boy of climate scepticism, has got a book to sell.  In a master stroke of publicity, that book will argue that climate change is real, and that we need to act now.  Such is the perceived magnitude of this volte face that The Guardian dedicates a lengthy profile piece to this today. 

Lomborg estimates that around £100bn per year is necessary to fund low carbon change, to be financed via carbon tax. 

The book itself is published next month, and the timing couldn't be better.  Ahead of Cop16 in Cancun, which many are writing off before its even got going, his focus on solutions to climate change looks helpful. 

And his contribution, as far as we can tell from its pre-release publicity, highlights two key features of the agenda on climate change. 

Firstly, that economists like Lomborg are the ones that will have the answers.  Climate change isn't a 'green issue' or one that can be solved by environmentalists.  It needs structural economic change, the like of which can only be tackled by those looking at the world via its foundations.

Secondly, that tackling climate change is going to cost you, me and everybody in the developed world a lot of money.  And that was the key stumbling block at Cop15.  Who should pay what.  We will need real vision and commitment from our leaders in Cancun to overcome that, finding ways to incentivise the change we need.